Stories

Jennell Jaquays Made Gaming A Richer, Deeper, More Beautiful Experience With Her Art

The artist, who died at 67 after nearly five decades of illustration and creation for D&D and other games, was so influential that “her name has become a verb — 'Jaquaysing the dungeon' means creating a scenario with myriad paths.” - The New York Times

The British Museum Has Decided To Put Some Of Its Stolen Items On Display

Stolen - and recovered, that is. “They are made of stone or glass, variously coloured and tiny - often barely the size of a thumbnail. They are a fascinating window into the ancient Mediterranean world." - BBC

Is This The Future Of Print Media?

The University of Iowa’s independent school newspaper, The Daily Iowan, just bought two nearby small-town weekly papers. The two community papers will keep their staff members but also provide opportunities for students to gain more real-world experience. - Nieman Lab

Past Lives Wins Best Foreign Film, Zone Of Interest Wins Best Film At London Critics Circle

Best Actor for Andrew Scott, for All of Us Strangers, was impressed by its status at number one in Ireland and the UK. "'For a gay love story, it ain’t nothing,’" he said. 'Don’t say those films don’t make money.'" - The Guardian (UK)

We Need To Talk About Theatre Critic Gordon Rogoff

Rogoff, who died last week at 92, was "able to capture in vivid, richly metaphoric language the unique brilliance of a stage performance. Rogoff understood that the actor was on the front lines. … He appreciated that the actor is where literature and the stage meet." - Los Angeles Times

Warming Temperatures Shut Down Minneapolis Art Shanties After One ‘Zany’ Weekend

The story played out after the first gloriously thick ice weekend with increasingly dire warnings on Instagram, over text, and on the Art Shanties’ other official channels: The ice was only getting thinner, so “the artists, wearing life jackets, began dismantling huts one by one.” - The New York Times

Boston’s Theatres Fight For Survival

In Boston as in many other places, "financial struggle has become a grim common denominator among theaters with different aesthetic identities and sense of mission.” Which companies will survive? - The Boston Globe (MSN)

Everything You Need To Know About Tonight’s Grammys

Beyoncé needs three wins to tie - or four to beat - Georg Solti’s total. - The New York Times

Pay Phones Are For The Birds

One old pay phone booth in Maryland is for bird calls, thanks to a musician and audio producer. Of the calls, he says, “Some of those will just blow your mind. You know, you hear the sound of that, you'll think, what planet? And you're like, this planet." - NPR

The Theatre Director Who Likes To Go Too Far

“No one like Milo Rau exists in American theater, because commercial producers need to make money, and no government body is willing to match the generous artistic subsidies handed out by European governments. … Some of that subsidy will end up going to plays that disgust the audience." - MSN (The Atlantic)

Lisa Hunt, Who Transformed Gold Leaf In Her Art, Has Died At 55

Hunt "often marked her works with 24-karat gold leaf, which she attributed to the gilded artworks of the African diaspora, the Art Deco movement, and Austrian painter Gustav Klimt." - Hyperallergic

The Violinist Fighting For The Rights Of Hollywood’s Musicians

In a suprise to no one, one of the American Federation of Musicians' "biggest concerns is the film and TV industry’s transition to streaming, which has significantly altered the way musicians are compensated for their work." - Los Angeles Times

The Young Filmmaker Who Lived A Fairytale At Sundance

Sean Wang, 29-year-old director of Didi, "has been preparing for his Sundance moment since he discovered Spike Jonze’s skater videos as a teenager before heading off to film school at the University of Southern California." - The New York Times

Issa Rae Might Be A Bit Too Smart For Hollywood

What other conclusion can be drawn from (HBO) Max’s decision to cancel Rap Sh!t? But: "Rae is ... bidding on land in her stomping grounds of South L.A. on which to build a production studio. Cancel some shows? Fine. She’ll make more." - Washington Post

A Man Has Died After Falling From Tate Modern’s 10th Floor

“The Met said the man's death was being treated as 'unexpected but not thought to be suspicious.’" - BBC

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