Douglas McLennan
Doug is the editor of ArtsJournal
Hamburg Is Building A New Opera House. Its Funder Is Problematic
His family’s company, Kühne + Nagel, is one of the world’s largest logistics firms, and collaborated with the Nazi regime to transport goods stolen...
The Opera Company That Operates A Bel Canto Boot Camp
Before its opening night, Teatro Nuovo spends the summer immersing its training singers — both hired professionals and annual resident artists — in bel...
What Happened To The Grand Canyon’s Most-Famous Statue After a Recent Fire?
“From reports we received from the field, the Brighty statue did survive the fire at the Grand Canyon Lodge, however, it is heavily damaged...
The Art Of The Book Spredge
Edge-painted books are now so widespread that you can find them at Walmart. The feature has spread from romance and fantasy to horror, thrillers...
Why Chuck Mangione Endured
His hit “Feels So Good,” an instrumental pop-jazz crossover that reached No. 4 on the Billboard charts during the summer of 1978, has unexpectedly...
“Rap Act” Reintroduced In Congress: Would Ban Using Lyrics Inadmissible In Court
The bill would change the rules of evidence for federal courtrooms, making song lyrics inadmissible unless prosecutors can meet strict criteria, such as showing...
The Art World Has Fragmented Into Five Fields
These include the art-market subfield, the exhibition subfield, the academic subfield, a multitude of community-based subfields, and the field of cultural activism. While these...
LA MoCA Loses Its Fifth Director Since 2008
On Thursday, the Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania announced that Burton, 53, would be exiting the Los Angeles museum at...
AI As Academic Freedom Issue
AI is here, rather suddenly, pretty disruptively, and in a big way. Different institutions are adopting different stances and much of the adaptation is...
Columbia University’s Capitulation To Trump Is A Threat To Universities
Some say the settlement is unlawful, pointing to the quick investigation, vague allegations and unprecedented way federal funds were retracted before Columbia had a...
How Literature Explains The Attraction Of Public Shaming
This spectacle raises a deeper question: why does infidelity, especially among the powerful, provoke such public outcry. Literary tradition offers some insight: intimate betrayal...
What Powers (Almost) Everything We Do
North America’s electric system is a miracle, but also kind of a mess. - The New Atlantis
French Government Creating a Digital Twin Of Notre Dame
The French government has teamed up with tech giant Microsoft to create a “digital twin” of the 862-year-old treasure. This virtual version will be...
Artist Cancels Smithsonian Show Over Censorship Fears
Amy Sherald, the celebrated painter best known for her official portrait of Michelle Obama, has canceled an upcoming exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, citing...
Trump Dismisses Concerns Over Copyright And AI
“You can't be expected to have a successful AI program when every single article, book, or anything else that you've read or studied, you're...
Publishers Worry Trump Will Gut Copyright For AI
"You can’t be expected to have a successful AI program when every single article, book, or anything else that you’ve read or studied, you’re...
How AI Is Changing The Art (And Business) Of Acting
“Plenty of actors I’ve worked with have had that moment where they see what’s possible and realize, ‘Oh my God, this is so much...
Will A Wave Of New Online Age-Restriction Laws Chill Free Speech?
Around the world, a new wave of child protection laws are forcing a profound shift that could normalize rigorous age checks broadly across the...
Paramount’s Big “South Park” Problem After The Trump Penis Episode
The episode did not hold back on crass jokes aimed at Trump, showing him with a “teeny tiny” penis both in animation and as...
The Essentialness Of The Traditional Arts Review
Reviews are rooted in the most fundamental unit of the art business—the personal encounter with individual works (or exhibits of many works)—and in the...
France’s Culture Minister To Go On Trial For Corruption
Rachida Dati, 59, who has publicly outlined her ambition to become mayor of Paris in 2026, was charged in 2019 on suspicions she lobbied...
US Senator Proposes Anti Money-Laundering Bill For Art
The bill—titled the Art Market Integrity Act—would amend the Bank Secrecy Act to require art dealers and auction houses to comply with anti-money-laundering (AML) and...
Benedict Cumberbatch: Hollywood’s Epic Waste Problem
“It’s a grossly wasteful industry. Think about set builds that aren’t recycled, think about transport, think about food, think about housing, but also light...
Arvo Part At 90
Unlike many of his contemporaries, Pärt has found a way to speak across boundaries of culture, creed and generation. In the world of contemporary...
Are We Now Defining Ourselves By Who/What We Hate?
Descartes had a famous dictum about the constitutive powers of the thinking self: I think therefore I am. Could it be that, today, I...
