Douglas McLennan
Doug is the editor of ArtsJournal
“Seeing” Without Seeing: Perception and Consciousness
Blindsight is now a well-established clinical phenomenon. When first discovered, it seemed theoretically shocking. No one had expected there could possibly be any such...
The Curator Forced Out At The Guggenheim: A Scapegoat?
How did a simple offer, over a single painting, lead to such a spectacular destruction of someone’s life and career? The answer involves the...
We Each Perceive The World In A Different Way
We are strongly influenced by context. From the effect of shadows on how we perceive the brightness of a surface, to our tendency to...
Hollywood’s Big Art Collectors
As more and more celebrities are getting interested in collecting, LA galleries, like Various Small Fires, Sprüth Magers and M+B can barely meet the demand: “Some of...
Regal Cinemas Starts Closing Theatres
Many of the Regal Cinemas locations were run down, such as the Anaheim 14 in Anaheim, California. Others simply grew too expensive as leases...
Why Does Canada Destroy Its Architectural Heritage?
Buildings fall for a host of reasons, and their variety is on display here. Fire is a common leveller, as is urban renewal. Why...
Why Book Covers Matter
The reading world is divided between those who care about covers (specifically paperback covers) and those who find this odder than worrying what packaging...
Who Owns The Internet? (It Matters)
It is now a common belief that something has gone horribly wrong with the Internet, but as with anything so hard to define, the...
How Did “Utopia” Become A Bad Word?
For the Victorians the word “utopian” did not carry the negative connotations of impossibility, naïveté, and dunderheadedness that it does for us now—the writers...
Pakistan Cultural Sites Devastated By Historic Monsoons
“The area and number of sites involved are vast; priorities will have to be set and financial and logistical assistance sought.” - The Art Newspaper
Why Fear AI-Generated Art?
The idea that art is only art when it shows evidence of the artist’s handicraft is, at this point, so ludicrous that it barely...
Former Cleveland Museum Of Art Director Katharine Lee Reid, 80
Reid’s accomplishments at the museum included launching an 8-year, $320 million expansion and renovation, designed by architect Rafael Vinoly, that transformed the institution by...
As Live Events Return, The Streams Are Being Turned Off, Leaving An Audience Behind
The arts is celebrating going back to normal – live events are back on; streaming is being turned off – but for many of...
Let’s Protect The Piano From Conductors!
What harm is done by letting conductors into our chamber music? More than you’d suspect. Collaborative pianists — we only recently stopped calling them...
How Did “Laureate” Come To Define Excellence?
The Greeks used Laurus nobilis, or “bay laurel,” as a remedy for rashes from other plants and boiled it down for antiseptic and first aid applications....
Workers Strike At The Philadelphia Museum Of Art (Signs Of Unrest At Other Museums)
Since the Philadelphia union was formed, organizing efforts have succeeded at the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Brooklyn Museum of Art in New York, as well as the...
The Elusive Search For The Perfect Recording
Tom Port believes that records are like snowflakes — no two are the same. So many things can impact the pressing, including room temperature,...
Is Apple Music About Launch A Classical Service?
References to Apple Classical in code were previously found in a beta version of iOS 15.5, and an Android version of Apple Music. The...
Realigning: Ballet For The Rest Of Us
Founded in Los Angeles in 2011 by Michael Cornell, the Align Ballet Method was born out of a desire to make ballet approachable for...
Bruce Willis Becomes First Celeb To License His “Digital Twin” For Acting Work
Using deepfake technology, the actor appeared in a phone advert without ever being on set, after his face was digitally transplanted onto another performer. Willis...
How Your Brain Rewires Itself In Your 40s
The brain begins becoming less connected within those separate networks and more connected globally across networks. By the time we reach our 80s, the...
Simple Question: How Many Black Musicians Play In America’s Orchestras?
"We do not know how many Black people are in orchestras. And I say that as a representative of Black Orchestral Network. One of...
Tanglewood Breaks The New Norm In Rebounding After COVID
The season total represented a decline of 7 percent compared to 2019, when 311,596 patrons attended 248 performances. Because there were 44 fewer events...
Inside One Of America’s Last Two Piano Factories
Not long ago, piano factories like this were one of America’s largest and most formidable industries, employing tens of thousands of workers. Today, only...
Canadian Museums Issue Guidelines To Decolonize Museums
The Association urges legislation to support the repatriation of Indigenous belongings and remains of ancestors, and dedicated funding for the repatriation process. It was...