Art & Culture Maven

A 10-Year World-ly Musical Video Archive
World music is a stupid term, even if we're forced to use it for SEO purposes. (Which I just did, haha).
It was in vogue, however, when I began writing and blogging about music from all over the globe about a decade ago. In rearranging my social media accounts recently, it occurred to me - somehow, for the very first time - that I had a huge treasure trove of concert video clips from that period. 
For reasons largely to do with work, and of course nowadays the whole global pandemic thing, I don't get out to concerts and festivals as much as I used to, and while I don't miss the expense, and couldn't possibly take the same amount of time anymore, I certainly wouldn't change any of the memories. 
Most of the 80 videos were taken in conjunction with stories that might appear on this blog, or other outlets over the years, some of which no longer exist. This is the first time I've put them all together in a playlist.
NOTE: The sou…

From a media release:
Artist Sanaz Mazinani envisions Vancouver in the year 2080
at Vancouver Art Gallery Offsite
July 25, 2020 through to February 15, 2021
Vancouver, BC - Toronto-based artist Sanaz Mazinani creates a speculative garden comprised of native plants, sculptural water catchments and a series of glacier-like formations in All that Melts: notes from the future-past, the latest site-specific installation at the Vancouver Art Gallery’s public art space, Offsite.

In this new work, Mazinani imagines the city of Vancouver in the year 2080, a time in which the rise of global temperatures will have melted glaciers around the world, causing ocean levels to increase dramatically and forcing coastal cities to adapt. In this dystopic future, Vancouver will be subject to significantly longer, drier and hotter summers―a climatic shift that will require fundamental changes in water consumption, conservation and urban infrastructure. This transformation will also alter the typical growing sea…

From a media release:
The Vancouver Art Gallery Presents
Modern in the Making:
Post-War Craft and Design in British Columbia
July 18, 2020 to January 3, 2021
Discover the Ceramics, Fashion, Furniture, Jewellery and Textiles That Defined West Coast Modern Living in the Mid-Twentieth Century
Vancouver, BC – The Vancouver Art Gallery is proud to present Modern in the Making: Post-War Craft and Design in British Columbia from July 18, 2020 to January 3, 2021. The exhibition is the most comprehensive view of the mid-century craft and design scene in British Columbia assembled to date, examining ceramics, fashion, furniture, jewellery and textiles that defined West Coast modern living. Comprising over three hundred works created from 1945 to 1975, Modern in the Making: Post-War Craft and Design in British Columbia reveals the multiple ways modernism was interpreted in British Columbia, with the inflection of local histories, materials and knowledge with a recognition of the rich Indigenous cultur…

From a media release:
Sun Valley Music Festival Announces
Programming for Online 2020 Summer Season
July 27 to August 19, 2020
* One-time-only webcasts * Viewing from the lawn - Local and federal regulations permitting; learn more at SVMusicFestival.org/Attending2020
Nation’s largest admission-free, privately supported festival of classical music presents 36th Summer Season as virtual festival from July 27 to August 19 via Sun Valley Music Festival website (SVMusicFestival.org)
Presented as free, one-time-only webcasts developed by Music Director Alasdair Neale in collaboration with Creative Director James Darrah, new programming reimagines the Summer Season while preserving many previously announced elements including:
* Performances by guest artists Leila Josefowicz, Daniil Trifonov, Orion Weiss, and ensembles Time for Three and Villalobos Brothers; newly announced guest artists include composer / performer Mason Bates and genre-defying ensemble The 442s  * Series celebrating 250th anniversa…

From a media release:
SHINE YOUR EYESA Nigerian Musician Searches for His Missing 
Brother in the Vibrant Streets of São Paulo
LAUNCHES GLOBALLY ON NETFLIX JULY 29
A highlight of the 2020 Berlin International Film Festival, where it received its world premiere, SHINE YOUR EYES (Cidade Pássaro), the richly textured feature fiction debut of Brazilian filmmaker Matias Mariani, will launch worldwide on Netflix on Wednesday, July 29. 
SHINE YOUR EYES tells the story of Amadi (OC Ukeje), a musician from Lagos who travels to São Paulo to track down his missing older brother Ikenna (Chukwudi Iwuji) and bring him back home to Nigeria. 
Following the faint traces of Ikenna’s footsteps, he discovers that his brother was not the distinguished math professor he was supposed to be, but actually had contrived an intricate and nearly delusional series of schemes to accumulate wealth in Brazil. 
As the mysteries deepen, so too does Amadi’s attraction to this vibrant newfound culture—and to his brother’s Braz…

From a media release:
New York Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival & Venice Film Festival
United in support of film culture
TORONTO ─  The Toronto International Film Festival released today an official letter of solidarity with three other international film festivals, with each organization committing to cooperation, information sharing, and support of one another’s global events.
The New York Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival, and Venice Film Festival have all endured financial challenges amid the health pandemic. As a result, it has been essential for each organization to reimagine the delivery of its film festival to its audiences.
Here is the statement in full:This year, we saw the COVID-19 pandemic devastate communities all over the world, and bring life as we knew it to a halt. As supporters of global cinema, we watched as the work of film artists stopped in its tracks, and the culture of film itse…