Stories

When Being A Critic Was Glamorous

If you look at these people—literally look at photos or watch footage—you discover that they were either beautiful or charismatic, or both. They all appeared on television. Among fiction writers of that time, maybe Philip Roth had some of that swagger, quick wit, amused air, though he also had a professorial, sweater-wearing side.  - The Ideas Letter

Did Marcel Duchamp Wreck Modern Art?

Duchamp left behind a legacy that people either love or loathe. He is known as the father of conceptual art, but his so-called ideas were mostly idle notions, provocations, speculations. Opinion divides on whether he snuffed out or emancipated art.  - The Atlantic

Restorers Discover How A Rembrandt Painting Was Altered

Layers of overpaint have been removed from a 17th-century painting, confirming that it was painted by Rembrandt and revealing that a turban on one of the figures had been replaced with a traditional Dutch soft cap. - The Guardian

How Do We Learn To Read Books Again?

I don’t necessarily believe that reading books is going to automatically fix everything in your life or anything. I do think, however, it is kind of a panacea for a lot of the ills and a lot of the struggles that we’ve brought into our life through these tech platforms. - The Atlantic

Why Are GenZers Flocking To Movie Theatres To Watch Reality TV?

Where binge-watching reality TV used to happen in the secret and safety of your own home, the popularity of “Love Island USA,” and shows like it, are redefining community for millions of viewers. - Washington Post

Higher Ed Has Lost Public Trust. What To Do?

The reports differ in their diagnoses of where higher education went wrong and, by extension, of what should be done now. But their mere existence proves, if nothing else, that America’s universities have finally gotten the message: People don’t like them very much. - The Atlantic

How AI Is Reviving Dying Languages

Over the months, as the learning language model is trained on bits of the language — such as an old-age French nursery rhyme — it brings centuries-old dialect closer into the digital age. - The New York Times

American Playwrights Are Meeting The Times, But Are Audiences?

“These writers aren’t on a sociological mission. They’re not trafficking in grievance or appealing to a particular political base. They let their plays do the talking. And they’ve been trying to have a conversation that isn’t hijacked by the most doctrinaire voices in the room.” - Los Angeles Times (MSN)

What Bookmobiles Mean To Kids

“My reading journey began with a story that stretched more than 5,000 miles away, from Denmark to Alabama. While my siblings searched for new books, I always checked out the same one: The Marsh Crone’s Brew.” - LitHub

Oh Studios, Why Must You Undermine Women-Led Superhero Movies?

"With DC’s slate wiped clean, the studio had the chance to swing bigger with a woman-led movie than it ever has before — to make something so confident and audacious that, by the nature of its existence alone, it could be unimpeachable in a sea of superhero sameness.” - Salon

How Theatre Etiquette Is Changing

One actor: “We're used to it at this point, you know, people just munching away on popcorn, ripping open candy in very tense moments. … If something is making you want to talk to us, we're not afraid of it. We've got it under control up here.” - CBC

An Aboriginal Artist Reclaims The Ocean

Dharug artist Billy Bain: “You know, the beach was and still is an Aboriginal space, but in popular culture it has been represented as a very white space.” Bain has set out to change that. - The Guardian (UK)

Writing The Most Realistic, And Most Optimistic, Heterosexual Marriage On TV

First, Tina Fey wrote Liz Lemon, whose character was “heteropessimistic.” But in Four Seasons, she writes (and plays) a member of "an emotionally grounded romance that captures both the rewards of a successful, decades-long marriage and the challenges of maintaining one.” - The New Yorker

What Should Music Festivals Do To Make The Experience Better For Neurodivergent Fans?

In the UK, "The Culture, Media and Sport Committee released guidelines earlier this year setting out ways for disabled people to feel more included at live music events.” - BBC

Some People Hate Horror Movies While The Rest Of Us Can’t Get Enough

“A horror film builds a safe enclosure where we can rehearse terror, chaos and helplessness with no adverse consequences. … But the body can’t always tell the rehearsal from the real thing.” - The Guardian (UK)

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