“For as little as a single euro even the most ordinary art connoisseur can join the fund-raising fraternité that is working to restore the dome of the Panthéon … Maybe you’d like to help the Louvre buy a pair of 13th-century ivory statuettes, or the Museum of Fine Arts in Lyon get the Ingres oil it so very much desires? Please?”
Tag: 12.24.12
Gangnam Style – The Perfect Contemporary Expression
“Like any good viral video, Gangnam Style put bread on the table for do-it-yourself YouTube content creators in the form of countless parodies and mashups – some of these collected a million views on their own, earning their creators a pretty penny.”
Has Jazz Mummified Itself Within The Great American Songbook?
“[The] jazz fraternity seems to know two things: Despite continued artistic quality, the audience around the music is dying. And the choice of what songs jazz musicians play – and what they don’t play – may be part of the problem.”
Redevelopment of St. Petersburg Center Threatens Historic Buildings
“City officials say the redevelopment will preserve historic buildings (if necessary by rebuilding them). They also want to rehouse people living in communal apartments, which are a throwback to the Soviet era, and create new pedestrian zones.”
Culture’s Winners This Year?
“Ladeees and gentlemen, as we come to Christmas Eve – with the last spasm of guilt-stricken shopping under way – the two most maddeningly successful productions of 2012 were …”
French Arts Budget Cuts Send Institutions Crowdfunding
“Maybe you’d like to help the Louvre buy a pair of 13th-century ivory statuettes, or the Museum of Fine Arts in Lyon get the Ingres oil it so very much desires? Please?”
Will Facebook Ruin The Gift-Giving Experience?
“In many ways social gifting shrouds purchasing in a cloak of generosity, since the social streaming context removes the gaucheness of sharing these gifts. Yet these new social features also signal a culture where broadcasting our behaviors – whether gifting or other digitally shared activities – becomes the norm rather than the exception.”
The Artists’ Response To Tragedy
“In the aftermath of both events, artists and institutions have found creative, meaningful ways to respond. One common element has been music, to help raise money, offer solace and express what cannot be articulated in words.”
So Far, e-Books Haven’t Taken Over
“Doomsday has not arrived, at least not yet. As four of the publishers have entered into settlements with regulators and revised the way they sell e-books, prices have selectively fallen but not as broadly or drastically as anticipated.”
Why Creating A Perfect Language Is Impossible (It’ll Never Stay That Way)
Amateur linguist John Quijada spent three decades creating a new language that was as perfectly logical, consistent and precise as possible. When he published his manual on the Web in 2004, specialists hailed his achievement. Then enthusiasts started using the language – and requesting changes. Then they started making the changes themselves.