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Van Gogh Did Not Intend His Irises To Be Blue

He painted them, back in 1889, in a deep, vibrant purple. Here's how two conservators at the Getty figured that out — and why the irises have turned blue over the intervening 135 years. - Hyperallergic

How A Refugee From The Kennedy Center Built A Center For Dance In Southern California

Judy Morr "decided to do something nobody else was doing in Southern California, which was to bring major international dance companies to Orange County. That’s how it all started. Dance became the way to establish the Center’s reputation nationally and internationally.” - CultureOC

Musical America Names Its Artists Of The Year

Barbara Hannigan heads the list. - Musical America

After 46 Years, Re-Creating One Of Pina Bausch’s Seminal Dance Works — With Original Cast Members

Meryl Tankard was one of the dancers in the 1978 premiere of Bausch's Kontakthof, and she has now restaged the piece with herself and eight other performers from the first run dancing alongside film footage of the original production. - The New York Times

Study: Many Readers Prefer Chatbot Shakespeare To The Real Thing

A.I. chatbots can imitate famous poets like William Shakespeare well enough to fool many human readers, according to a new paper published Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports. In addition, many study participants actually preferred the chatbot’s poetry over the works of renowned writers. - Smithsonian

Nigeria Builds A Museum For The 21st Century

The Museum of West African Art (Mowaa), a constellation of buildings and outdoor performance spaces spread out across a 6-hectare (15-acre) campus, will hold its inaugural exhibition in May 2025. - The Guardian

Swedish Company Uses AI To “Post-Edit” And Create Translations Of Books

Nuanxed's approach, known as post-editing (PE), combines the use of AI translation tools with human editing and proofing. According to cofounder and CEO Robert Casten Carlberg, the company completes roughly 50 translations per month, and in total has worked with 150 authors to complete around 800 translations. - Publishers Weekly

Rediscovered: Philadelphia Orchestra Recordings From 80 Years Ago, And They Were Massive Hits

A budget series called "World's Greatest Music," produced by RCA Victor and marketed and distributed by the New York Post, included 38 discs (78 rpm) released from 1938 to 1940; ultimately more than 1 million records were sold. But the performers were unnamed — until now. - The Philadelphia Inquirer (MSN)

Luigi Nono @100: A Legacy Of Deep Listening

Nono saw the potential to communicate with contemporary audiences, neither bound by nor rejecting the past, building solidarity against any resurgence of the fascism he had resisted under Mussolini. - The New York Times

The Johnny Carson Phenomenon

In our fragmented media landscape, it can be difficult to grasp just how large Carson loomed over the culture. At the center of late-night for 30 years — he presided from 1962 to 1992 — he is the most influential talk-show host of all time, and possibly the most popular figure in the history of television. - The New...

Louisiana Almost Killed Its Movie Tax Credit

Last week, the state House of Representatives voted to terminate the incentive effective June 30, 2025, as part of a sweeping tax reform package. In response, hundreds of people jammed the hallways of the state Capitol in Baton Rouge on Sunday to protest the move, which would threaten thousands of film jobs. - Variety

“Les Miz” Has Never Been A Hit In France. This New Production Hopes To Change That.

Les Misérables was originally written in French by two Frenchmen, based on a classic French historical novel — and the musical has been wildly popular just about everywhere except France. Yet an updated version of the show at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris might just catch on. - The New York Times

How Thirty Years Of The UK National Lottery Has Changed Culture

“Without the profound impact of National Lottery funding for the arts, heritage, charity and tourism sectors, introduced by the Conservative government in 1994, survival of even the fittest would have been nigh on impossible." - The Art Newspaper

Author Richard Flanagan Wins Baillie Gifford Prize For Nonfiction — And Turns Down The Prize Money

Accepting the award for his Question 7, the Australian author said he would not take the £50,000 which comes with the prize until sponsor Baillie Gifford presents to the public a plan for divesting from fossil fuel companies and investing in renewable energy. - The Guardian

Longtime Chicago Theater Critic Kris Vire Is Dead At 47

"He was part of the founding editorial crew of Time Out Chicago, once a major force in local arts coverage. … Vire stayed with (Time Out) until 2018, then moved on to a busy freelance career, eventually landing at the Tribune-owned Chicago magazine as a freelance arts-and-entertainment editor." - Chicago Tribune (MSN)

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