Tag: 12.14.04

The Barnes Is Dead

You can move the art of the Barnes Collection, writes Edward Sozanski. But its soul will not be transported. “The uniquely idiosyncratic art school and gallery that had been one of the wonders of the American cultural landscape since the mid-1920s has been ruled officially dead. Whatever replaces it somewhere along Benjamin Franklin Parkway will be something different, perhaps better, but most likely not. Like the London Bridge that an American developer moved to the Arizona desert, the new Barnes will be a simulacrum at best, ripped from its historical context and set down where it will become just another “attraction” on Philadelphia’s developing cultural midway.”

No More Love Notes At Juliet’s House (Use Email)

Visitors to Juliet’s house in Verona are going to have to stop leaving notes on her door. “Written on post-it slips, the love notes are often attached to the medieval walls with chewing gum, creating damage and producing a rather disgusting view, according to Verona’s tourist council. After the cleaning early next year, Juliet will be given her own telephone number and email address. Lovers from all over the world will have to express their innermost feelings via text messages, which will be displayed on a giant screen inside the house.”

A Very Beethoven New Year

Japanese conductor Hiroyuki Iwaki and Japan’s NHK Orchestra will perform all nine Beethoven symphonies New Year’s Eve in a marathon concert. “Iwaki will conduct members of the NHK Orchestra, with other musicians, in a concert that begins at 3:30 p.m., and will likely last over six hours. There will be five intermissions.”

Philly Mayor: The Barnes’ New Site

A day after finding out that the Barnes Collection will be allowed to move to Philadelphia, the city’s mayor announced the new Barnes site. It will be at the Youth Study Center, which is now the city’s juvenile detention center at the corner of 20th Street and the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. “The move to the Youth Study Center, however, has some complications. The city has already bought land in West Philadelphia to build a new juvenile detention center, but that new building won’t be ready to occupy until October 2007. The Barnes however clearly wants to start building its new museum much sooner.”

Arts Funding Seesaw Bad For UK Arts

The British government’s arts funding plan is ill-advised. “Arts organisations were braced for a tough few years following the last spending review, but the decision to tilt the flow of funds so strongly from one sector (arts) to another (museums) goes against the grain. All arts and culture organisations ask for one thing: not bottomless pockets but reliable funding. Sudden sharp changes in who gets funds and who does not sets off a see-sawing of resources.”

UK Arts Funding Freeze Will Kill Momentum

Government plans to see a “4.6 per cent cut in support for English Heritage, an allocation for museums and galleries which falls far short of previous demands and budgets frozen in the performing arts. From heritage bodies, through theatre chiefs to museum directors, all expressed concern that the genuine progress of recent years would be stalled and potentially reversed by the deal.”

Arts Leaders Angry At UK Arts Funding Cut

Arts leaders reacted angrily to news that the British government intends to freeze cultural spending until 2008. This means a net decline in arts spending. “Nicholas Hytner, artistic director of the National Theatre, said he was mystified by the decision. ‘The achievements [of the past few years] will not be lost overnight; we will cope. But it is at the edge that has been most exciting and progressive that the arts will be forced to compromise’.”