All Culture
The serendipity of distractionWhy is it that certain activities聽lead us so eagerly astray?聽
First LookNational Geographic reckons with its racist pastNational Geographic says its past coverage looked at the world through a racist lens. Acknowledging the 130-year-old magazine's past, its editor says, is essential 'to move beyond it,' as is hiring a more diverse newsroom.聽
The Met鈥檚 not free. How do other museums do it?New York鈥檚聽Metropolitan Museum of Art started charging out-of-state visitors this month.聽Some museums, however, make free admission work.聽
鈥楢 Wrinkle in Time鈥� is more cheesy than transportingIn the film, middle-school math whiz Meg Murry (Storm Reid) and her precocious younger brother Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) attempt to locate their vanished physicist father (Chris Pine).
In 鈥楾he Forgiven,' Desmond Tutu faces off with a white separatistThe film鈥檚 strength lies in the dialogue between the characters, portrayed by Forest Whitaker and Eric Bana.聽聽
Top Picks: The 'Black Panther' soundtrack, the NBC program 'Rise,' and moreNew York鈥檚 Museum of Modern Art has created a YouTube series, 'How To See,' that features museum curators and sometimes the artists themselves delving into the work,聽Monitor movie critic Peter Rainer鈥檚 pick for best film of the year, 'The Florida Project,' is available on DVD and Blu-ray, and more top picks.
Meanwhile... in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, a charity searches for homes or useful employment for dogs who find minesAnd in Armenia,聽all children between the ages of 6 and 8 receive compulsory chess lessons,聽making Armenia the first country in the world to include chess in its national curriculum, while in聽Fada N鈥橤ourma, Burkina Faso,聽African choreographer Aguibou Sanou has been bringing dance to prison.
A rebuke from a much gentler ageCaptain Crosby wore command lightly. He was a 鈥榩eople person鈥� before that term existed.
First Look'Shape of Water' wins best picture as Oscars wrestles with changeHollywood handed out its top honors after a year that stirred such issues as gender equality and diversity to the surface.聽Several winners spoke of the importance of representation and the ability of art to 'erase the lines in the sand' that create division.聽- 'Movie Nights with the Reagans,' a new memoirMark Weinberg, a speechwriter and adviser to the president, recounts the weekend evenings he spent watching movies with the president and first lady at Camp David in the 1980s.
'Red Sparrow' is all grim oppressivenessMary-Louise Parker's cameo is a highlight in the film about a lethal Russian agent (Jennifer Lawrence).
鈥極h Lucy!鈥� portrays L.A. from a down-and-outer鈥檚 viewThe聽movie needs to be more expansive and antic than it is.
Why the 2018 Oscars matter: A look at the push for diversity that's changing the face of the movie industryHollywood鈥檚 biggest night is here again. Here鈥檚 a look at what鈥檚 dominating the conversation ahead of the prestigious event.
First Look'Last Men in Aleppo' is nominated for an Oscar, but ceremony remains out of reachThe Syrian government has refused to issue a travel visa for a rescue worker featured in the documentary directed by聽Firas Fayyad. The film follows a group of men in the then rebel-held part of Aleppo who volunteered to save lives during incessant government bombings.- First Look'Last Men in Aleppo' is nominated for an Oscar, but ceremony remains out of reachThe Syrian government has refused to issue a travel visa for a rescue worker featured in the documentary directed by聽Firas Fayyad. The film follows a group of men in the then rebel-held part of Aleppo who volunteered to save lives during incessant government bombings.
Top Picks: 'I鈥檓 With Her''s album 'See You Around,' the Morecast app, and moreNational Geographic was on the scene when聽Elon Musk made history with the launch of the Falcon Heavy rocket,聽Pixar scores again with its latest film, 'Coco,' available on DVD and Blu-ray, and more top picks.
Meanwhile... in Mosul, Iraq, Fahd Sabah recently launched Mosul鈥檚 new Book Forum cafeAnd in Thornbury, Australia,聽refugees in this suburb of Melbourne are offering cooking classes organized by Free to Feed, a nonprofit started in 2015, while in聽La Paz, Bolivia,聽shoeshine boys are being given a leg up.
An unquiet realization about librariesA recent visit changes my perception of library behavior and purpose.
First LookMinorities have growing influence in film and TV, new study showsPeople of color accounted for a major and growing proportion of movie ticket buyers in 2015 and 2016, according to a new study from UCLA. The findings indicate an increasing economic incentive for Hollywood to appeal to more diverse audiences.聽
American Indian artist T.C. Cannon鈥檚 work reflects still-current conflictsThe poignancy and tension that run through artist Cannon鈥檚 art speak to a larger discussion going on today as the United States grapples with thorny questions of ethnic identity, land rights, and cultural heritage.
