Saturday, November 30, 2002


Chaos of History: Art in 1930
Michael Here's another mini-installment of my "cross-section" approach to art history, this time focused on 1930. All the following images... posted by Friedrich at November 30, 2002 | perma-link | (3) comments

Friday, November 29, 2002


Free Reads -- Why leftists?
Friedrich -- Why would a rational person with some knowledge of the world choose to be a leftist? It's a... posted by Michael at November 29, 2002 | perma-link | (18) comments

Aesthetics and Dogs
Michael A story from the New York Times, which you can read here, reveals recent progress made in understanding the... posted by Friedrich at November 29, 2002 | perma-link | (5) comments

Thursday, November 28, 2002


Politics of the NEA, part II
Michael As I mentioned in my last posting, the NEA was created in large part under political pressure from established... posted by Friedrich at November 28, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Wednesday, November 27, 2002


Free Reads -- Anne Perry
Friedrich -- Do you remember the movie "Heavenly Creatures"? Peter Jackson directing a tale about two teenaged girls who have... posted by Michael at November 27, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Thanksgiving
Michael-- I was just sitting here twiddling my thumbs before heading out to the airport. I am dragging my long-suffering... posted by Friedrich at November 27, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Digital Photography Musings
Friedrich -- "But what about the printer?" That was my main worry a while back, when I was lusting to... posted by Michael at November 27, 2002 | perma-link | (3) comments

Aloha, "Aloha"
Michael In a comment a while ago, you asked for more information on “Aloha” Barney, who was the art dealer... posted by Friedrich at November 27, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Tuesday, November 26, 2002


Pollock's Drip Fractals
Michael In the December 2002 issue of Scientific American there is a very interesting article by Richard Taylor on the... posted by Friedrich at November 26, 2002 | perma-link | (8) comments

Games and Puzzles
Friedrich -- A few remarks by Glenn “Mac” Frazier in the comments section of the modernist/modernism posting below got me... posted by Michael at November 26, 2002 | perma-link | (5) comments

Free Reads -- Callow on Guinness
Friedrich -- Have you run across the writing of the British actor Simon Callow? I think he's one of the... posted by Michael at November 26, 2002 | perma-link | (2) comments

Monday, November 25, 2002


Free Reads -- Pre-Code Hollywood
Friedrich -- Jon Walz visits the author and film restorer Mark Vieira for the L.A. Times, and produces a concise... posted by Michael at November 25, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Free Reads -- Q&A archive
Friedrich -- Are you as fond of the q&a form as I am? I sometimes feel sorry for the interviewee,... posted by Michael at November 25, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Art is Long, Life is Weird
Michael The Wall Street Journal of November 25 has a column (“Boomtown” by Lee Gomes) on a wrinkle in the... posted by Friedrich at November 25, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Movies -- Punch Drunk Love
Friedrich -- I just caught P.T. Anderson's Punch Drunk Love, and I think it's going to be the last of... posted by Michael at November 25, 2002 | perma-link | (9) comments

Saturday, November 23, 2002


TV Alert
Friedrich -- A few treats, plucked from the overgrown thicket that is next week's television schedule. Pierce Brosnan on Inside... posted by Michael at November 23, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Free reads -- Philosoblog and Glenn Frazier
Friedrich -- Jim Ryan is an interesting case -- a philosopher with a lot of respect (including philosophical respect) for... posted by Michael at November 23, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Friday, November 22, 2002


Free Reads -- De Palma
Friedrich -- Like his work or not, Brian De Palma (who talks to Michael Sragow in a good interview for... posted by Michael at November 22, 2002 | perma-link | (4) comments

Free Reads -- Sullivan on media bias
Friedrich -- Andrew Sullivan has written a subtle yet levelheaded and enjoyable piece about media bias for the Times of... posted by Michael at November 22, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

The Politics of the NEA, Part I
Michael In my never-ending series on American culture I thought it was finally time to get around to the NEA.... posted by Friedrich at November 22, 2002 | perma-link | (2) comments

Modern/Modernist
Friedrich -- Remember my small campaign to avoid using the word "liberal" to describe leftists (who, in my experience, are... posted by Michael at November 22, 2002 | perma-link | (22) comments

Thursday, November 21, 2002


Free Reads -- Walter Williams
Friedrich -- Walter Williams, one of my favorite columnists, delivers another punchy piece of down-to-earth, rock-solid commonsense, readable here. Sample... posted by Michael at November 21, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Nicole Kidman
Friedrich -- Are you a Nicole Kidman fan? I am. She has pretty much everything I want from a star,... posted by Michael at November 21, 2002 | perma-link | (8) comments

Aesthetics & Automobiles
Michael Knowing your interest in the aesthetics of everyday life, I thought of you when I read a story in... posted by Friedrich at November 21, 2002 | perma-link | (7) comments

Free reads -- black velvet
Friedrich -- Have you stumbled across this? An article in The Age by Pat Sheil about Edgar Leeteg, apparently the... posted by Michael at November 21, 2002 | perma-link | (12) comments

Google Searches
Friedrich -- I can't explain why, but the Google searches that have led websurfers to our blog haven't been as... posted by Michael at November 21, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

"Globalization" and Education
Michael As long as I'm on a roll about modern public-school education: what’s with the total indifference to geography? My... posted by Friedrich at November 21, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Wednesday, November 20, 2002


Celebrity Smack Down
Michael As you know, one of our readers, Felix Salmon (not gregdotorg as I mistakenly mentioned when I first posted... posted by Friedrich at November 20, 2002 | perma-link | (6) comments

Free Reads -- Sullivan on Oakeshott
Friedrich -- I sometimes suspect that I'm evolving into little more than a public-relations agency for the philosopher Michael Oakeshott.... posted by Michael at November 20, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Free Reads—The Source of Consciousness
Michael In the Los Angeles Times of November 17, there is an interesting article on brain research—apparently my topic for... posted by Friedrich at November 20, 2002 | perma-link | (7) comments

Tuesday, November 19, 2002


Change, Death and Pop Culture
Michael I was a bit surprised by the comments on my recent posting on Theodor Adorno; people who I know... posted by Friedrich at November 19, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Monday, November 18, 2002


NYC Arts and Media on Film
Friedrich -- Just because my mind sometimes makes lists in the middle of the night, here’s a list of movies... posted by Michael at November 18, 2002 | perma-link | (2) comments

Sunday, November 17, 2002


Chaos of History: Art in 1910
Michael, In a previous posting, I mentioned how inspired I was by the book, “1900: Art at the Cross Roads,”... posted by Friedrich at November 17, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Brain Research
Michael I seem to have suddenly been reading a lot about scientific research that has implications for the arts. I... posted by Friedrich at November 17, 2002 | perma-link | (5) comments

Saturday, November 16, 2002


Art in Santa Fe
Friedrich -- A busy few days of art-going here on vacation in Santa Fe, wrestling with the way popular and... posted by Michael at November 16, 2002 | perma-link | (5) comments

American High Culture IV: The Role of Universities
Michael In my previous posting on “high” culture, I discussed how real estate developers have often used the prestige associated... posted by Friedrich at November 16, 2002 | perma-link | (7) comments

Friday, November 15, 2002


Adorno's Self Portrait
Michael As you may recall, I had a little fun a few months back with a review of Mr. Adorno’s... posted by Friedrich at November 15, 2002 | perma-link | (7) comments

Thursday, November 14, 2002


Our Mission, so to speak
Bleep, bloop, sounds of static… We interrupt our regular programming for this public service announcement. It occurs to the two... posted by Michael at November 14, 2002 | perma-link | (7) comments

Wednesday, November 13, 2002


The TiVo Revolution continues
Michael Although I’m a mere amateur TV-watcher compared to you, I thought I should share how TV watching at my... posted by Friedrich at November 13, 2002 | perma-link | (2) comments

Movie update -- "Femme Fatale"
Friedrich, I was taken by surprise the other day when I turned to the movie pages and saw that Brian... posted by Michael at November 13, 2002 | perma-link | (3) comments

Tuesday, November 12, 2002


Education and Race
Michael Is it just me, or do stories about racial diversity initiatives at colleges make you want to laugh and... posted by Friedrich at November 12, 2002 | perma-link | (4) comments

Monday, November 11, 2002


Tacit Knowledge -- New Books
Friedrich Covering the arts professionally (for way too many years) burned a lot of earnest-and-dreamy liberal-arts foolishness out of me.... posted by Michael at November 11, 2002 | perma-link | (9) comments

Education and Science
Michael My experience at our Lousy Ivy University, my adventures with public and private school education for my children, and... posted by Friedrich at November 11, 2002 | perma-link | (7) comments

Saturday, November 9, 2002


The Anatomy of Melancholy
Michael Do you suffer regularly from melancholy? I do. Yes, I understand, millions of people are either a bit or... posted by Friedrich at November 9, 2002 | perma-link | (8) comments

TV Alert
Friedrich -- More riches brought up from the depths of next week's TV schedule. Master Spy: The Robert Hansson Story... posted by Michael at November 9, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Libertarians and sci-fi
Friedrich -- One thing I notice over and over that I've never managed to make much sense of is the... posted by Michael at November 9, 2002 | perma-link | (25) comments

American High Culture III: The Role of Real Estate
Michael “High” culture in America, city governments and the real estate industry have had a long relationship in the U.S.... posted by Friedrich at November 9, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Friday, November 8, 2002


Dvorak in Love
Friedrich -- You've got me thinking about 19th century American art, and as I was doing so during this morning's... posted by Michael at November 8, 2002 | perma-link | (3) comments

Free Reads -- Anti-Americanism
Friedrich -- Jamie Glazov at Front Page magazine leads a panel discussion on the topic of "Anti-Americanism," here. How to... posted by Michael at November 8, 2002 | perma-link | (5) comments

Cultureblog Fever
Friedrich -- Prowling the work of our fellow culturebloggers, I notice that Alexandra, over at Out of Lascaux (here), has... posted by Michael at November 8, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Thursday, November 7, 2002


How Happy Are You?
Michael Are you happy? Are you satisfied? If you told me: “yes” or “very” should I believe you? Obviously, there... posted by Friedrich at November 7, 2002 | perma-link | (4) comments

Free Reads -- Catlin Gunn
Friedrich -- In the Guardian, Catlin Gunn kicks off a new series of columns with the tale of how she,... posted by Michael at November 7, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Policy Break
Michael I’ve done my best to avoid the whole topic of politics lately, but I was struck by the juxtaposition... posted by Friedrich at November 7, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

American High Culture re-redux; and Continuing Ed: Lawrence Levine
Friedrich -- Many thanks for your ongoing series about the stresses between popular and high cult in America. You're touching... posted by Michael at November 7, 2002 | perma-link | (4) comments

American High Culture Redux
Michael In my last posting on “high” culture in America, I promised to explain where today’s high-cult institutions—museums, symphony orchestras,... posted by Friedrich at November 7, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Wednesday, November 6, 2002


Reflections on blogging
Friedrich -- How have you found the process of blogging? I've found it fascinating. In fact, it's the intellectual/cultural thing... posted by Michael at November 6, 2002 | perma-link | (6) comments

The Church of PBS
Friedrich -- Stephen Foster: Death by documentary "Major funding for this program was provided by Sominex...." Well, not really, but... posted by Michael at November 6, 2002 | perma-link | (0)

Evobio Keeps Up With the Times
Michael I don’t know if you noticed, but the NY Times Science Times section of November 5 was an orgy... posted by Friedrich at November 6, 2002 | perma-link | (2) comments

Tuesday, November 5, 2002


The Living Dead
Michael Given your interest in graphic novels, I thought you might want to know that Eddie Campbell, the artist of... posted by Friedrich at November 5, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

American High Culture
Michael After reading a history of the NEA last week, I got to pondering the whole question of “high" culture... posted by Friedrich at November 5, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Moratoria Dreams
Friedrich -- It occurs to me that many fields could use the occasional imposed-from-without break from habit. It might freshen... posted by Michael at November 5, 2002 | perma-link | (3) comments

Top Drawer Blogs
Friedrich -- Something I’ve come to appreciate over the past few months is blogging as an improvisatory performance art. What... posted by Michael at November 5, 2002 | perma-link | (4) comments

Monday, November 4, 2002


Turner Prize: Tate v. Howell
Michael Intrigued by the furor over UK culture minister Kim Howell’s negative comments regarding the work of the four short-listed... posted by Friedrich at November 4, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Sunday, November 3, 2002


TV Alert
Friedrich -- More tips for those who want to use their TV as a cultural resource, and not a narcotic.... posted by Michael at November 3, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments

Saturday, November 2, 2002


The Emperor Has No Clothes
Michael Thanks for putting me on to the most recent flap in British art, in which Culture Minister Kim Howells... posted by Friedrich at November 2, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Free Views -- Cristina Aguilera
Friedrich -- When you check into pop culture as seldom as I do, you lose track of where current pop... posted by Michael at November 2, 2002 | perma-link | (12) comments

Free Reads -- Dennis Lim and Todd Haynes
Friedrich -- If you ever needed confirmation that 1) you aren't a leftie, 2) you aren't gay, and 3) you... posted by Michael at November 2, 2002 | perma-link | (0) comments

Friday, November 1, 2002


Free Reads -- Perl on Modigliani
Friedrich -- Le Grand Nu, 1919 The Modigliani exhibition that's up in Buffalo right now is apparently the first such... posted by Michael at November 1, 2002 | perma-link | (1) comments