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In case you had any doubts about human-rights abuses of construction workers in the United Arab Emirates, where the Guggenheim and the Louvre plan to build major new facilities, read this front-page article from yesterday's NY Times. Jonathan Marx reports in today's Tennessean [via] that Fisk University has agreed to hand over its O'Keeffe "Radiator Building" to the O'Keeffe … [Read more...] about Lick These Links: U.A.E. Workers’ Rights, Tentative Fisk-O’Keeffe Settlement, Rudy Giuliani’s Night Job, Guggenheim’s Interim Director UPDATED

Marc Steglitz, the Guggenheim Museum's Interim Director-Elect (right) with his wife, Ilene, and architect Richard Gluckman This is a very bad sign: In a just-issued press release that, at this writing, is not on the Guggenheim's website, Marc Steglitz, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation's former deputy director for finance and operations (now its chief operating … [Read more...] about Guggenheim Names Its Finance Chief as Interim Director

W. 131st Street and Broadway, looking south, today Brave New Columbia: W. 131st Street and Broadway, looking south In case there were any doubts that Renzo Piano is no longer the darling of the critics, Paul Goldberger and James Russell have just cast cold eyes on two of his latest New York City projects. In the Aug. 6 New Yorker, Goldberger, a former NY Timesman, expresses … [Read more...] about Bad News Days for Renzo Piano

My last item, where you got to hear me as well as read me, was, fittingly, my 1,000th post since I began this dubious exercise of blogging. That somehow seems like a more important anniversary than how long I've been doing it. For the many new CultureGrrl visitors who have flocked to my blog this sleepy Sunday morning from the WNYC link, here's an expanded photo essay from my … [Read more...] about More Scenes from the Sculpture Gardens

Below is the audio from my WNYC sculpture-garden romp, which DID air today and should be on again shortly, at 10:34 a.m. (set your timers) on WNYC-AM (820). Or you can visit with me on their website here, where you'll see four of the five photos that are meant to be in the slideshow (more technical difficulties). The photo from Grounds for Sculpture will probably appear there … [Read more...] about You Can Hear Me Now: Sculpture Gardens on WNYC

Is Bill Richardson using CultureGrrl in his bid for the Presidency? Go here and scroll down to his response to the Blue Hampshire education straw poll, and you'll see that he links to this post in support of his assertion that he's "the only candidate proposing innovative ideas like emphasizing art education to unlock the minds of our young people at an early age and help them … [Read more...] about CultureGrrl in the Presidential Campaign

[Note: I regret having to post this housekeeping detail over my much more important Michael Brand Q & A. Please go here, if you haven't already seen it.] For all five of you who got up early this morning just to hear me talk about sculpture gardens on WNYC, here's the explanation from the station's culture editor as to why you listened in vain: "I just got a call from the … [Read more...] about CultureGrrl (Not) on the Radio: Due to Technical Difficulties…UPDATED

Michael Brand, the Getty's director, responds by e-mail to CultureGrrl's questions about the antiquities agreement with Italy (here and here): CultureGrrl: Italian Culture Minister Francesco Rutelli said that the accord was reached with the help of the U.S. administration. What was he referring to? Brand: He could be referring to the fact that the U.S. Ambassador to Italy has … [Read more...] about CultureGrrl’s Q & A with Getty Museum Director Michael Brand

I really should get out more in the summer. So what did I do? I went to three sculpture gardens within about an hour's drive of New York City. I'm reporting on these excursions tomorrow on New York Public Radio, WNYC (93.9 FM). If you're up that early, you can hear me at about 8:30 a.m. (or a repeat at about 10:30). If you sleep in on Saturdays (like me), there will be a link … [Read more...] about My Sculpture-Garden Ramble for NY Public Radio

Ellen Agnew, associate director of the Maier Museum of Randolph College (formerly Randolph-Macon Woman's College), leaves over differences with the school"s administration regarding possible deaccessions to raise money for the endowment. Christa Desrets of the Lynchburg, VA, News & Advance, reports: Randolph Interim President Ginger Worden said in a May interview that she … [Read more...] about Maier Museum Official Resigns Over Possible Art Sales

Here, as promised, are a few links worth tasting during my wild, self-indulgent August: Italian Culture Minister Franceso Rutelli on the significance of the Getty giveback, as reported in Bloomberg. He calls this agreement "an irreversible precedent for the restitution of works." Have the floodgates now opened? Civil charges against Marion True are dropped; criminal charges, … [Read more...] about Lick These Links: Getty/Italy Truce; Mega-MoMA, German Trophy Art

I just can't quit you. Here is a link to the list of the 40 objects that the Getty will be returning to Italy, along with images. I'm also going to be posting some other Getty-related links later. And you'll be hearing a kinder, gentler CultureGrrl on WNYC, New York Public Radio, Saturday morning. Some can catch me on the radio; the rest of you on the web. More about that soon. … [Read more...] about The Getty Top 40 Countdown: The List of Italy-Bound Objects Is Released

I delayed this announcement for a day. After all, I just had to report on the Getty/Italy hug and to instruct Philippe on how to run the Met during the next 10 years of his tenure! But now I have distressing news for those of you who depend on CultureGrrl for your daily dose of dyspepsia: I'm going AWOL (more or less) from my blog for the month of August, to engage in the … [Read more...] about CultureGrrl’s Summer Doldrums

What does the Wall Street Journal reporter who covered Rupert Murdoch's successful campaign to purchase Dow Jones (including the WSJ) think about the deal? Dennis Berman has just posted a video (below) on the WSJ website, in which he addresses the question of the paper's journalistic credibility by noting that e-mails are crowding his inbox from people saying that they plan … [Read more...] about Murdoch Victory Means Uncertain Times at the Journal

The top story in the August issue of Aviso, the American Association of Museum's newsletter, rehashes the debate between between me and AAM over the new Museums & Community Collaborations Abroad (MCCA) program, funded and guided by the State Department in partnership with AAM. What's new is that the deadline for proposals has been extended to Aug. 24. Could it be that museums … [Read more...] about Dicey AAM/State Department Program Extends Deadline