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Arts – Articles, Analysis, Comment

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Changes in light qualities during a solar eclipse are quick and drastic, so familiarity with aperture and shutter speed are important. People with cameras among viewers of a partial solar eclipse in Yanguan town, Haining City, China, in 2009. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Photographing the eclipse? You’ll join a long history of people seeking proof of experience

Apart from technical aspects, a successful photograph of the eclipse serves as a lasting reminder of the sense of wonder and the feeling of being part of something larger than ourselves.
Oscar wins through the years: 1. Hattie McDaniel, best supporting actress with Fay Bainter, 1940. 2. Whoopi Goldberg, best supporting actress, 1991. 3. Halle Berry, best actress, 2002. 4. Jennifer Hudson, best supporting actress, 2007. 5. Mo'Nique, best supporting actress, 2010. 6. Lupita Nyong’o, best actress, 2014. 7. Octavia Spencer, best supporting actress, 2012. 8.Viola Davis, best supporting actress, 2017 9. Da'Vine Joy Randolph, best supporting actress, 2024. (AP | Oscars | Shutterstock)

Nine years after #OscarsSoWhite, a look at what’s changed

It’s been nine years since #OscarsSoWhite called out a lack of diversity at the Oscars. Has anything changed? Prof. Naila Keleta-Mae and actress Mariah Inger unpack the progress.
The Vesuvius Challenge incentivizes technological development by inviting researchers to figure out how to ‘read’ ancient papyri excavated from volcanic ash of Mount Vesuvius in Italy. Columns of Greek text retrieved from a portion of a scroll. (Vesuvius Challenge)

Ancient scrolls are being ‘read’ by machine learning – with human knowledge to detect language and make sense of them

However exciting the technological developments may be, the task of reading and analyzing the Greek and Latin texts recovered from the papyri will fall to human beings.
Christopher Nolan accepts the award for Best Director for ‘Oppenheimer’ during the Oscars on March 10, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, Calif. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

As ‘Oppenheimer’ triumphs at the Oscars, we should ask how historical films frame our shared future

The success of ‘Oppenheimer’ at the Academy Awards presents an opportunity to think about critical criteria for viewing historical film — and what we are owed by historical filmmakers.
Zendaya presents the award for best cinematography during the Oscars on March 10, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, Calif., wearing Armani Privé. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Oscars 2024: How a dress goes from haute couture design to red carpet

Beyond film, the Oscars spotlights the world of haute couture, where each design house involved in creating bespoke garments is celebrated for its distinctive esthetic.
The composer’s expressionism is often compared to paintings of his friend and fellow expressionist, Wassily Kandinsky. Kandinsky’s 1925 painting ‘Yellow-Red-Blue.’ (Wikipedia)

From concert halls to movie soundtracks, Arnold Schoenberg’s legacy as a classical composer still resounds

Though composers after Schoenberg used his technique to create atmospheric music in film, Schoenberg’s own ‘Accompaniment to a Film Scene’ was written for concert performance.
Wax figures of the Beatles in Madame Tussauds Berlin represent the pop stars in their youth — the two surviving members, Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, are in their 80s. (Shutterstock)

The ghosts of the past: Pop music is haunted by our anxieties about the future

Artificial intelligence helped produce the Beatles’ 2023 hit “Now and Then.” But despite the sophisticated technology, the song reveals our obsession with the past and our anxieties about the future.
We need to speak more about how to become the kind of man who can openly show love for others while accepting love from those who care. (Shutterstock)

Rethinking masculinity: Teaching men how to love and be loved

Encouraging men to take the risk of expressing tender feelings for others is part of relying on love as a tool of anti-racist and decolonial education.
One of two digitally drawn murals that are part of the installation and exhibit ‘who claims abstraction?’ by Toronto-based Guatemalan artist Francisco-Fernando Granados. (Rachel Topham Photography)

How art can challenge election-time rhetoric about immigrants

2024 is expected to be a year of elections around the world, and as often happens, anti-immigrant rhetoric is on the rise. Art can play a critical role in challenging that rhetoric.
Producer-director Norman Jewison, left, demonstrates how he wants an actor to wash the feet of Jesus, portrayed by Ted Neeley, during filming of the movie version of the rock musical, ‘Jesus Christ Superstar,’ in October 1972. (AP Photo, File)

Making emotional films: The enticing contradictions of Norman Jewison’s movies

A tension between cult, critical and popular appeal is part of Norman Jewison’s most prominent legacy.
Joaquin Phoenix in Ridley Scott’s ‘Napoleon.’ Napoleon was a prolific legislator who sponsored the Civil Code, later known as the Napoleonic Code. (Apple TV+)

Napoleon the lawmaker: What Ridley Scott’s film leaves out

Ridley Scott’s focus on Napoleon’s tactical triumphs, reckless miscalculations and sexual entanglements neglects his paradoxical legacy as a lawmaker.
The Art Gallery of Ontario and the Royal Ontario Museum are among art institutions that have struggled with responses to the Israel-Hamas war. The Art Gallery of Ontario seen in Toronto in 2008. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Artists bring human richness at times of strife — and need to be allowed to speak about the Israel-Hamas war

Especially in a time when trust in political leaders and institutions wanes, arts leaders, patrons, policymakers and artists face daunting but critical questions about the value and role of artists.
Ethan Hawke plays a minister in ‘First Reformed,’ (2017) a film that prompts viewers to rethink what they assume they already know, from politics to religion to the climate crisis. (A24)

Skip ‘Die Hard’ this Christmas and watch these 5 films to better understand the climate crisis

‘Somebody has to do something’: Top feature film and documentary picks from scholars examining climate change and cinema offer courage to hold contradictory truths and pursue climate solutions.
Big video game companies often time the release of their most popular titles around the holidays, and that means Christmas shoppers can make an impact by reflecting on the games they buy. (Shutterstock)

Buying indie video games over the holidays can help make the industry more ethical and fair

Video game companies often time the release of their most popular titles for the holiday season. Now is the time to reflect on the political economy of video games and which games we buy.