Nyala calf at Brookfield Zoo/Photo: Jim Schulz, CZS-Brookfield Zoo
ART
Supreme Court “Could Change The Future Of Western Art,” Headlines The Times
“A copyright case about Andy Warhol’s work could change the future of Western art—and, in a sense, its history, too,” writes Blake Gopnik at the New York Times. “Blame the appeals court judgment from 2021 declaring that Andy Warhol had no right to appropriate someone else’s photo of Prince into one of the Pop artist’s classic silk-screened portraits. The art world quailed at the ruling… In its own brief, the Andy Warhol Foundation, whose fight with the photographer Lynn Goldsmith got the case started, quoted a certain Blake Gopnik, writing in this newspaper: ‘The act of “retaining the essential elements” of an extant image is Warhol’s entire m.o. as one of the most important of all modern artists.’ I had gone further: ‘There’s a lot that judges can do with the stroke of a pen, but rewriting art history isn’t one of them. They’re stuck with appropriation as one of the great artistic innovations of the modern era.'”
Hindman New York Appoints Senior Director, Trusts, Estates And Private Clients
Fine art auction house Hindman announces Caroline Baker Smith as Senior Director of Trusts, Estates & Private Clients in its New York office. In partnership with Gemma Sudlow, managing director of the New York region, Smith will work closely with Hindman’s four salerooms throughout the country–Chicago, Palm Beach, Cincinnati and Denver–and the Boston office to expand the firm’s presence throughout the Northeast. Smith’s appointment follows Hindman’s recent expansion into New York, a key growth market for important estates and private collections. More on Hindman here.
DESIGN
Mies’ Pied A Terre For Under A Mill
“For the first time in over a decade, Mies van der Rohe’s personal residence in Streeterville is up for sale,” listed for $825,000, reports Chicago magazine. “Architecture critics found it ironic that van der Rohe didn’t live in a building of his own design; instead, he chose to reside in the Campbell Apartments, an updated version of an Italian Renaissance palazzo designed by Robert S. De Golyer in 1917.” Van der Rohe “feared tenants would complain to him personally. He’d rather look out his window at the two modernist towers than be stuck inside them.”
Fine Arts Building Celebrates 125
Two new historic exhibits and self-guided walking tours will highlight notable artists, companies and artworks that have peopled the Fine Arts Building since 1898. The exhibitions – “Art Alone Endures” and “Staging Ground” – and self-guided walking tours of the Fine Arts Building are free and open to the public during regular building hours: Monday-Friday, 7am-10pm; Saturday, 7am-9pm; and Sunday, 9am-9pm. Plus, Second Fridays: open studios are free to attend on the second Friday of every month from 5-9pm., and include gallery openings, special performances and artistic demonstrations. More here.
That Amazon Second HQ That Wasn’t Chicago’s Might Not Be Virginia’s, Either
Amazon “is pausing construction on its sprawling second headquarters near Washington, a decision that coincides with the company’s deepest-ever job cuts and a reassessment of office needs to account for remote work,” reports Bloomberg. “The company remains committed to Arlington, Virginia, where by 2030 Amazon has committed to spend $2.5 billion and hire some 25,000 workers. But the construction moratorium will delay the… full arrival at its biggest real estate project, and could create headaches for local developers, as well as construction and service workers.”
CTA Preparing Electric Buses For Traditional Chicago Winters
“To make electric buses work, the CTA has had to go to great lengths and expense,” reports the Sun-Times. “It built fast-charging sites on both ends of the 66 route that plug into the bus rooftops.” Drivers “monitor the batteries to make sure they don’t get depleted, risking the bus getting stranded. If they get below fifty-percent charge, they’re supposed to top them off at a charger. ‘We’re working through the day-to-day challenges of inclement weather in Chicago,’ said Don Hargrove, senior maintenance manager.”
DINING & DRINKING
Founder Of Mr. Beef Was Sixty-Nine
Joe Zucchero, the founder of Mr. Beef, the Italian beef stand that’s served in River North for more than four decades and inspired “The Bear,” has died, reports Eater Chicago. “The future of the stand is unknown, but the attention from the TV show and having family around are positives.”
Two Chicago tastes collide: Garrett Brands is launching Frango Chocolate Mint CaramelCrisp Mix. The limited-batch recipe will be available starting Friday, March 10. The mix can be ordered here, or purchased at Garrett Shops at 625 North Michigan and at Woodfield Mall. “Frango Chocolate Mint CaramelCrisp Mix balances chocolate and mint-covered Garrett Popcorn. Garrett CaramelCrisp is handcrafted in a small-batch copper kettle, then coated in milk and white chocolate and blended with Frango mint oil. The mint chocolate kernels are then mixed with traditional CaramelCrisp.” The classic tin size is $40.
FILM & TELEVISION
Las Vegas No Longer Lacks An Art House
Movie screens are being built by benefactors: The newly opened 501c3 nonprofit Beverly Theater in downtown Las Vegas is a high-tech oasis, reports Las Vegas Weekly. “We can’t be the traditional exhibitor that just sits and waits for the studio to save their quarter,” the theater’s “chief experience officer” tells the paper. “We have to be a reliable brand, where people trust us [and just] show up because they know something good is coming… We’re taking risks on some titles that we think need to be shown, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone’s going to come flooding in to watch them right away.” The theater’s founder and benefactor notes that “Las Vegas entertainment is competitive. There’s so much going on.” Among amenities: top-of-the-line digital projectors, room in the booths for possible future projector installation, a “theatrical lighting rig, pencil mics that descend from the ceiling for post-screening Q&A sessions and the soundproofed sliding wall that opens to the building’s spacious courtyard with the push of a button.”
MUSIC
Wild Hare Co-Owner Asrat Sellassie Was Sixty-Eight
Ethiopian-born musician Asrat Sellassie “recorded with Ziggy Marley’s first band on their Grammy-winning albums and was a co-founder of the Wild Hare, which built a reputation as the mecca of reggae in America,” reports the Sun-Times. Sellassie’s “musical journey began in the late 1970s with the Afro-Reggae band Dallol. The band was forced to leave Ethiopia because of a civil war and eventually landed in Chicago in the early 1980s.”
Huge Hike In Visa Fees Would Cost U. S. Touring World Musicians
“The concert industry in the city—and in the rest of the country—could be significantly harmed by a proposed rules change from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services,” writes Jamie Ludwig at the Reader. “If the change goes into effect, it would jack up fees for a huge range of applicants—and the cost of visas for international musicians would increase by up to 260 percent.”
STAGE
Joffrey Announces Season
The Joffrey Ballet has announced its 2023–2024 season at Lyric Opera House, featuring a Chicago debut of a full-length gothic masterpiece set in the dawn of modern science; a mixed rep program featuring a world premiere; the return of a Swedish tour-de-force; and a holiday tradition. The Joffrey begins its sixty-eighth season with the Chicago premiere of Liam Scarlett’s “Frankenstein,” October 12–22. The Joffrey celebrates the return of Christopher Wheeldon’s “The Nutcracker,” December 2–27, followed by “Studies in Blue,” February 15–25, 2024, a mixed rep program with original work choreographed by Liam Scarlett and Andrew McNicol, rounded out with a world premiere by Stina Quagebeur. Closing out the season is the return of Alexander Ekman’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” April 25–May 5, 2024. “Our 2023-2024 season invites audiences to journey with us through some of the most gorgeous worlds created for the ballet, full of love and pain, tragedy and triumph,” says The Mary B. Galvin Artistic Director Ashley Wheater MBE in a release. “This season, audiences will find spectacle, intimacy, and above all, humanity at the ballet.”
“Mockingbird” And “Hadestown” Return
Broadway In Chicago announces two summer limited engagements: “Hadestown” returns to the CIBC Theatre June 20-25 and “To Kill A Mockingbird,” August 8-13. Single tickets will go on sale at a later date. Both shows will be available to subscribers as off-season specials here.
ARTS & CULTURE & ETC.
Students Reject College In States Where GOP Politicians Enact Anti-Gay Policies
“Across the country, state legislators have moved to restrict LGBTQ rights with hundreds of bills already this year, including in Texas, Alabama, Tennessee and Arizona. Some of the bills would ban transgender students from competing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity, while others would stop people from changing their gender identity on official documents or force teachers to tell parents about any information they learn on a student’s gender identity,” reports NBC News. “Interviews with students, parents and college counselors suggest LGBTQ young people are striking colleges in states where such legislation is being pushed. Some students worry about having access to hormone therapy while away at school, some want to attend schools with all-gender housing options, and others fear hostile rhetoric puts them at a heightened risk of physical violence.”
Educators Pull Back On Lessons Such As “Slavery Was Wrong”
“Quiet censorship comes as debates over whether and how to instruct children about race, racism, U.S. history, gender identity and sexuality inflame politics and consume the nation,” reports the Washington Post. “These fights, which have already generated at least sixty-four state laws reshaping what children can learn and do at school, are likely to intensify ahead of the 2024 presidential election… In response, teachers are changing how they teach.” An Iowa teacher finally got a Zoom meeting with his school superintendent. “He asked the question he felt lay at the heart of critiques of his curriculum. ‘Knowing that I should stick to the facts, and knowing that to say “Slavery was wrong,” that’s not a fact, that’s a stance, is it acceptable for me to teach students that slavery was wrong?'” The superintendent “nodded her head, affirming that saying ‘slavery was wrong’ counts as a ‘stance.'” She says in a video with the story, “We had people that were slaves within our state… We’re not supposed to say to [students], ‘How does that make you feel?’ We can’t—or, ‘Does that make you feel bad?’ We’re not to do that part of it.”
Illinois Leads In Applications For Student Debt Relief
“The justices of the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments last week in a case that could [affect] more than 1.5 million people in Illinois with student debt. At issue is the legal standing of President Biden’s loan forgiveness program, which would cancel up to $20,000 in debt for borrowers earning less than $125,000 a year,” reports the Sun-Times. “Before the program got held up in court in November, Illinois residents applied in droves.”
Half Of All Americans Eighteen-To-Twenty-Nine Living With Their Parents
“According to a Pew Research Center analysis using Census Bureau data, half of Americans ages eighteen-to-twenty-nine were living with their parents in July,” reports the New York Times. “And although more than one-third of Americans in a survey that the center conducted in October 2021 said it was bad for society for young adults to live with their parents, many young people said it was necessary to get closer to achieving their personal and financial goals.”
Female Nyala Calf Debuts At Brookfield Zoo
One of Brookfield Zoo’s newest additions—a three-month old female nyala calf—has been able to enjoy the temporary spring-like temperatures. Since her birth on December 5, 2022, the calf has been bonding with her four-year-old mother, Zola, and just recently has been given access to their outdoor habitat with the rest of the herd that includes Hamilton, the calf’s sire; Merry; and Leah. Both male and female nyala reach sexual maturity at about a year old. Peak breeding seasons are in the spring and fall. Following a seven-month gestation, the female gives birth to usually one offspring. The species is considered the most sexually dimorphic among the spiral-horned antelopes. Some of the differences between the genders are female nyala have a fawn color coat while the males are dark brown to gray. Also, males are larger than the females and have the impressive long inward spiraling horns. While nyala are considered common in southern African countries, including Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe, the species still has threats to its population: habitat loss due to agriculture and cattle grazing and hunting. More here.
Mercurial New York Mayor Calls Lightfoot Defeat “Warning Sign For The Country”
New York City mayor Eric Adams tells CNN’s “State of the Union” that the Chicago mayoral election is a “warning sign”: “I showed up at crime scenes. I knew what New Yorkers were saying. And I saw it all over the country. I think, if anything, it is really stating that this is what I have been talking about. America, we have to be safe,” in an apparent call for more police. “Mayors, we are closer. We’re closest to the problem… We are focused on public safety because people want to be safe… I’m on the subways. I walk the streets. I speak to everyday working-class people. And they were concerned about safety.” Adams reiterated, in circular comments, his commitment to breaking down the separation between religion and government. “What I believe is that you cannot separate your faith. Government should not interfere with religion, and religion should not interfere with government. But I believe my faith pushes me forward on how I govern and the things that I do.”
