Chicago's very own Paul Kahan tied for Outstanding Chef at the 2013 James Beard Foundation Restaurant and Chef Awards with New York City's David Chang Monday night.
Zimbabwean filmmaker, novelist Tsitsi Dangarembga
May. 6, 2013Chicago’s rich and lively arts and culture scene is due no doubt to our deep bench of homegrown talents.
However, our city has also been marked in significant ways by artists from around the world.
Many of their contributions have been grandly public. The Picasso sculpture in Daley Plaza and Anish Kapoor’s Cloud Gate are notable for their trajectory from daunting sculptural objects to beloved playground-style icons.
More ephemeral projects include Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s 1969 project to wrap the Museum of Contemporary Art, a move which made art history and elevated the reputation of both the artists and the MCA.
But we can’t always see the ways global artists work in Chicago. Some come for very brief spells. And as artists in residence at small cultural organizations or universities, their opportunities to meet with a broader public can be limited, or fly under the radar.
In an effort to give more visibility to their work and to provide opportunities for you to interact with these artists, we’re launching a new global arts initiative on WBEZ’s international affairs show Worldview.
Q&A with Julie Klausner
May. 6, 2013
You probably know Julie Klausner from my 2010 interview with her. If not for that, maybe her memoir I Don't Care About Her Band or her personable podcast How Was Your Week. Starting Tuesday, you will also know her for her role as Young Adult author, as her new book Art Girls Are Easy, a funny and romantic summer camp romp with an artsy twist, will be released May 7. I asked Julie what it's like wearing a new YA hat, and below that, check out an excerpt from the book.
How hard or easy was it to switch gears into YA writing? What challenges did it pose?
2013 or 1984?
May. 6, 2013
Surprise, surprise: Millenials are more willing than any other generation to share personal information online.
According to a new survey from the University of California's Center for the Digital Future, Millenials, ages 18-34, were more likely to share their location in order to receive coupons from nearby businesses: 56 percent vs. 42 percent of those 35 and over. More than half of the Millenials surveyed also said that they would share private information with a company if they got something in return.
This push for active participation in social media may seem harmless at first, until you look at the bigger picture and cringe at the Orwellian nature of it all.
For example, have you ever bought a product at your favorite store, and then saw an advertisement for a similar product pop up on your Facebook sidebar just moments later?
Bulls continue playoff ride in Miami
May. 6, 2013
The sweet smell of the Bulls playoff series win in Brooklyn still lingers today, however, it will dissipate soon enough. Tonight the Bulls are in Miami to play game one of a best of seven series in round against the Heat.
Fresh off winning his fourth NBA Most Valuable Player award, LeBron James and his teammates are also fresh since they have rested for several days. That is what happens when you dispose of the Milwaukee Bucks in a four game series sweep.
You could not use the word fresh for the Bulls, instead, ragged, undermanned or tired. On Saturday, they completed a seven game series with a win in Brooklyn, while missing two important starters (three, if you count Derrick Rose). With Luol Deng experiencing problems with his spinal tap for his viral infection and Kirk Hinrich still hobbled by a calf bruise it seemed like it was the end of the road for the 2012-2013 season.
What most Bulls fans have known and now is apparent to the rest of the NBA fans everywhere: this is a resilient team with heart and character. Joakim Noah would not let his team exit in the first round, which they did last year with him and Rose injured.
Last days for the Western-Belmont overpass
May. 6, 2013The City of Chicago is planning to tear down the Western Avenue overpass at Belmont-Clybourn. The junction of the three streets will once again be a normal, at-grade intersection.
Back in 1902 the Riverview amusement park opened at the northwest corner of Western and Belmont. The park drew thousands of patrons each day, most of whom arrived on streetcars—one of the lines was even named Riverview-Larrabee. Private vehicles of any type were rare.
By the 1960s more and more people were driving cars. Traffic around Riverview was congested. The modern solution to the problem was the Western Avenue overpass.
Fifty years ago, the city was in love with fly-over intersections. Similar viaducts were being built at Archer-Ashland and at Ashland-Pershing. Dozens more were in the talking stage. They were mini-expressways, an efficient way to move traffic.
The Western Avenue overpass opened in 1962. It did its job well for five years. Then Riverview closed.
Is David Adjaye Obama's favorite architect?
May. 6, 2013Here's a look at David Adjaye, one of the lead architects of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture now under construction on the historic Washington D.C. National Mall.
The 4:45 minute video comes courtesy of the United Kingdom's Crane.tv, a video magazine that examines culture, art, design and fashion. The Tanzanian-born UK Adjaye—who also has offices in New York City—discusses the $500 million museum and how he approached the project.
"The struggle and the blood that was spilt by this extraordinary people has firstly shaped a kind of a unique country in the world—and, actually shaped the world," the 46-year-old leader of Adjaye Associates said.
His design partners in the project are the Freelon Group, Davis Brody Bond and the SmithGroup.
And then there's this: At a state dinner last year honoring British Prime Minister David Cameron, Adjaye and wife Ashley Shaw-Scott had a seat at the head table with President Barack Obama. The party of 21 included Warren Buffett, George Clooney and Michelle Obama.
The appearance helped feed speculation that Adjaye would be the president's pick as architect of the future Obama presidential library.