Tag: 12.14.18

Naked Boys Reading (Yes, This Is An Actual Literary Event)

This “cheeky literary salon” (ahem) has been taking place for six years in an east London gay bar: curators pick readings on a particular theme and willing audience members (of varied ages and shapes) read them, on a stage and in the buff. The Economist‘s audience engagement editor shares his experience reading at a science fiction night. — 1843 Magazine

No Selling Of Secondhand Digital Recordings The Way You Can Sell Your CDs And LPs, Rules Federal Court

A company called ReDigi had developed a platform for people to offer their “pre-owned” MP3s and FLACs while making sure that the sellers didn’t keep a bootleg copy for themselves — or so they thought. Capitol Records sued, and now a federal district court and the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals have ruled that ReDidi’s business model is illegal. Cullen Seltzer explains. — Slate

Sydney’s Ambitious Public Art Plan Fights Battles

This week the construction of Cloud Arch, a Junya Ishigami-designed steel archway planned for George Street, was deferred until after the tramline is finished. Originally dubbed “the most significant artwork built in Australia in decades” by Sydney’s lord mayor, Clover Moore, the council blamed cost blowouts and obstruction by the light rail contractor Acciona. – The Guardian

Directors Of Major Arts Orgs Talk About Introducing Major Changes (And Dealing With People Who Hate Changes)

Indhu Rubasingham (who’s spent this year dealing with people campaigning the change of her theatre’s name from Tricycle to Kiln), Vicky Featherstone (Royal Court Theatre), Richard Eyre (he succeeded Peter Hall at the National Theatre), and Charles Saumarez Smith (ex-director of Royal Academy, national gallery, and National Portrait Gallery) discuss handling changes in direction and the challenges of succeeding a popular leader. — The Guardian

An Artistic Approach To Helping People Understand Dire Issues

“When I asked Olafur Eliasson about the impact of the work, he said he thinks that fear-based narratives tend to be unpersuasive, and he prefers to create a meaningful encounter with the environment to encourage change. London’s deputy mayor for culture, Justine Simons, expressed confidence that the work will change attitudes, saying at the launch that Ice Watch ‘will bring the stark reality of climate change to thousands of people in a very direct and very intimate way. It will undoubtedly inspire action’.” – Arts Professional

Regrets: I Never Knew My Father Shared My Bond With Music

“Throughout my childhood, my family had missed out on the joys of sharing music with one another. With three kids, two parents, two loud TVs, one bathroom and rarely anything approaching silence, music served as each individual’s private escape. How surprising to realize that my father had subscribed to our secret club all along. We had never listened to opera before that brief time in our lives. And after my father died, the opera music exited quietly. Pavarotti had left the building.” – The New York Times

Minnette De Silva Was One Of The Most Famous Architects In The World, And It’s Time To Re-Remember Her Work

A pioneer of Sri Lankan modernism, de Silva was the first Asian woman to become an associate of The Royal Institute of British Architects. With Sri Lankan independence, she launched her own architecture firm in Columbo, and “her trademark was to develop modernist architecture in harmony with the landscape and traditional craftsmanship.” But her studio, home, and many of her projects have fallen into disrepair and even ruin. Will there be a revival?  – The Guardian (UK)