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National Palace Museum's Southern Branch Focuses on Asian Art, Culture TAIPEI, TAIWAN Located in Taibao City in Chiayi County, the National Palace Museum's southern branch, which opened late last year, is focused on Asian art and culture, including Taiwan and China, and is aimed at balancing the cultural development between the northern and southern parts of Taiwan, according to the museum's director, Fung Ming-chu. The museum features tall, modern architectural-style buildings, in stark contrast to the National Palace Museum, established 66 years ago in Taipei's Shilin District. The southern branch project was initiated in July 2001 and officially opened Dec. 28, 2015. Unlike the National Palace Museum, which houses the world's largest collection of nearly 700,000 priceless Chinese art pieces spanning China's nearly 5,000-year history, the southern branch has been set up as an Asian art and culture museum, according to Fung. A jury of eight international and local experts chose Lord Cultural Resources as Planning and Development Consultants of the Museum's southern branch to be located in Chiayi County in south central Taiwan. Lord led a large team of experts from Canada, the United States, Europe and Asia to conduct comprehensive Master Planning and Functional Planning for not only the proposed museum, but also the site itself. Design Awards 2016: Best Cultural Draw National Museum of African-American History and Culture WASHINGTON, DC, USA With its exterior walls now in place and glinting above the National Mall the green swathe at the heart of Washington, DC the National Museum of African-American History and Culture (NMAAHC), our Design Awards 2016 Best Cultural Draw, is most of the way through its four-year build. But the vision it fulfills is much older than that. In 1915, black veterans of the US Civil War proposed building a national memorial to African-American achievement. The idea languished for decades, and attempts to revive it in the 1970s and 80s met with political opposition. Finally, in 2003, the US Congress authorised a museum dedicated to the African-American experience, and assigned it the last buildable site on the Mall, close to the Washington Monument. [See also Philanthropist Donates to Smithsonian's African-American Museum, New York Times, 20 January 2016] Lord Cultural Resources led the national public engagement process, developed a functional strategy, conducted a collections analysis and operations planning for the Museum. The program planning team was a collaboration of architectural and design firms Davis Brody Bond [Aedas] of New York and Washington; The Freelon Group of North Carolina; Lord Cultural Resources; and Amaze Design of Boston. In 2011, Lord Cultural Resources provided content development and communications services as part of the winning team of Ralph Appelbaum Associates for the exhibition design for the new museum. In 2012, an additional contract was awarded for concept development for the Resource Library.
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Our Clients and Lord Cultural Resources in the News
Diefenbunker museum is Canada's Cold War Relic ONTARIO, CANADA Deep beneath the peaceful earth here just west of Ottawa lies the Diefenbunker a fascinating trip into Canada's Cold War history, 1960s furniture and all. Commissioned by then-prime minister John Diefenbaker, it's a four-storey, 300-room building with 100,000 square feet of space, constructed entirely underground. It was built to be the refuge for the most important Canadians in case of a nuclear war with the Communists. "We would have had room for 535 designated people, not just random people who wanted to come in. None would have been allowed to bring their families, including the Prime Minister," says Diefenbunker executive director Henriette Reigel (a former consultant for Lord Cultural Resources). The site, which officials once furtively sought to keep secret, is today one of the Ottawa area's most intriguing attractions, "Canada's Cold War Museum." Restored to its Mad Men-era sheen and lovingly tended by both staff and volunteers, it draws up to 60,000 visitors a year, who can feed their minds on the time when it seemed quite possible that nuclear warheads might be lobbed over the Iron Curtain toward us. Justin Trudeau's Sketch of Winnipeg Museum to be Auctioned Off WINNIPEG, MB, CANADA It appears Canada's prime minister can draw, and quite well at that. "I had no idea he had any visual arts skills," said Gail Asper, president of the Asper Foundation and a board member with both the Canadian Museum for Human Rights and the museum's foundation. Asper is organizing an auction of a sketch of the museum that Justin Trudeau drew in March 2015. " He was clearly very inspired by what he saw, so he actually drew a lovely picture of the museum," she said. Asper said she first heard about Trudeau's artwork when it was used on postcards for Liberal Party of Canada fundraising. In the summer, she asked the Liberal leader if Friends of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights could have his piece for a fundraiser. When it arrived soon after, Asper admitted she was surprised how good it was. Lord Cultural Resources has worked with the Canadian Museum for Human Rights since 2000. We have helped to develop the concept and to craft the three-volume Master Plan and business plan, provided the space program, assisted with the international architectural competition that selected Antoine Predock to design the building, and organized and facilitated the cross Canada consultation process that gathered human rights stories from thousands of Canadians in 19 cities. We have continued to provide advisory services to Board and senior management on all aspects of implementation, content and the inauguration. Maurice Sendak:
50 Years, 50 Works, 50 Reasons TORONTO, ON, CANADA The story of a disobedient boy with a fierce imagination, Where the Wild Things Are is one of the most beloved children's books of all time. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of its publication, Toronto Public Library presents a retrospective exhibition of original artwork by the book's revered author and illustrator, Maurice Sendak. See more than 50 works spanning Sendak's acclaimed career, including sketches, illustrations and works on paper. The works on display highlight Sendak's range as an artist - beloved characters from Where the Wild Things Are and In the Night Kitchen, set and costume designs, animation cells, posters, and sketches for fans and close friends. The exhibition also features artwork from the Toronto Public Library's Osborne Collection of Early Children's Books. Lord Cultural Resources was a subconsultant on the team led by the Martin Prosperity Institute commissioned to investigate the economic impact of the Library's services, collections, and facilities and how they link to the competitiveness and prosperity of Toronto. Lord Cultural Resources' role was to provide strategies for development of the community and cultural role of the Library reflective of the individual neighbourhoods, as well as a world class cultural institution. Montreal Curator Chantal Pontbriand Takes Her International Flair to Toronto's MOCCA TORONTO, ON, CANADA Curator, art critic, publisher and festival organizer Chantal Pontbriand has promoted cultural internationalism in Montreal for more than 40 years. Now she is heading to Toronto on a mission to shake up that city's 15-year-old Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art. Pontbriand is bringing the international outlook that made her a driving force behind two major Montreal cultural forums the bilingual art magazine Parachute (published 1975 to 2007) and the contemporary dance festival FIND, or Festival International de Nouvelle Danse (11 editions between 1982 and 2003). In 2009, in close consultation with MOCCA's leadership, Lord Cultural Resources led the Museum through a Strategic Planning exercise, which is now serving as a blueprint for a sustainable and successful future for MOCCA. Upon successful completion of the Strategic Plan, in 2010 Lord Cultural Resources was invited to conduct a Board Development Strategy, as part of the Museum's efforts to fulfill its strategic goals. Working with MOCCA's leadership, we developed a strategy to ensure a sustainable and strengthened Board that will enable the Museum to transition into its next phase of growth. In 2013 Lord Cultural Resources was engaged to prepare a business plan and projections associated with its new site. Chicago Architecture Biennial Attracts More Than Double the Attendees of Venice Bienniale CHICAGO, IL, USA Chicago Architecture Biennial 2015: organisers of the inaugural Chicago Architecture Biennial have counted more than 500,000 visitors and the city has renewed its commitment to host another edition in 2017. The biennial drew a total of 530,551 visitors, which includes totals from the Chicago Cultural Center main venue (276,806), the Stony Island Arts Bank (8,100), the Lakefront Kiosks, and dozens of offsite events throughout the city and the larger region. The Chicago totals far exceed those of the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale, which counted 228,000 visitors. The Chicago Architecture Biennial was a key recommendation of the Chicago Cultural Plan facilitated by Lord Cultural Resources and led by Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs (DCASE) in 2012. Launched by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, it was the city's first Cultural Plan in over 25 years. [See also Chicago Architecture Biennial Attracts More Than Half a Million Visitors. "Unequivocal success", says Mayor Rahm Emanuel, press release, 11 January 2016]
Soft Power
The book "Cities, Museums and Soft Power" by Gail Lord and Ngaire Blankenberg discusses how cities, museums and citizens can work together to increase their influence over the city's agenda using "soft power". Soft power is the exercise of influence through attraction, persuasion and agenda-setting rather than military or economic coercion. The book includes essays written by 14 cultural experts, drawing on museums in cities in Italy, Spain, the UK, China, Egypt, India, Canada, the USA and others. Cities, Museums and Soft Power can be ordered online. The cultural sector wields considerable soft power and has a big role to play in a world that is moving toward a knowledge economy. Presented below are stories that show soft power at work. Museums in the City of the Future AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS As popular public places, museums and other cultural institutions can play a role at the heart of their communities, being involved in all aspects of daily life, both digitally and physically. This allows them to shape our future, and address real issues in society, from healthcare and welfare to employment and security. On 27 January 2016 I gave a keynote about the roles and responsibilities of museum in the city of the future in the DASA in Dortmund, of which you can find an edited transcript below: We all know the most powerful statistics of cities: Currently, more than half the world's population lives in cities. In Europe, about three quarters of the population live in a city. Urban life is not the exception. It is the rule. Cities, and especially large capital cities, are magical places. Geoffrey West, who has done the math, shows how cities have disproportionally more of everything. [See also Book review: Cities, museums and soft power, themuseumofthefuture.com, 10 August 2015] Switzerland Offers Example How to
Increase Soft Power DAVOS, SWITZERLAND Once a year, politicians, business gurus, journalists and celebrities from across the world gather at the annual "thought fair" in Davos, Switzerland. This year's annual winter meeting of the World Economic Forum will be held in Davos from Wednesday to Saturday. Because of the importance of the forum and the huge number of representatives, even some beds in Davos hospitals are said to be "rented out" to delegates during the annual forum. Given the mad rush, I've not been able to book a hotel room in Davos during any of the past six forums, and instead I have had to check into a hotel in a nearby town and commute for an hour by train to and from the forum venue every day. Nevertheless, the forum, thanks to the new ideas, trends, debates and conversations it generates, has been a regular feature on my calendar. Despite being a small country with a population of only about 8 million, Switzerland has occupied a prominent place in the world of economics and business. Now Davos has a sister gathering -Summer Davos held in Tianjin and Dalian in rotation-in addition to other important regional meetings in Africa, the Middle East and other parts of the world. Apart from that, Geneva is the second headquarters of the United Nations and home to dozens of international organizations, including the World Trade Organization and World Health Organization. And all these have increased the soft power of Switzerland. Rubin Foundation Awards Inaugural
Grants in Arts, Social Justice NEW YORK, USA The Shelley & Donald Rubin Foundation has announced a round of inaugural grants totaling nearly $1 million to forty-six arts and cultural organizations in New York City through its new Art and Social Justice initiative. Grants will support organizations in the city working in the areas of arts education, art in service, artistic activism, expanded access, under-recognized artistic practice, public art, and community-based museums. Grant recipients were recognized for their commitment to social justice and programming that seeks to catalyze collective action, promote equality, contribute to advocacy and policy change, and develop capacity for greater civic engagement and public discourse. Lord Cultural Resources commented on the architectural plans for the Rubin Museum of Art in 2000-02. We subsequently participated in successive phases of the planning and design of the building, advising on the exhibition plan and on visitor services. Leveraging Design as Capital in Soft
Power SINGAPORE Singapore has been bestowed the accolade of Creative City of Design by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), joining the Creative Cities Network (UCCN) which include the likes of Beijing, Berlin, Bilbao, Buenos Aires, Helsinki, Kobe, Montreal, Nagoya, Seoul, Shanghai and Turin. The UCCN set up in 2004 aims "to promote co-operation with and among cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor in sustainable urban development". The application and selection processes are stringent, a testament to the UNESCO brand, such that in 11 years since its inception, only 116 member cities have made it to this list, across the seven creative fields - Craft and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, Media Arts and Music. Brazil Gives Out Books That Double
as Subway Tickets, Promoting Literacy & Mass Transit at Once SAO PAULO, BRAZIL One of the things I miss about living in a city with a subway system is the myriad thoughtful design elements that go into managing a perpetual flow of tourists and commuters. New York's subway map presents us with an iconic tangle of interlocking tributaries resembling diagrams of a circulatory system. So you can imagine my envious delight in learning about Brazil's Ticket Books, which are exactly what they sound likebooks that work as subway tickets, designed with the minimalist care that major transit systems do so well. And what's more, they're free: "To celebrate World Book Day last April 23rd," writes "future-forward online resource" PSFK, "[Brazillian publisher] L&PM gave away 10,000 books for free at subway stations across Sγo Paulo. The Foundation of Art in Embassies
Brings High Art and Innovation to U.S. Schools USA If you haven't heard of The Foundation for Art and Preservation in Embassies (FAPE), you will be properly impressed by their great ingenuity. According to their website they provide "permanent works of American art for U.S. embassies worldwide, contributing to the U.S. Department of State's mission of cultural diplomacy and cross-cultural understanding within the diplomatic community and the international public. All artworks commissioned or placed by FAPE are gifts, representing the generosity of some of the United States' greatest artists and philanthropists. As of 2015, FAPE's donations include permanent works by more than 200 preeminent American artists placed in more than 140 countries.
Museums
Two New Museums Will Pay Homage to Yves Saint Laurent INTERNATIONAL A pair of museums entirely dedicated to French designer Yves Saint Laurent's life and work are set to open in Paris and Marrakech in 2017, including a new building by Studio KO. Both museums will present a portion of the Fondation Pierre Bergι Yves Saint Laurent's collection of over 5,000 haute-couture garments and 15,000 accessories, as well as thousands of sketches, collection boards, photographs, and objects. The designer's most iconic garments include the Mondrian collection of dresses from his Autumn Winter 1965, based of the geometric paintings of the French artist of the same name, and the 1966 Le Smoking tuxedo suit for women. French architecture practice Studio KO will lead the design of the 4,000-square-metre building in Marrakech. "When Yves Saint Laurent discovered Marrakech in 1966, he was so moved by the place that he decided to buy a house and regularly go back there," said Pierre Bergι, Saint Laurent's long-term partner and president of the Foundation. "It feels perfectly natural, 50 years later, to build a museum dedicated to his oeuvre, which was so inspired by this country." Indonesia's First International
Modern Art Museum to Open in 2017 JAKARTA, INDONESIA The first museum in Indonesia dedicated to international modern and contemporary art is scheduled to open in early 2017 in the capital, Jakarta. The private institution will be called the Museum MACAN, for Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Nusantara, an Indonesian term for archipelago. It is being built and financed by the Indonesian businessman and collector Haryanto Adikoesoemo. Thomas J. Berghuis, previously the curator of Chinese art at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, has been hired as director of the museum, which will join a flourishing art scene in Indonesia that includes a growing network of galleries, independent art spaces, artists' communities and events like the Jakarta Biennale and the annual ArtJog festival. "I want the Museum MACAN to develop and advance the understanding of Indonesians about art and the appreciation of art," Mr. Adikoesoemo said on Saturday by telephone from Singapore, where he was attending Art Stage Singapore, an annual international art fair. "I also want this museum to help cross-pollinate exchanges with Indonesia and the world, to provide a platform for Indonesian art internationally and to bring international art to Indonesia." Philanthropists Hand Lithuania
World-Class Modern Art Museum VILNIUS, LITHUANIA Local philanthropists are teaming up with a world-renowned architect to hand Lithuania's capital Vilnius its first modern art museum, with doors due to open in early 2019. Designed by Daniel Libeskind, the author of Berlin's landmark Jewish Museum and New York's National September 11 Memorial and Museum, the Vilnius venue will feature Lithuanian art from the Soviet-era 1960s through to the present day. A model of the future museum reveals a striking angular white concrete cube with a diagonal passageway and a large mirrored outer terrace at the back. "It is not my largest project, it is one of the smallest," Libeskind said of the venue, the first of its kind in the Baltic states. "It's a museum for people. It is not just for art lovers, but for families, for kids. People just enjoy the public space, then will enter the museum and then get also interested in all the contents." Philanthropist Viktoras Butkus is spending 8.5 million euros ($9.2 million) on the museum and its unique collection. Egypt Unveils Rare Whale Fossil
Museum to Boost Tourism EGYPT Egypt on Thursday unveiled what it said is the Middle East's first museum dedicated to fossils that showcases an early form of whales, now extinct and known as the "walking whale." The unveiling is part of concentrated government efforts to attract much-needed tourists, driven away by recent militant attacks, and restore confidence in the safety of its attractions. Gigantic Dinosaur, Titanosaur,' Going on Display at American Museum of Natural
History NEW YORK, USA Move over, T. rex and Barosaurus. There is a new prehistoric giant in town, set to be unveiled this week at the American Museum of Natural History. The creature, known as the Titanosaur, goes on public view Friday. The biggest dinosaur ever exhibited at the museum and among the largest ever discovered, it stretches 122 feet long and will rise nearly 20 feet to reach the ceiling. It is believed to have weighed, when walking the Earth roughly 100 million years ago, some 70 tonsas heavy as at least 10 African elephants. Exhibited alongside the cast-model skeleton will be some of the best-preserved bones from the Titanosaur's recent discovery, including its nearly 8-foot-long thigh bone. "Everything was extremely large," said Diego Pol, one of the paleontologists who excavated the previously unknown dinosaur in Argentina in 2014. "After a few days working, we realized it was huge." The Year Ahead: Museums Opening in
2016 INTERNATIONAL A look at the top institutions due to launch worldwide in the coming year.
Architecture
2016
Heralds Beginning of the "Megatall" Skyscraper Era INTERNATIONAL The number of skyscrapers over 600 meters high known as "megatalls" is set to more than double in the next few years, say experts. Skyscraper authority the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) has revealed that the number of 600-metre-plus buildings in the world is set to rise from three to seven in the next five years. This includes the completion of the 1,000-metre-high Kingdom Tower in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and the 606-metre Wuhan Greenland Center in Hubei Province, China. CTBUH describes the height as the "new frontier for the world's tallest buildings". The Kingdom Tower is set to become the world's tallest building at over 1,000 meters. The predictions were made in an annual report released this week, which also revealed that 2015 saw more skyscrapers built than any previous year on record. According to the organization, the term "supertall" used to describe buildings over 300 meters is no longer an indicator of extraordinary height, as there are now more than 100 skyscrapers that meet that criteria. Rotterdam Is "the City of the
Future" Say Architects ROTTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS Landmark buildings and experimental construction are transforming the Netherlands' second city into a world-class destination for architectural innovation, and there is more to come say architects. In the last two years Rotterdam's cityscape has seen the arrival of several major buildings, from MVRDV's colossal market hall to OMA's towering De Rotterdam hotel and office block and the new railway station by Benthem Crouwel, MVSA and West 8. But it has also established itself as a hub for new building technologies, home to studios experimenting with floating architecture, robotic construction, wind power, lighting innovation and 3D printing. All this despite having been one of the worst-bombed cities during the second world war, when most of the city centre was reduced to rubble. "The city has had a remarkable turnaround in the last 20 years, and architecture is playing a big part in it," said Reinier de Graaf, who grew up in Rotterdam and is a partner at OMA, which has been based in the city since Rem Koolhaas established the firm in 1975. "It is becoming a centre for architecture," he told Dezeen. London Architect to Build Islamic
Faith Museum in Mecca INTERNATIONAL London-based Mossessian Architecture has won a competition to design the Makkah Museum, a new building dedicated to the Islamic faith in Mecca, Saudi Arabia (+ movie). The Makkah Museum will occupy a site seven kilometres from the Grand Mosque, which houses the Kaaba the most sacred location in the world for Muslims. The building will include 5,600 square metres of gallery space to host exhibitions related to the international practice and history of Islam and the life of Muhammad. It will also contain a reception area, an auditorium, book store, teaching space, roof garden and restaurant. Diller Scofidio
+ Renfro Delivers New Art Museum CALIFORNIA, USA – The University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) in USA opens its new building to the public on Sunday, January 31, 2016, with an all-day open house. The building was designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, known for such projects as the High Line elevated park in New York; The Broad museum in Los Angeles; and the Institute for Contemporary Art, Boston. Located in downtown Berkeley at the intersection of Oxford and Center Streets, directly across from the UC Berkeley campus, the new BAMPFA provides exemplary spaces for exhibitions and film screenings, as well as access to BAMPFA's encyclopedic collections of art and film. In its new location BAMPFA will continue to be a major destination for art and film lovers, including students, local residents, and visitors from around the globe. Four Striking Ways China Will
Reinvent Architecture in 2016 INTERNATIONAL Founded by architect Ma Yansong, Beijing- and Los Angeles-based MAD has designed many of China's most exciting new buildings. Incorporating "shanshui city" principles -- bringing nature into urban areas -- the firm's work is forward-looking, while also referencing eastern culture and art. Here are four of its projects under construction. COBE Designs Masterplan for New
Urban Center in Berlin BERLIN, GERMANY Collaborating with Man Made Land, Knippers Helbig and Mafeu Architektur Consulting, COBE Berlin has received 1st prize in an international competition to design Berlin's "Urbane Mitte am Gleisdreieck," a master plan located at the gateway to Gleisdreieck Park in Berlin, Germany. The proposal integrates the neighbouring structures, including entrances and thresholds, taking advantage of the synergies present in the area and fostering their spatial relationships. The new center has an urban, metropolitan appeal and incorporates Berlin archetypes, such as the iron truss structures of transit stations and typical Berlin blocks and high-rises. The master plan will open to the park nearby, and offer Berliners and visitors a wide range of uses.
Technology
Step Inside the Guggenheim With Google NEW YORK, USA The Guggenheim Museum's helical rotunda might just be as famous as the works the museum itself contains. Now you don't have to go to New York to wend your way around it. Google added 60 museums and cultural institutions to its online Cultural Institute project on Thursday, pushing the total past 1,000. The Guggenheim is among the new additions, as is the massive Palace of Parliament in Romania. The Internet may never perfectly replicate the experience of seeing art firsthand or walking the halls of a carefully curated gallery, but many people have no alternative. Either they see it online or not at all. Lasers Used to Make Staffordshire
Hoard Replicas BIRMINGHAM, UNITED KINGDOM Laser technology is being used to help create replicas of items from the Staffordshire Hoard. The hoard contains 3,500 items of jewellery and weapons from Anglo Saxon times with a value of more than £3m. The Jewellery Industry Innovation Centre in Birmingham is working with the city's Museum and Art Gallery to make pieces to go on show to the public. Arts, Culture, Creativity and Tech:
Key Trends for 2016 LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM A panel of artists, designers, composers and coders share the digital and technological developments that will affect arts and culture this year. Artful Spark is a quarterly event series all about the gap between creative ideas and technical execution. In the words of its founders Sam Howey Nunn, director of Stellar Network, and Ben Templeton, founder of Thought Den and associate creative director at Preloaded the project aims to support more informed, creative, cross-discipline conversations around the vast wealth of possibilities presented by emerging technology. Here, speakers past and present share what they think will be the key trends in arts, culture, creativity and technology in 2016. Archaeology's Future Lies in 3D
Scanning the Past LUXOR, EGYPT Stoppelaere House is a domed desert refuge, built in 1950 for an archaeologist who was excavating and documenting the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, Egypt. Today, it is a 3D-scanning and training centre staffed by Alia Ismail, a 24-year-old Egyptian architect. For eight months, Ismail learned everything you can learn about 3D scanning from Factum Arte, a team of digital conservators, in Madrid: building scanners, programming and running them -- and fixing them when they inevitably break in the desert heat. Ismail will document in fine detail the tomb of Seti the First, the pharaoh who was the father of Rameses the Great. But she'll also be teaching local volunteers how to do the same for other important sites. Egypt to Launch Antiquities Database
to Track Public Collections and Combat Smuggling CAIRO, EGYPT The Egyptian ministry of antiquities is developing a new digital database to help officials to identify and recover smuggled artefacts. Working with the Antiquities Coalition and the American Research Center in Egypt, the ministry aims to document the materials, location and provenance of each object in the nation's extensive public collections. Staff from the British Museum in London will train budding archaeologists in digitisation.
Art and Culture
Inside the Studio of Joan Miro PALMA DE MALLORCA, BALEARIC ISLANDS, SPAIN "It is something I will never forget," says Joan Punyet Mirσ, standing on the threshold of the Majorcan studio where his grandfather, the acclaimed Spanish artist Joan Mirσ, worked from the late '50s almost until his death in 1983. "It was 20 April 1978: my grandfather's 85th birthday. I was 10 years old. He clapped his hands and said, 'Joan, today we will walk down to my studio.' " Even though Joan Punyet had grown up nearby in Palma, the island's capital, and usually visited his grandfather twice a week, this was the first time that he had been allowed inside the eye-catching atelier designed by Mirσ's friend, the Spanish architect Josep Lluis Sert. Few people were invited into this fantastical building overlooking the Mediterranean, with its distinctive, undulating white roof like a pair of seagull wings, and shutters of bright blue, yellow and red, recalling paintings by the artist. Will Art Continue to Be a Reserve
Currency in 2016, Gilles Dyan Is Banking On It INTERNATIONAL As markets continue to roil with fears over falling asset prices and pervasive global weakness, the question emerges of where the wealthy will store the excess cash they have generated in the last year or two. Most financial instruments have clouds around them. Since art is denominated in dollars and there are persistent fears that the dollar will continue to appreciate, there's a good chance 2016 will see more buyers from emerging markets convert their cash into art. That's pretty much the message of Gilles Dyan who operates a global network of galleries. Why Art and Culture Contribute More
to an Economy than Growth and Jobs INTERNATIONAL There is growing international interest in the potential of the cultural and creative industries to drive sustainable development and create inclusive job opportunities. An indication of this is a recent set of UNESCO guidelines on how to measure and compile statistics about the economic contribution of the cultural industries. But should this be the only reason for funding arts and culture? Cultural industries can be defined as those whose major outputs have some symbolic value such as fine arts, film and craft but also possibly including jewellery design, publishing and fashion. Creative industries are defined more broadly. These have knowledge as their major input, and in addition to cultural goods and services could include things like software design and internet services. UNESCO has provided guidelines on ways in which these industries can be classified. But there is still no international consensus. Nor is there likely to be, since different countries will have very different levels of involvement and focus that may shape what information is useful for them. Retired Art Teacher Leaves $1.7
Million to the Detroit Institute of Arts DETROIT, MI, USA Not much more than a year ago, the Detroit Institute of Arts was in an existential crisis, its world-class collection in danger of being parceled off by its beleaguered city to help pay debts in Detroit's federal bankruptcy. That threat was averted, after an unprecedented fund-raising effort by private foundations, donors and the state of Michigan. And now, in what might be described as a bit of unexpected municipal karma, the museum has announced that it is the benefactor of a $1.7 million bequest by the estate of a retired schoolteacher and museum volunteer, money that will be used to acquire contemporary painting and sculpture and to shore up the museum's operating endowment. Creative Capital Awards Nearly $4.4
Million in Arts Grants USA Artistic projects that aim to reflect broad cultural conversations about gender, gun violence and race are among those chosen for nearly $4.4 million worth of grants awarded by Creative Capital, the organization announced on Tuesday. The winning projects, 46 in all, each receive $50,000 in funding, as well as $45,000 worth of career development services provided by Creative Capital, a group known for applying principles of venture capital to arts financing. Winners were selected from a batch of 2,500 applications that represented both established and emerging artists. Past winners have included the documentary filmmaker Laura Poitras, the choreographer Kyle Abraham and the polymath Meredith Monk. Ed Ruscha Starts Coachella Art Biennial in the Desert CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES Since its inception in 1999, music festival Coachella has morphed into a full-blown cultural phenomenon that regularly attracts major celebrities, corporate sponsors, and a whole lot of eye-rolling from those who feel the event has ceased to be about the music. Comparisons to the spectacle that is Art Basel in Miami Beach abound. And starting in April 2017, the festival will have its very own art world counterpart: Desert X.
Creative Economies, Creative Cities, Innovation and Urban Planning, Cultural Tourism
China-Egypt Cultural Exchanges
Thrive, Enhancing Bilateral Ties INTERNATIONAL Muhsin Farjani was among the 10 people met by visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping in Cairo last week to honor their outstanding contributions to China-Arab friendship. As a Chinese language professor with Ain Shams University in Cairo, 56-year-old Farjani has dedicated the last two decades of his life to the translation of ancient Chinese literature into Arabic. Works translated by Farjani include the "Analects of Confucius," "Tao Te Ching," the universal Taoist textbook written by Lao Tze, and "Shi Jing," or the "Book of Songs", which is China's oldest collection of poetry and songs. The fact that both countries boast rich and long civilizations has made the two peoples best appreciators of each other. Farjani's Egyptian versions of the old Chinese masterpieces have found a lot of readers among the people nourished by the Nile River. President Xi said he was impressed by the way the ancient Egyptians harnessed the Nile floods for agricultural production when he first visited Egypt 16 years ago. Culture as Urban Acupuncture INTERNATIONAL Mention creative disruption and most of us think first about technology companies like Uber and Airbnb reinventing the taxi business and hotel industry. It is worth noting that this is not a new phenomenon. Artists, designers and other culture-makers have been disrupting the way we think and the way things work forever. Celebrating the legacy of David Bowie has recently reminded us how a single artist can change the course of art, music and fashion while empowering generations of people to embrace difference in themselves and others. Examples like this of disruptive people and projects in the art world abound. Yet our grasp of how to take advantage of culture as a force for good in society remains remarkably under-developed. How to Transform Penn Station: Move
the Garden NEW YORK, USA Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo entreated New Yorkers last week to "think big" again, invoking Robert Moses, New York's take-no-prisoners planning czar of the 20th century. He was talking about fixing Pennsylvania Station, and presumably he meant the good Moses, the young, public-spirited idealist who opened parks and beaches. The bad Moses displaced hundreds of thousands of poor people and foisted other calamities on the city. But yes, he thought big. So, while it was encouraging that the governor championed Penn's cause, it was odd that he channeled Moses only to come up with what sounded like glassy new lobbies and shopping malls to improve the station's ambience. He passed on the really big idea: moving Madison Square Garden. The Winners and Losers of Economic
Clustering INTERNATIONAL By now, we know that the clustering of companies and talent in urban areas drives innovation and economic growth. But it also generates distinct winners and losers both across and within cities and metros. This is the upshot of my new study with my Martin Prosperity Institute (MPI) colleagues Roger Martin, Melissa Pogue, and Charlotta Mellander, which was published as part of a special journal issue in honor of the 25th anniversary of Michael Porter's landmark book, The Competitive Advantage of Nations. Porter is known for his research on the role of clusters of firms in economic development. Our study brings together Porter's seminal work on industrial clusters with my research on the clustering of talent and occupations. While Porter's work distinguishes between more locally-oriented and traded industries that export goods and services outside of their immediate geographic areas, my work distinguishes between creative, knowledge-based occupations in science, technology, design, and entertainment and routine occupations in manufacturing and services. Italy to Spend More Than $300 Million on Cultural Projects ITALY The Italian government says it will invest 300 million euros, about $322 million, in cultural projects over the next three years, including the restoration of monuments like Nero's Golden Palace in Rome and increasing security at museums. Italy's vast artistic and cultural heritage has been chronically underfunded for decades, and private sponsorship of the arts has gained traction only in recent years. In all, 241 projects will receive funding, the Culture Ministry said in announcing the investment. | |||||
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Creating Cultural Capital | ||||
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