Since 2015, the Moroccan-Belgian choreographer, one of Europe’s most prominent contemporary dancemakers, has been artistic director of Ballet Vlaanderen in his hometown, Antwerp. At the end of next season, he will step down from that job to move to the Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève. (in French; for a Google Translate version, click here) – Le Monde (Paris)
Why The Pompidou Center Is Putting Its American Branch In Jersey City
“Free space and funding, mostly (and that 15-minute PATH [train] ride to Manhattan). In fact, the museum agreed to the four-story warehouse space sight unseen after a French cultural attaché visited the site once to seal the deal.” – Curbed
Is Culture Really Mappable?
Does culture really behave like space? If not, how are cultural relationships distorted when we convert them into spatial ones? – Cultural Analytics
Advice For Living With A Writer
“I am a writer, and I lived with a writer, Roger Zelazny, so I know perfectly well that living with a writer is sort of a weird experience.” – Wired
When Graphs And Charts Were A Revolutionary Way To Think
A psychologist and a statistician argue that visual thinking, by revealing what would otherwise remain invisible, has had a profound effect on the way we approach problems. – The New Yorker
What Makes A Great Football Anthem?
According to folk singer Martin Carthy, the football chant can be considered one of the last embodiments of the oral folk tradition. – The Conversation
Anthony Braxton: Still Pushing At The Edges Of Jazz
“A conversation with him can easily pinball from contemporary politics to ancient Egypt. But what he’s most eager to talk about now is ZIM Music — his latest structural model in a lifelong pursuit to locate clarity within chaos.” – NPR
Five Pioneering Black Ballerinas Speak Up
Life as a pioneer, life in a pandemic: They have been friends for over half a century, and have held each other up through far harder times than this last disorienting year. – The New York Times
Is “Improving” Your Personality A Thing?
Maybe we should all try to become more compassionate or honest or forgiving, but there’s no comparable moral demand for shy people to become extraverted, or for excitable people to be more placid. – Psyche
Mimicking Clubhouse, Spotify Adds Live Audio Chat Function
The Greenroom app lets any user host or participate in live rooms, as well as record live conversations. – Variety
Two Members Of Hollywood Foreign Press Association Quit, Slamming Inaction
“There has been no contrition, no humility, little recognition of our faults, no inspiring leadership. We do not wish to be associated with a group, ostensibly dedicated to honest journalism and free speech, that relies on consultants and lawyers to speak for them in vague, legalistic terms.” – The Hollywood Reporter
Edinburgh Festivals Warn Of Bankruptcy If COVID Rules Aren’t Changed
“Our festivals, and creatives across the sector, are effectively prohibited from trading our way through to recovery, while hospitality and sports are being supported to do so to the maximum safe extent.” – The Stage
UK Libraries To Save Irreplaceable Collection Up For Auction
Almost entirely inaccessible since 1939, the library was put together by Victorian industrialists William and Alfred Law at the turn of the 20th century, and is a literary treasure trove that had experts dancing with excitement. – The Guardian
What Is “Internet Literature”?
The way Internet Literature treats its relationship to the world—and the anxiety of that treatment—is what distinguishes it as a form, and that goes straight to the heart of what distinguishes the Internet itself as a technology: the link. – LitHub
Art For The Nose: In Paris, An Exhibition Of ‘Olfactory Sculptures’
“We have art for the eyes and music for the ears, but what about about creative stimuli for our sense of smell? A new show at Phillips auction house in Paris is addressing this question through a new show of olfactory sculptures by six artists, including Joana Vasconcelos and Adel Abdessemed, which incorporate uniquely created fragrances by perfumers.” – Artnet
NPR Gets Fourth Regional News Hub, This One For Midwest
Thanks to a $4.7 milion grant from former Google chairman Eric Schmidt and his wife, Wendy, the newsroom will be based at KCUR in Kansas City, Missouri, and will also include as partners St. Louis Public Radio, Iowa Public Radio, and Nebraska Public Media. The other three regional hubs are in California, Texas, and the Gulf States (Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama). – Inside Radio
Philadelphia Orchestra To Consolidate With Kimmel Center Under New Organization
“Philadelphia Orchestra president and CEO Matías Tarnopolsky will become leader of the new parent company upon finalization of the deal, and Kimmel president and CEO Anne Ewers” — who initiated and championed the deal — “will retire. … While pressures brought on by the pandemic sparked talks toward the move, the benefits of the new structure are independent from the pandemic shutdown and abrupt disappearance of ticket revenue, leaders say.” – The Philadelphia Inquirer
Journalist Janet Malcolm, 86
“A longtime New Yorker staff writer and the author of several books, the Prague native practiced a kind of post-modern style in which she often called attention to her own role in the narrative, questioning whether even the most conscientious observer could be trusted.” – AP