“Following his enlistment in the military in World War II, only ten days before he would age out of eligibility for active service, Wilder reported for training in Miami, Florida, on June 27, 1942, having completed the screenplay for Shadow of a Doubt. In what was surely a most unusual training exercise, Wilder quickly participated in what was referred to as Act 4 of Our Town for the program Contact, broadcast out of WKAT in Miami on July 8.” – Literary Hub
The Real Failures Of Our Cultural Policies
“The hidden costs of socially engaged arts practice is inextricably connected to the crisis of social care and service provision. It is also a result of the unwillingness of commissioners of publicly funded socially engaged practice to accept responsibility for the care that participants of the activities they support need, both during and after the project. This amounts to a moral failure of cultural policy: poorly funded projects are often relied upon to provide the evidence, case studies, sector report, powerful images that feed into evaluations, and policy statements on social impact.” – Arts Professional
Why “Noisy” Brains Are So Attractive (And More Difficult)
“The use of antidepressants has inadvertently left many of us less able to feel empathy toward others, laugh, cry, dream, and enjoy life just when we need those things the most: in the middle of a global pandemic.” – Nautilus
Finally, The Obama Presidential Center Is Underway
“This month, in the wake of an appeals court decision favorable to the city and the recent completion of federal reviews, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that the Obama Presidential Center, including a 235-foot tower and major taxpayer-supported infrastructure, would finally be getting underway.” – Chicago Reader
Could This Series Be The ‘Schoolhouse Rock’ For The 14th Amendment?
“The new Netflix series Amend: The Fight for America, produced by Will Smith and Larry Wilmore, seeks to [teach] not through song, but extended, sleek, bingeable verve. … Amend, which focuses solely on the importance and liberties granted by the 14th Amendment, stretches across six hour-long episodes, each devoted to a different area of interest: citizenship, love, women’s rights, immigration, resistance to the amendment, and the Civil Rights Movement. Within these episodes are both broad historical touchstones and granular anecdotes, giving the series as a whole a sprawling reach.” – Mic
Met Museum Director Defends Deaccessioning To Pay Expenses
“The Met has a responsibility to our field and our global community,” Max Hollein says in a long statement posted today on the Met’s website. But, declaring a “historic crisis” for museums, he says: “It is my professional opinion that a deliberate deaccession program is appropriate, useful and necessary for a museum like ours. I also believe that we must face this once-in-a-generation challenge brought by the pandemic by supporting the museum as a whole, especially its staff, while also taking the long view with regard to what is best for the museum.” – The Art Newspaper
Book Sales Are Up 20 Percent In Australia. And Book Subscriptions Are Booming
Among the winners of this literary resurgence is a micro-industry: book subscription services, which curate a selection for you and deliver them to your home. In an era of information overload and a crowded literary market with an often debilitating degree of choice, it isn’t hard to see the attraction of professionals highly attuned to the market – or algorithms catered to your tastes – making the decisions for you. – The Guardian
London’s Frieze Fair Will Rent Its Space For Pop-Up Galleries
The art fair leased a pair of converted townhouses in December last year, and it has now revealed that they will open as a new hub for international galleries to rent out for short periods, starting in October. – Artnet
Charge: UK Government Has Forgotten Culture Post-Brexit
MPs at the digital, culture, media and sport committee hearing told DCMS minister Caroline Dinenage that her department was treated as an “afterthought” by the government, and that during Brexit negotiations the creative industries were not prioritised, despite their accounting for about a quarter of the UK’s economy. – The Guardian
The Woman Who Saved Samba, Back When It Was Outlawed
“A century ago, samba becoming synonymous with Brazil’s cultural identity would have seemed impossible. In the early 20th century, Rio’s ruling elite were ashamed and afraid of the rhythm, which was linked to African-Brazilian cults. Samba faced police persecution: musicians were frequently arrested, their instruments confiscated or destroyed; gatherings were abruptly shut down. It might not have lasted were it not for the intelligence and diplomacy of the entrepreneur, artist, spiritual guide and community leader known as Aunt Ciata.” – The Guardian
Marfa, Texas Is Getting An(other) Arts Center
“For the last year, Michael Phelan — a contemporary artist who has lived in Marfa full time since 2014 — has been quietly planning another destination within miles of both [of Donald Judd’s] sites: Marfa Invitational, an interdisciplinary, year-round arts and cultural foundation, set on five acres of high desert.” – The New York Times
UK’s National Theatre Ends Tours To Europe
Yes, it’s because of Brexit: a statement from a company spokesperson said that “the potential additional costs for visas and current uncertainty around social security contributions mean regrettably it is currently not financially viable. We hope that in future we’ll return to tour in Europe. However, that will not be possible until we have further clarity on these points.” – The Guardian
‘Like The Metro At Rush Hour’: Vatican Museums Reopen To The Public, And It’s A Mess
“Museumgoers took to social media to complain about the institution’s failure to implement effective social-distancing measures in some of its most popular spaces last weekend, in particular those decorated with frescoes by Raphael and his workshop. … In an open letter to museum management posted on Facebook, [a Vatican docent said] that he was ‘deeply ashamed and embarrassed’ that he had led a group of unsuspecting tourists into a situation which he likened to ‘Dante’s inferno.'” – The Art Newspaper
Indianapolis Museum/Newfields CEO Resigns After Week Of Outcry
“We are sorry. We have made mistakes. We have let you down. We are ashamed of Newfields’ leadership and of ourselves,” the board said in a statement announcing the departure of Charles Venable in the wake of heavy criticism over a very unfortunately worded job listing. This was the latest in a series of controversies over Venable’s leadership and the way he has reoriented the museum. – ARTnews
The Five Flavors of Strategy
As the chaos and confusion of the global pandemic shows distant glimpses of something less chaotic, the question of “strategy” is emerging once again. Now that arts organizations are making space to imagine the “next normal,” it’s worth remembering what “strategy” actually is and does. – Andrew Taylor
Actress Fired From ‘The Color Purple’ After Anti-Gay Posts Loses Lawsuit
A British employment tribunal unanimously rejected Seyi Omooba’s claims of breach of contract and religious discrimination, finding that “there is no breach of contract because the claimant was in prior repudiatory breach … the contract was empty because the claimant would not have played the part, and her conduct, pulling out at a late stage, had she not been dropped when she was, would have wrecked the production.” – WhatsOnStage (UK)
San Francisco Opera To Return To The Stage With Drive-In Opera
“There is a certain visceral quality about being in the same location together and experiencing art. I’m giddy with anticipation at the thought of reconnecting with that important part of our lives.” – San Francisco Chronicle