Anne Midgette: “Hearing the quintet Sybarite5 the other night made me think of a new stereotype that’s emerged in recent years: that of the contemporary chamber music ensemble that doesn’t sound quite as good when it plays traditional classical repertory. The question is: does it need to?”
Tag: 12.22.10
Futuristic Skyscraper Planned for St. Petersburg Scrapped
“A twisting, 400m-high skyscraper, to be built overlooking the historical centre of St Petersburg, the building was to house the headquarters of the state gas monopoly, Gazprom. … This week, after months of uncertainty and contradictory statements from high-ranking Russian politicians, the final nail seems to have been hammered into the coffin of the project.”
‘The Most Fabulously Transgressive Dance Events of 2010’
Sarah Kaufman offers a different sort of critic’s year-end list – one which features Kanye West and US soldiers in Afghanistan.
Museums And Fixing The Looted Art Problem
“There is one thing museums could do that would put looters and smugglers out of business while uncovering more of the world’s cultural treasures at far lower cost: excavate archaeological sites themselves. Today this might seem a strange idea, but it’s exactly what museums like the Louvre and the British Museum did in the 19th century.”
L.A. Weekly Drops Art Critics – And Possibly Art Coverage
Last month, the paper’s longtime feature/arts editor left his job, and management has cut off the Weekly‘s two contributing art critics, Doug Harvey and Christopher Miles.
Are Americans Really As Religious As They Tell Pollsters They Are?
“Rather than ask people how often they attend church, the better studies measure what people actually do. The results are surprising. Americans are hardly more religious than people living in other industrialized countries. Yet they consistently – and more or less uniquely – want others to believe they are more religious than they really are.”
Why Are We Supposed to Kiss Under Mistletoe?
“The Druids started it. Mistletoe, a hemi-parasitic plant that grows on trees, has long been considered a cure-all with special properties. … It wasn’t until the 18th or 19th centuries, though, that the British started hanging mistletoe as part of Christmas celebrations.”
National Gallery Of Canada Seeks Legal Opinion Over Removing Photograph
“The National Gallery of Canada is seeking legal advice over a dispute between Toronto artist AA Bronson and the Washington-based National Portrait Gallery. Bronson, a former member of Toronto’s pioneering General Idea art collective, has asked the National Portrait Gallery to return his photograph from the gay-themed exhibit Hide/Seek: Difference and Desire in American Portraiture.”
My Life As A Ballerina
“Your whole self image is ballet, it’s a very narrow minded profession… your whole world is about ballet, and if you have a bad class or don’t get that part, your whole world comes crashing down.”
Beatles’ ‘Abbey Road’ Crosswalk Granted Landmark Status
“The north-west London zebra crossing traversed by the Beatles one bright morning 41 years ago” – for the cover photo on their album “Abbey Road” – “has has been granted Grade II listing” by the UK Heritage Minister.