Just a couple of days ago I cited Millennium Park as an excellent example of the bread and games concept in Chicago. Today, the Washington Post reports that Rep. James P. Moran Jr. suggests the Smithsonian Institution should charge an admission fee, as their buildings are suffering from underfunding. Charging an admission fee would...
Read more »
I was browsing the internet and I found some interesting historical figures that share my last name. Although I don’t think I am remotely related to any of the people, it is interesting nonetheless. First up is a Flemish family of artists. The Antwerp painter Andreas van Brée was the father of Mathieu Ignace...
Read more »
Bread and games. Nothing much has changed over the millennia. Roman emperors kept the plebs happy with bread and games; today governments, whether local or national, keep the citizens happy with pretty much the same. The bread and games have been replaced by less specific entities such as social security and public art and...
Read more »
In about four months of working at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, I have been to over fifteen concerts. It is of course one of the major perks of working there; to be able to hear the orchestra under the baton of legendary conductors such as Daniel Barenboim and Bernard Haitink and conductors on their...
Read more »
“All persons in the Netherlands shall be treated equally in equal circumstances. Discrimination on the grounds of religion, belief, political opinion, race or sex or on any other grounds whatsoever shall not be permitted.” This is the first article of the Dutch constitution, and a sound, responsible, and righteous law. Not so, according to...
Read more »
The British publication The Economist called Chicago a success story today, stating that “this is a city buzzing with life, humming with prosperity, sparkling with new buildings, new sculptures, new parks, and generally exuding vitality.” It goes on to say that Chicago has recovered from the painful 1980s, in which the political machine was...
Read more »
I came across an interesting Internet project: Buzztracker, “software that visualizes frequencies and relationships between locations in the Google world news directory.” It shows how all the news in the world is interconnected. Click here for the Buzztracker Web site. See below for a sample:
Read more »
Minutemen used to be icons of American patriotism, because of their important role in the American Revolutionary War. They were the first to arrive for battle—ready in a minute—chosen for their enthusiasm and reliability. Today, patriotism has changed its face and minutemen are icons of American xenophobia and anxiety. Patrolling the borders in search...
Read more »
I can dream all CTA announcements. Every day, at least twice a day, I hear them. Some bus drivers are obviously big fans of the announcements, others prefer to tell, or yell, it in their own voices. I really don’t have any complaints about the CTA, except for one particular announcement haunting my life:...
Read more »
In its January 2006 edition, International Arts Manager magazine focused on the Netherlands and interviewed Jan Hoekema at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the importance of export and import in performing arts. Hoekema names three key issues that play a role in the country’s policies: the arts’ contribution to the economy and...
Read more »