In March of 2021, the painting, which had been up for sale in Madrid and priced at a measly $1,800, was pulled from its auction after researchers determined that there was sufficient evidence to label The Crowning of Thorns as having been made by Caravaggio. - The Observer
As the price of metals has soared worldwide, people have taken to stealing streetlight wiring, plumbing valves, catalytic converters and fire hydrants. But the pilfering of sculptures for a quick buck has brought the crime to a new level of audacity and waste. - Los Angeles Times
Numerous recent studies show that exposure to nature and natural light can reduce pain, and that even a brief contact with the outdoors reduces stress. - Wired
Subscription podcasting offers a new digital business model for NPR and its member stations. But its long-standing mission to inform the public limits how much content the non-profit can put behind a paywall. - Axios
He once wrote in an essay, "Like Proust, I'm fascinated most of all by my perceptions of a world in awesome transition. And my heart has always been divided between the vestals of constancy and the avatars of change." These weren't just idle words. - The Times Literary Supplement
"If the only reason we disapprove of something people are saying 'these days' is that we just find it off-putting, then we should consider a test: Could we defend our disapproval 100 years from now, to people who never knew an English without it?" - The New York Times
Authors must accept that art is prone to inspiring disparate, and potentially conflicting, responses — and they can’t do anything about it. - Washington Post
The late author's estate has announced the creation of the Jack Kerouac Foundation, which will raise funds to build the center — which will present exhibitions, spoken word performance, music, lectures, and conferences — at the church Kerouac attended growing up in Lowell, Mass. - MSN (The Boston Globe)
“They didn’t feel they were the right house to do this book right now. I don’t think they have any interest in trying to cancel Norman Mailer. You can’t cancel Norman Mailer.” - The Guardian
The withdrawal from display at the National Museum of African Art of items taken from the Kingdom of Benin "comes as the Smithsonian completes a six-month, institution-wide examination of its collection practices that looks at this core activity from an ethical perspective." - MSN (The Washington Post)
This massive release isn’t something entirely worth celebrating. Instead, it’s a pointer to the sheer absurdity of American copyright law, which long ago came under the thumb of the entertainment industry and distant heirs of artists determined to preserve what is essentially a windfall. - Los Angeles Times
The decision to end the contracts of Artistic Director Lisa Mayer-Lang and her husband, resident choreographer Michael Lang, was reportedly made without consulting the full Board, dancers, or other stakeholders. One trustee says most dancers have left the company, as have two designers. - WTOL (Toledo, OH)
To be sure, Jesse Green and Maya Phillips disagree in a most collegial and cordial manner. Indeed, they value their disagreement (not least because it took them a while to find some). - The New York Times
You've got some benefactors' names all over the buildings of your non-profit, and then those donors, because of how they made their money, become pariahs. Awkward! Gladwell's "modest proposal" to prevent this situation — based in Scripture, no less — involves a simple change in tax law. - Oh, MG
