I am still chuckling over Yuskvage’s description of Renaissance religious paintings as “Jesus and his friends.” Never going to be able to visit The Met without thinking about that. I also really appreciated this little detail in the Jamie Quattro short story: “She was always putting herself in the way of the sufferings of others.” A poet could have summed up the story that way. Maybe only a poet.
Gagosian. Only got to it yesterday, on audio. It was long. Very long.
I didn't feel informed or edified. Whole slabs of text could have been omitted without any loss. Despite the novella scale, I couldn't explain to anyone how or why this person became so successful to the art world and to the weakthy. I got no sense that he knows anything about art, except for the frequent assertions that he's deeply knowledgeable. (Yet entirely unqualified, a major point never addressed.)
Interesting about his publishing, that's a valuable legacy, for those who can afford the books.
Got me beat why such a lengthy and quite empty piece made it over the line.
I read The Dutch House and Patchetts Uber long form Covid Tom Hanks piece in Harper's last year (or two years ago? time is a blur). Anyway, Waldman's piece didn't move me and would be in my skip list.
I had never heard that story of the Wagner / US confrontation in Syria. Was both fascinating and terrifying. Overall that was the pick of the issue to me.
I would have liked to have heard more about the closure or lack of it from the families at the start of the true crime piece. Otherwise felt it was a pretty strong article.
Finally, you really missed the opportunity to use this quote to describe this week's features: "three of which are boob-free"
Yes, that's a great quote! I always choose one from the "must-read" of the week, but I nearly elevated the Yuskavage piece just because there were so many great gag lines.
It's terrible!! I put my thoughts in the paid supplement for some reason and then forgot to include them here, but let me copy-paste real quick!
My thoughts on the “redesigned” Goings On About Town:
I don’t love it! Slimming down from six pages to two, most of the second of which is consumed by Tables for Two, there’s paltry space left for content. In my opinion, the biggest issue with Goings On has always been that each section has its own “rules,” which are unexplained: Art and Theater reviews are of currently running shows, while Dance and Classical feature previews of interesting-looking upcoming shows, and Movies is Richard Brody’s review corner — except it’s also a place to highlight compelling repertory screenings (i.e. old movies.) But the new redesign doesn’t actually change any of that, it looks like; it just stuffs the confusion into a smaller package. I’ll especially miss the art capsule-reviews, which were reliably fantastic — it just won’t be the same only getting one, or sometimes none, a week. Pick Three, the sidebar, is sort of interesting, it feels very New York magazine, (and I do think the one-two-three thing from left to right — “one” review, tables for “two,” pick “three” — is cute) but I’m not sure if it will be a rotating writer or always Michael Schulman. I hope the former — I’d like more varied vibes.
(OK - Shaw has a blurb in the new shortform Goings On this week, which I'd say overall is quite good, better than last week's by some margin. Gives me hope for the whole enterprise, but the cutting-down of art reviews is a big loss still.)
This is good and wish you would do NYRB as well. Actually, I mistakenly subscribed for that reason - got the acronym wrong. It would be more difficult and low/declining circulation among boomers so I can see why you don't... I no longer read the NY
I am still chuckling over Yuskvage’s description of Renaissance religious paintings as “Jesus and his friends.” Never going to be able to visit The Met without thinking about that. I also really appreciated this little detail in the Jamie Quattro short story: “She was always putting herself in the way of the sufferings of others.” A poet could have summed up the story that way. Maybe only a poet.
Gagosian. Only got to it yesterday, on audio. It was long. Very long.
I didn't feel informed or edified. Whole slabs of text could have been omitted without any loss. Despite the novella scale, I couldn't explain to anyone how or why this person became so successful to the art world and to the weakthy. I got no sense that he knows anything about art, except for the frequent assertions that he's deeply knowledgeable. (Yet entirely unqualified, a major point never addressed.)
Interesting about his publishing, that's a valuable legacy, for those who can afford the books.
Got me beat why such a lengthy and quite empty piece made it over the line.
I read The Dutch House and Patchetts Uber long form Covid Tom Hanks piece in Harper's last year (or two years ago? time is a blur). Anyway, Waldman's piece didn't move me and would be in my skip list.
I had never heard that story of the Wagner / US confrontation in Syria. Was both fascinating and terrifying. Overall that was the pick of the issue to me.
I would have liked to have heard more about the closure or lack of it from the families at the start of the true crime piece. Otherwise felt it was a pretty strong article.
Finally, you really missed the opportunity to use this quote to describe this week's features: "three of which are boob-free"
For another perspective on some aspects of the Syria story, I highly recommend this Luke Mogelson story from the magazine https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2020/04/27/americas-abandonment-of-syria
Yes, that's a great quote! I always choose one from the "must-read" of the week, but I nearly elevated the Yuskavage piece just because there were so many great gag lines.
Nothing for the end of Goings On About Town??? A shonda.
It's terrible!! I put my thoughts in the paid supplement for some reason and then forgot to include them here, but let me copy-paste real quick!
My thoughts on the “redesigned” Goings On About Town:
I don’t love it! Slimming down from six pages to two, most of the second of which is consumed by Tables for Two, there’s paltry space left for content. In my opinion, the biggest issue with Goings On has always been that each section has its own “rules,” which are unexplained: Art and Theater reviews are of currently running shows, while Dance and Classical feature previews of interesting-looking upcoming shows, and Movies is Richard Brody’s review corner — except it’s also a place to highlight compelling repertory screenings (i.e. old movies.) But the new redesign doesn’t actually change any of that, it looks like; it just stuffs the confusion into a smaller package. I’ll especially miss the art capsule-reviews, which were reliably fantastic — it just won’t be the same only getting one, or sometimes none, a week. Pick Three, the sidebar, is sort of interesting, it feels very New York magazine, (and I do think the one-two-three thing from left to right — “one” review, tables for “two,” pick “three” — is cute) but I’m not sure if it will be a rotating writer or always Michael Schulman. I hope the former — I’d like more varied vibes.
I will add... Johanna Fateman is a BIG loss in particular.
Also... How do you have Helen Shaw, the master of the theater blurb, on staff, and not let her blurb? LET HER BLURB!
(OK - Shaw has a blurb in the new shortform Goings On this week, which I'd say overall is quite good, better than last week's by some margin. Gives me hope for the whole enterprise, but the cutting-down of art reviews is a big loss still.)
This is good and wish you would do NYRB as well. Actually, I mistakenly subscribed for that reason - got the acronym wrong. It would be more difficult and low/declining circulation among boomers so I can see why you don't... I no longer read the NY
Hidden Depths: disturbing. I mean the millions of participants, not just the creator.
There's a story to be told about the contemporary tipping point after which true crime (and imagined crime) became a mass fetish.