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2008 Art Fairs
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Cultural Briefs

2008 New Orleans Jazz Fest Seven-Day Festival Opens April 25

The return of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell, one of America’s most celebrated celebrations, to its first full seven days of programming since 2005 has inspired Festival organizers to assemble the deepest overall mix of rhythm & blues, rock, jazz, country, blues, gospel, world beat, and more in the 39-year history of the event. The Neville Brothers, Stevie Wonder, Billy Joel, Jimmy Buffett, Tim McGraw, Santana, Maze feat. Frankie Beverly, Sheryl Crow, Widespread Panic, Dr. John, Al Green, Diana Krall, Keyshia Cole, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss are just a few of the headliners at the jazz meet. The full lineup is available at
http://www.nojazzfest.com/index.php?http%3A//www.nojazzfest.com/home/nojhf_pr_012408.php.
The concerts take place on two spring weekends: April 25, 26 and 27; and on May 2, 3 and 4. And, as an added bonus this year, JazzFest is tacking on an extra day to its performance schedule– Thursday during the festival’s second weekend. All JazzFest concerts take place at the historic Fair Grounds Race Course, 1751 Gentilly Avenue. Hours are from 11:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m.
Eleven stages of simultaneous music programming are complemented by an exquisite, unparalleled Food Fair offering more than 100 varieties of authentic Louisiana cuisine and a stunning array of one-of-a-kind crafts available around the grounds in the Festival’s juried crafts areas. Throughout the festival there will be second line parades and other local cultural events, including Mardi Gras Indians strutting their stuff in full, colorful regalia of feathers, sequins, beads and makeup.
All JazzFest concerts take place at the historic Fair Grounds Race Course, 1751 Gentilly Avenue. Hours are from 11:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. For tickets, visit www.nojazzfest.com or www.ticketmaster.com , at all Ticketmaster outlets or by calling (800) 488-5252 (outside Louisiana) and (504) 522-5555 (New Orleans). Tickets can be purchased in person at the Jazz Fest ticket office located at the Louisiana Superdome, 1500 Sugar Bowl Drive, Gate A Ground Level.
More information on New Orleans at http://www.neworleansonline.com.

Chelsea Flower Show in London Opens May 20
Every year the grounds of the Royal Hospital in London/s Chelsea district are transformed into show gardens, inspirational small gardens and vibrant horticultural displays that make up the world's most famous flower show. This year, small gardens at the RHS Chelsea Flower show will be grouped together according to whether they present a modern urban retreat, or a countryside idyll. The new “urban garden” category brings together all small gardens that would fit into a modern, urban setting, encompassing the city, chic, front and roof gardens. The “courtyard gardens” provide a contrast with design ideas for a rural setting. These remain a separate category.
There will be 22 small gardens at the 2008 RHS Chelsea Flower Show, so there will be something to inspire every visitor with small space of their own. Highlights include an urban garden designed by Kazuyuki Ishihara of AOA Corporation, who has designed a roof garden inspired by childhood games of building dens which lead to secret worlds. In contrast, Sue Hayward of Earthly Garden Designs, has designed a courtyard garden to reflect the costal existence of a Sheltland crofter.
In addition, there'll be shows from up-and-coming gardening talent, displays from the world's best nurseries and gorgeous small gardens to inspire those with limited space. On top of all this, visitors can pick up a wide range of horticultural goodies and many new gardening products make their debut at the show.
Prices and reservations for Chelsea Flower Show: Adult: £23.00 to £41.00 per ticket
For more information, visit www.rhs.org.uk/chelsea.

New York Public Library Gets $100 Million Donation
The New York Public Library is getting a $100 million donation from Stephen A. Schwarzman, and in return, the Central Library at Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street is to be renamed for Schwarzman, a business executive and library trustee who made his fortune leading the Blackstone Group. The donation will kick-start the library system's $1 billion expansion plan. As part of the plan, the Central Library will become a destination for both book-borrowing and research, and the Mid-Manhattan branch on Fifth Avenue and 40th Street will be sold. Its collection will be absorbed into the expanded Central Library. The library has an extensive art collection, which was the subject of controversy in 2005, when the library sold 19 works to raise money to buy books, netting $53 million.

Zaragoza Gears up for 2008 Summer International Expo On Water
Zaragoza is gearing up for the International Expo to take place June 14 to September 14 with more than 100 countries participating under the theme: “Water and Sustainable Development.” With six million visitors expected, the expo is forecast to bring in $1.2 billion in tourism revenues to Spain’s fifth largest city. A collection of singular buildings and public spaces designed by an impressive roster of architects – including the Bridge Pavilion by Zaha Hadid – has risen beside the Ebro River. Non-stop entertainment is planned with 3,400 shows featuring renowned artists and groups such as: Daniel Barenboim, Montserrat Caballé, the Carolyn Carson Dance Company, and the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, with Zubin Mehta. A parade created by Cirque du Soleil™ will snake through the Expo’s grounds daily.

Bass-Baritone Bryn Terfel In Recital At Carnegie Hall April 25
Bass-baritone Bryn Terfel performs a solo recital with pianist Malcolm Martineau on Friday, April 25 at 8:00 p.m. in Stern Auditorium/Perelman Stage at Carnegie Hall in New York. The program includes Frederick Keel’s Three Salt-Water Ballads, selections from Francis Poulenc’s Chansons gaillardes, a selection of traditional Celtic songs as well as works by John Ireland, Peter Warlock, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Roger Quilter, and Franz Schubert. Terfel last performed at Carnegie Hall in recital with Malcolm Martineau in April 2004 and this concert is part of a North American recital tour that includes performances in San Francisco, Los Angeles, St. Paul, Toronto, and Vancouver.
Tickets, priced at $31, $38, $50, $71, $94, and $104, are available at the Carnegie Hall Box Office, 154 West 57th Street. They may also be charged to major credit cards by visiting the Carnegie Hall website, www.carnegiehall.org.

National Folk Festival Coming to Butte, Montana For A Three-Year Tenure
One of the country's largest and most prestigious celebrations of the arts, the National Folk Festival, is coming to Butte, Montana for a three-year tenure beginning in July 2008. First presented in 1934, it is the oldest multicultural festival in the nation. This "moveable feast of deeply traditional folk arts" celebrates American culture through music, dance, traditional craft, storytelling, food and more. Festival dates are Friday, July 11th through Sunday, July 13th this year and the entire event is free to the public.
With historic, uptown Butte, Montana as its backdrop, seven stages will offer continuous performances throughout the long weekend. Over 250 musicians, dancers and craftspeople will demonstrate, exhibit and perform. Musical styles ranging from blues, rockabilly, jazz, cowboy, bluegrass, western swing, zydeco, polka, old time, gospel and many more will highlight the Festival. Stages will range in size from a 10,000 seat, open-air amphitheater to small, intimate acoustic settings. Some of the feature performances include: Wylie and the Wild West (western, see photo above), Shemekia Copeland (blues), The Seldom Scene (bluegrass), Ricardo Lemvo and Makina Loca (Congolese/Cuban), The Oinkari Basque Dancers (traditional Basque dancing & music), and many more.
This is the first time the National Folk Festival has been held west of the Mississippi River in over 40 years, and its first time ever in Montana. To learn more about the upcoming National Folk Festival visit: http://nationalfolkfestival.com.

New York’s 69th Street Armory Will Again Be Host to Music
The 69th Street Armory was one home to major classical music festivals in the early 1880s; military bands and dance orchestras have played there. In the last decade hopes have burned that the Armory would again play host to orchestras, choruses and singers. Most notably, Kurt Masur, when he was music director of the New York Philharmonic in the 1990s, cherished the idea of holding summer proms concerts there.
In late 2006 the hulking red fortress, on Park Avenue between 66th and 67th Streets, was turned over by New York State to a conservancy that is refurbishing and transforming it into a cultural institution. The art and antiques shows that have long taken place there will continue, but now the building will also house visual arts — currently, part of the Whitney Biennial — and performance art, concerts and operas.
The first concert, planned for an audience of 750, will be on April 19 with a program of sacred music by Stravinsky, part of a five-concert series devoted to that composer held in various East Side locales.
In July the Lincoln Center Festival and the Armory will present five performances of Die Soldaten, a searing 20th-century opera by Bernd Alois Zimmermann. The production, which features audience seating that moves on rails astride a long platform, comes from the Ruhr Triennale festival in Germany, where works are mounted in industrial spaces resembling the Armory. And the New York City Opera will stage Messiaen’s St. Francis of Assisi there in December 2009. --- New York Times

Guggenheim Foundation’s Director Resigns
Thomas Krens, director of the Solomon R Guggenheim Foundation for nearly 20 years, is stepping down amid Board of Directors’ pressure that he was spending too much on satellite operations around the world. Krens will remain with the foundation as senior advisor for the foundation overseeing the creation of a satellite museum in Abu Dhabi. No successor has been named and a search is underway.
Krens is known for developing an international network extending from Las Vegas to Bilbao, Spain, and for the types of high-profile exhibitions he presented, including shows like “The Art of the Motorcycle,” a personal passion, and ones that tackled entire countries like China and Brazil. He has also organized trend-setting shows of contemporary artists, among them Matthew Barney, Richard Prince and, most recently, Cai Guo-Qiang.

China Philharmonic Cancels 2008 World Tour
The China Philharmonic has cancelled its scheduled world tour scheduled to run May 3 to 28.The tour was to have covered Europe, North America, South America and Asia, focusing on cities that have hosted the summer Olympic Games in the past. In the US, both Los Angeles and Atlanta were on the schedule; presenters in both cities confirmed the cancellation.
The orchestra and its music director, Yu Long, are based in Beijing.

Caixaforum Madrid Opens
The Spanish capital has a new cultural star. Madrid’s 1899 electrical power station has been transformed into the $96 million CaixaForum Madrid, a stunning new venue for art exhibitions, film screenings, concerts, workshops and conferences. Three exhibitions are currently on display there including “Bread of Angels,” (Pan de los Ángeles), a show from the Uffizi Gallery in Florence of 45 paintings – many of which have never before left Italy – by Botticelli, Giordano, Parmigianino and Signorelli through May 25.
One of the few examples of turn-of-the-century industrial architecture in Madrid’s historical center, the cast-iron and brick Central Eléctrica del Mediodía has been expanded into a seven-story complex of over 100,000 square feet – five times its original size. Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron have designed an innovative “sculptural” building which seems to levitate over a newly-created public square on one side while an eye-catching vertical “garden” covers another side of its façade. The newly-enlarged space encompasses two floors dedicated to exhibitions, two large multi-purpose halls (rooms), a 311-seat auditorium, a bookshop, storage for artwork and a restaurant on the labyrinthine top floor dotted by irregular niches that admit natural light.
An exciting new addition to Madrid’s Paseo del Arte, or Art Walk, the CaixaForum Madrid is only steps away from the newly-expanded Museo del Prado, the Thyssen Bornemisza (enlarged in 2004) and the Reina Sofía which doubled in size in 2005.
The first of its kind in Spain, the 5,000-square-foot vertical garden by botanist Patrick Blanc is also his largest to date. This “living tapestry” has 15,000 plants of 250 different species.
Admission to exhibitions is free at the CaixaForum Madrid, located at 36 Paseo del Prado. Call: 011-34-91-330-73-00 or visit http://obrasocial.lacaixa.es/centros/caixaforummadrid_es.html.

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2008 Art Fairs

March

Glasgow
Glasgow Art Fair
March 27 – 30
Glasgow Art Fair is one of the most prestigious contemporary art fairs in the UK, outside London with over 50 galleries and arts organizations exhibiting. Previous artists featured at Glasgow Art Fair include Damien Hurst, Turner-Prize winner Simon Starling, David Mach, Catriona Millar, Peter Howson, John Byrne and Ann Redpath.
Website: http://www.glasgowartfair.com

New York
The last weekend of March offers a selection of contemporary art fairs in Manhattan. They are:
The Armory Show
March 27 – 30
Website: http://www.thearmoryshow.com/cgi-local/content.cgi
Held at Pier 92 on the Hudson River, The Armory Show is devoted exclusively to contemporary art. In its tenth annual exhibition, The Armory Show 2008 will celebrate the spirit of contemporary art. The exhibition includes 150 contemporary dealers showcasing new art from around the world.
The Armory Show is the successor to the highly acclaimed Gramercy International Art Fairs that attracted thousands to their New York, Los Angeles and Miami shows between 1994 and 1998. The Armory Show was first presented in February 1999 at the 69th Regiment Armory, the very site of the now legendary Armory Show of 1913 that introduced modern art to America and for which The Armory Show is named.
PULSE New York
March 27 – 30
Website: http://www.pulse-art.com/newyork/index.htm
PULSE New York will take place at Pier 40 March 27 to 30h and will coincide with The Armory Show at Pier 92. In its third year, PULSE New York will feature works in all media from over 70 established and emerging galleries. Pier 40 is located in Tribeca at West Side Highway at West Houston Street.
PULSE New York will take place at the 69th Regiment Armory and will coincide with The Armory Show at Pier 94. In its third year, PULSE New York will feature works in all media from over 60 established and emerging galleries.
The 69th Regiment Armory is located on Lexington Avenue and 26th Street.
Red Dot New York
March 27 – 30
RED DOT is a vetted, hotel-based art fair in New York where approximately 45 galleries will show and sell works to the public on three adjacent floors of the Park South Hotel located at 122 East 28 Street between Park and Lexington. Galleries participating in RED DOT come from across the US and abroad. RED DOT’s roster includes young dealers exhibiting for the first time, as well as more established dealers turned off by the pressures of other art fairs.
Website: http://www.reddotfair.com/NY2008/schedule.htm
SCOPE New York
March 26-30
SCOPE New York at Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center at the corner of 62nd Street and 10th Avenue will feature galleries from four continents and 20 countries, including China, Mexico, Japan, Korea, Brazil, Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Germany, UK, Spain, and Canada, SCOPE New York 2008 will uphold its unique tradition of solo and thematic group shows presented alongside museum-quality programming, collector tours, screenings, and special events.
Website: http://www.scopenewyork.com/
Bridge Art Fair
March 27 to 30
Known for spectacular shows of emerging contemporary art in Chicago, London, and Miami, Bridge Art Fair proudly premiers its New York edition at the Waterfront, 222 12th Avenue, in the northern section of Manhattan’s Chelsea gallery district. Concurrent with New York’s celebrated Armory Show, Bridge New York will host more than 60 international exhibitors from such diverse locales as Austria, Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Korea, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the United States. It will also focus on Asia artists. Invited galleries are from Taipei, Singapore, Shanghai, Tokyo, and elsewhere across the Pacific Rim. Website: www.bridgeartfair.com
Art Now Fair
March 27 to 30
The ART NOW FAIR, held at the Hotel 30/30, a European-style hotel located at 30 East 30th Street, will showcase over 40 contemporary galleries with a diverse background in their location, artists, and the medium represented. Website: http://www.artnowfair.com/newyork/
VOLTA NY
March 27 – March 30
VOLTA inaugurates a solo invitational show, “The Eye of the Beholder”, in New York during the Armory Week at 7 West 34 Street opposite the Empire State Building.
VOLTA NY introduces a new format with exclusively solo projects, conceived to complement the exciting program of art available during Armory Week. By putting the focus back on artists through exclusively featuring solo projects, VOLTA NY promotes a deep exploration of the work of its selected artists and galleries, an opportunity for discoveries that move beyond those afforded by a traditional art fair.
Website: www.voltashow.com

April

Berlin
Berlin Biennale
April 5 – June 15
The Berlin biennial has established itself as an open space that experiments, identifies and critically examines the latest trends in the art world. The innovative character of this “art lab,” which tries and tests the greenest shoots in the art world is to be expanded, with the particular aim of giving young artists the opportunity to introduce themselves to broad sections of the public.
Website: http://www.berlinbiennale.info

Beijing
China International Gallery Exposition
April 24 – 28
Presenting artworks from the 5 continents and over 20 countries, including Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, India, Singapore, Indonesia, Israel, Spain, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, Mexico, Cameroon, CIGE has been the most internationally diverse contemporary art fair to date in Asia. Under the strong impulse of the Chinese emerging market and other rising emerging markets in Asia and around the world, CIGE 2008 is a unique global arena for the emerging contemporary art markets.
Website: http://www.cige-bj.com/main_en.html

Chicago
Art Chicago
April 25 to 28
The 28th edition of Art Chicago, America’s oldest and one of the international art world’s largest art fairs for contemporary and modern art will be held at the Merchandise Mart in Chicago. Over 140 galleries from around the world will present a broad spectrum of contemporary and modern works. Artists, curators, collectors and art lovers will have the opportunity to view thousands of works from the most important and exciting artists in the contemporary and modern art market today.
As the central focus for a city wide arts festival Artropolis, featuring five concurrent shows, including Art Chicago, NEXT, The Merchandise Mart International Antiques Fair, The Artist Project and Intuit. Art Chicago will partner again with Chicago’s world famous museums, exhibition spaces, theatres and dance venues to transform the city into an unparalleled center for the visual and performing arts.
Website: http://www.artchicago.com/

NEXT
April 25 to 28
A new invitational art fair, installed on the 7th floor of the Merchandise Mart and running concurrently with Art Chicago 2008, will offer focused curatorial visions of some of the most important developments in contemporary art. NEXT will include works from both commercial and non-commercial arts organizations as well as galleries, project spaces, artist collectives, art publications and key private collections. With this wide reaching and inclusive list of participants, NEXT presents a new exhibition format that brings together, in one exhibition space, the most cutting-edge work in contemporary art from both the public and private sector. www.nextartfair.com;

Cologne
ArtCologne 2008
April 16 - 20
One of Germany’s most important art fairs for international contemporary art. The lively Cologne gallery scene and the museums offer their own supporting programs.
Website: http://www.artcologne.com/

London
Chelsea Art Fair
April 24 – 27
Chelsea Art Fair enjoys a sound reputation for quality modern / contemporary art from Britain and across the World, covering the period from 1930 to the present, but with the accent on contemporary work.
Website: http://www.penman-fairs.com/art_fairs_calendar.htm?id=10

Paris
12e Pavillon Des Arts Et Du Design
April 2 to April 6, 2008
Drawings, paintings, sculpture from 1860 to our days, antiquities, modernism,
photography, design, primitive arts, Asian art, contemporary glass, jewelry, silver, carpets, and tapestries.
Where: Tuileries - Esplanade des Feuillants Facing 234, rue de Rivoli, across rue de Castiglione)
Open daily from 11 am to 8 pm--Thursday and Friday until 10 pm
Website: http://www.pavillonartfair.com/

New York
Spring 2008 International Art & Antiques Show
April 21 to 25, 2008
The Spring International Art & Antiques Show will feature 50 of the most important International dealers from 9 countries United States, France, England, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Russia. Dealers will display a range of pieces from the Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Chinese and pre-Colombian civilizations as well as 17th to 21st-century English, French, and continental furniture; accessories; decorative arts; fine, modern and contemporary art; antique and contemporary jewelry; rare books and more.
Where: Park Avenue Armory
643 Park Avenue (between 67th and 68th Streets)
Website: http://www.springinternationalshow.com

AIPAD Photography Show
April 10 – 13, 2008
The Photography Show New York, presented by The Association of International Photography Art Dealers, will be held at the Park Avenue Armory. The Photography Show is the longest running and foremo2320st exhibition of fine art photography.
Website: http://www.aipad.com/photoshow/?type=catalogue

May

Moscow
The Moscow Fine Art Fair
May 27 to June 4, 2008
The 5th edition of the Moscow World Fine Art Fair will be held at the end of May 2008 in the famous Manege, next to the Kremlin and the Red Square. Described as the most exclusive fair in Eastern Europe, it features annually about eighty of the finest international dealers specializing in fine jewelry, fine art and decorative objects, from classical antiquity to the latest expressions of contemporary art.
Website: http://www.moscow-faf.com/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=19&tabindex=18

October
Berlin
Art Forum Berlin
October 29 – November 3
The thirteenth Art Forum Berlin international trade fair for contemporary art will take place at the Berlin Exhibition Grounds. With over 120 galleries from more than 25 countries showcasing the works of established artists and newcomers, it is considered one of the most innovative, world-class art shows. Website: http://www1.messe-berlin.de/vip8_1/website/MesseBerlin/htdocs/art-forum-berlin/index_e.html

Cologne
Cologne Fine Art
October 29 – November 2
This annual art and antiques fair offers an impressively broad range of fine and applied art from antiquity to the present day. Website: www.cologne-fine-art.com

November

New York
Asian Contemporary Art Fair
After its successful debut in 2007, the ACAF will hold its second fair in November at Pier 92. More information is forthcoming.

December

Miami

Art Basel Miami 2008
December 4 - 7.
Art Basel Miami Beach is considered the most important art show in the United States, a cultural and social highlight for the Americas. As the sister event of Switzerland's Art Basel, the most prestigious art show worldwide for the past 38 years, An exclusive selection of more than 220 leading art galleries from North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia and Africa will exhibit 20th and 21st century artworks at various sites by over 2,000 artists. The exhibiting galleries are among the world's most respected art dealers, offering exceptional pieces by both renowned artists and cutting-edge newcomers. Special exhibition sections feature young galleries, performance art, public art projects and video art. The show will be a vital source for art lovers, allowing them to both discover new developments in contemporary art and experience rare museum-caliber artworks. Exhibition sites are located in Miami’s Art Deco District.
Website: www.artbaselmiamibeach.com/go/id/ss

NOTE: This listing will be updated as we receive news of other art events/fairs taking place around the world in 2008.

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Book Review: Atlantic
Cultural News
The 2008 Art Fairs
The Cultural Calendar

Book Review: Atlantic

Atlantic: Coastal Towns, Seashore, and Waterways of North
Author: Jake Rajs; Publisher; Rizzoli New York. Hardcover 256 pages; $195(US) $250 (CAN)

This wonderful tome displays the photographic works of gifted American photographer Jake Rajs who traverses the North American Atlantic coast for his breathtaking photos from the rocky beaches of Maine to the New York skyline and all way down the Eastern Coast to Florida. Quaint fishing villages, majestic lighthouses and dunes, illuminated cityscapes and outstanding seascapes are all here in this lavish and deluxe limited-edition book devoted to life on the East Coast.
Renowned news journalist Walter Cronkite writes the foreword to this outstanding collection of more than 200 color photographs and seven single and double gatefolds—some measuring five feet long. The limited edition also includes a numbered print signed by the artist.
While the price may be a tad high, it is the perfect book for the armchair traveler who hates to travel—all that is missing are the sounds and smells of life at the seacoast. This beautifully printed limited edition is sure to become a collectors’ item.
About the author: Jake Raj’s commercial assignments have taken him to locations around the world and his work has appeared in many US magazines including Life, Travel and Leisure, GEO and Camera 35.. He was voted Reader Digest’s Best American Photographer in 2004 and has numerous photography books to his credit that include These United States, America, Manhattan: An Island in Focus, and Cherry Blossoms.

Cultural News

New York Celebrates Leonard Bernstein This Autumn

Bernstein on the podium
From September 24 to December 13, 2008, a citywide festival celebrates the work of conductor/composer Leonard Bernstein. Recognizing Bernstein’s many roles as performer, composer, educator, advocate, and idealist, this special festival, presented from September 24 to December 13, 2008, will feature more than 30 events at Carnegie Hall, Avery Fisher Hall, New York City Center, and venues throughout New York City. The celebration, reflecting Bernstein’s multi-faceted artistry and work in diverse musical genres, will include concerts, recitals, musical theater, lectures, and film screenings, as well as family and educational programming, illustrating the breadth of this legendary artist’s contributions to music history on both the American and international music scenes. “Leonard Bernstein’s New York Philharmonic legacy is like no other. From the moment of his legendary conducting debut in 1943 to his final concert, from the players on stage to adoring audiences in New York and around the world, Leonard Bernstein inspired nearly everyone he encountered,” said New York Philharmonic President and Executive Director Zarin Mehta. “Even today, Lenny’s legacy—as conductor, composer, and educator—continues to resonate throughout the New York Philharmonic. We look forward to celebrating Leonard Bernstein and his music with our partner, Carnegie Hall, and hope that all New Yorkers will join us.”
Bernstein: The Best of All Possible Worlds launches on September 24 with the 2008–09 season Opening Night Gala at Carnegie Hall featuring Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony. The orchestra will be joined by soloists Dawn Upshaw, Thomas Hampson, and Yo-Yo Ma in a program showcasing highlights from Bernstein’s operatic and musical theater works including selections from Fancy Free, A Quiet Place, On the Town, Wonderful Town, Candide, and West Side Story.
Marking the 50th anniversary of Bernstein’s appointment as Music Director, the New York Philharmonic will present three Avery Fisher Hall programs that showcase Bernstein’s three symphonies paired with works by fellow Philharmonic music directors and with other 20th-century American composers. Music Director Lorin Maazel will lead the Philharmonic in Bernstein’s Symphony No. 2, The Age of Anxiety, paired with works by Mahler, Boulez, and Maazel himself on September 25–27. David Robertson will conduct a program featuring Bernstein’s Symphony No. 1, Jeremiah, alongside works by Copland, Elliott Carter, and Christopher Rouse on October 30–November 1. On November 24, New York Philharmonic Music Director Designate Alan Gilbert will lead The Juilliard Orchestra in Bernstein’s Symphony No. 3, Kaddish, paired with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, Eroica. This final concert with The Juilliard Orchestra symbolizes not only Bernstein’s lifelong commitment to education, but also a new era in collaboration between The Juilliard School and the New York Philharmonic.
On November 14, 1943, Leonard Bernstein stepped onto the stage of Carnegie Hall for the first time, substituting at the last minute for the ailing Bruno Walter and making his historic New York Philharmonic debut in a performance that grabbed national attention. On November 14, 2008, the 65th anniversary of that special occasion will be celebrated at Carnegie Hall with an all-Bernstein program by the New York Philharmonic, led by Music Director Designate Alan Gilbert and featuring Bernstein’s music for the concert hall, theater, and film, including the two suites from West Side Story.
Among other exciting musical festival highlights are a semi-staged production of the Bernstein/Comden and Green musical, On The Town, as part of New York City Center’s Encores! series (November 19–23); performances of Bernstein’s Mass with Marin Alsop and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (October 24–25); and a one-night-only concert with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra led by Gustavo Dudamel at Carnegie Hall (November 16).
A number of New York cultural partners will broaden the reach of the festival, presenting Bernstein-themed performances, film screenings, and panel discussions. Joining Carnegie Hall and the New York Philharmonic in these special festivities are Absolutely Live Entertainment, The Jewish Museum, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York City Center, and The Paley Center for Media.
Leading off the 85th season of Young People’s Concerts, which Bernstein made famous with his television broadcasts, the October 18 concert, entitled Capitals of Music: Bernstein’s New York, celebrates New York and the music of Leonard Bernstein with daughter Jamie Bernstein as host and Delta David Gier conducting.
As a prelude to the festival and in conjunction with the Bernstein anniversaries, HarperCollins Publishers will publish Leonard Bernstein: American Original, How a Modern Renaissance Man Transformed Music and the World During his New York Philharmonic Years, 1943–1976 in August 2008. The book, authored by Burton Bernstein and New York Philharmonic Archivist/Historian Barbara Haws, will examine some of Bernstein’s landmark achievements and activities, placing them in the broader cultural context of New York City from 1943 to 1976.
Single tickets for Bernstein festival performances and events will go on sale in summer 2008. For ticket information and programming updates, please visit www.bernsteinfestival.org.

Art From UBS Collection Travels To Tokyo
Europe's UBS bank is showcasing 140 of its more than 1,000 paintings, photographs, sculptures, video works, and other contemporary art, in its largest exhibition ever and its first in Japan, in Tokyo. Opening February 2, the exhibition is aimed at increasing the Zurich-based bank's profile in Japan, which has the world's second-largest economy. The bank's extensive art collection includes works by Roy Lichtenstein and Lucian Freud. The exhibition runs for two months at the Mori Art Museum.

Film Nominations For Best In Category Announced In US, France And The UK
And the Oscar Goes to—Nominations for the 80th Academy Awards
This month, the nominations for the 2008 Academy Awards ceremony to be held at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood on February 24 include:
Best motion picture
Atonement (Focus Features)
Juno (Fox Searchlight)
Michael Clayton (Warner Bros.)
No Country for Old Men (Miramax and Paramount Vantage)
There Will Be Blood (Paramount Vantage and Miramax)
Performance by an actress in a leading role
Cate Blanchett in Elizabeth; Julie Christie in Away from Her; Marion Cotillard in La Vie en Rose; Laura Linney in The Savages; and Ellen Page in Juno
Performance by an actor in a leading role
George Clooney in Michael Clayton; Daniel Day-Lewis in There Will Be Blood;
Johnny Depp in Sweeney Todd The Demon Barber of Fleet Street; Tommy Lee Jones in In the Valley of Elah, and Viggo Mortensen in Eastern Promises
Achievement in directing
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Julian Schnabel; Juno, Jason Reitman
Michael Clayton; Tony Gilroy No Country for Old Men; and Joel Coen and Ethan Coen There Will Be Blood.
Best supporting actress nominations
Cate Blanchett in I’m Not There; Ruby Dee in American Gangster; Saoirse Ronan in Atonement; Amy Ryan in Gone Baby Gone (Miramax) and Tilda Swinton in Michael Clayton.
Best foreign language film nominations
Beaufort (Israel); The Counterfeiters (Austria); Katyn (Poland); Mongol (Kazakhstan); and 12 (Russia).
The complete listing is at http://www.oscars.org/80academyawards/nominees/index.html
Nominations for French César Awards Announced
Nominations For The French César Announced
Two days before the February 24 Oscar ceremony in Hollywood, the awards for best in the French film industry will take place at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris on February 22. Films nominated for a César this year by the French Academy of Film Arts and Sciences are La Vie en Rose, Persepolis, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, La Graine et le Mulet and Un Secret. La Vie en Rose about the life of Edith Piaf received 11 nominations.
BAFTA Announces Nominations For Its Annual Film Awards
The nominations for this year's Orange British Academy Film Awards were announced this month in London at the Academy's headquarters. The award presentation takes place
on February 10 at The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London
The film Atonement received 14 nominations; No Country for Old Men and There Will Be Blood have each received 9 nominations and La Vie en Rose has received 7.
The Bourne Ultimatum has 6 nominations, with American Gangster, The Lives of Others and Michael Clayton receiving 5 nominations each.
Atonement has been nominated in the categories Best Film, Best British Film, Director for Joe Wright, Adapted Screenplay, Music, Cinematography, Editing, Production Design, Sound, Costume Design and Make Up & Hair. Keira Knightley and James McAvoy have been nominated for Leading Actress and Leading Actor, with Saoirse Ronan receiving a Supporting Actress nomination.
The complete listing can be seen at
http://www.bafta.org/awards/film/film-awards-nominees-in-2008,224,BA.html

Highlights Of The MuseumsQuartier Vienna in 2008
Close to seven years after the MuseumsQuartier (MQ) opened in Vienna, it has become an ever-present force in Vienna's cultural and social life: every year, nearly 3.5 million people visit the venue, which is home to more than 50 differing art and cultural institutions. With a wealth of programs and restaurants in its courtyards, the MQ has become one of the most popular meeting points of Vienna's inhabitants.
The large museums and exhibition venues of the MQ present themselves from their most versatile side in 2008.
At the Museum of Contemporary Art Foundation Ludwig Vienna (Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien), exhibit "Precise and Different" ("Genau und Anders") will explore the relationship between "The Arts and Mathematics from Durer to Sol LeWitt" as of February and in the summer "Bad Painting. Fine Art Between Trash, Speculation and Criticism" will give insights into intentionally "bad" paintings created by prominent artists.
At the Mumok starting in October: A great Peter Kogler retrospective. Website: http://www.mumok.at
As of February, the Leopold Museum will show its largest exhibit to date featuring Albin Egger-Lienz (1868-1926) and in conjunction with the FIFA European Soccer Championship it will present The Contemporary Art of the Faroe Islands (Moderne Kunst der Faroer Inseln). In the summer, Vienna Circa 1900 (Wien um 1900) will introduce the new Art Nouveau collection exhibit, while a major Christian Schad (1894-1982) retrospective will debut in September. Website: http://www.leopoldmuseum.org
Architecture fans have a lot to look forward to as well: as of February, the Architecture Center Vienna will present The White City of Tel Aviv - Tel-Aviv's Modern Movement, in June the Linz Texas exhibit will open ahead of the celebration of European Capital of Culture Linz 2009 and the city's partnership with numerous other towns. In October the Architecture Center Vienna will be converted into the Architectural Crime Scene (Tatort Architektur). Website: http://www.kunsthallewien.at

New York Philharmonic To Perform In North Korea In February
The New York Philharmonic will perform in North Korea at the end of its scheduled tour of China in February. North Korea's invitation to play a concert comes as the reclusive communist country is beginning to disable its nuclear facilities and starting to see a thaw in relations with the United States.
According to the New York Times, the US State Department, South Korean companies and the Korea Society are helping with the logistics of getting 250 people and bulky instruments to impoverished North Korea. The performances are set for February 26 and 28. Prior to its North Korean performances, the orchestra will play in Taipei and Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai in China between February 11 and February 24, 2008.
The February 26 concert at the East Pyongyang Grand Theater will be broadcast for international listeners. The broadcast will be produced by the New York Philharmonic and EuroArts Music International in co-production with Munhwa Broadcasting Company of South Korean and ARTE France. The date and time of the broadcast in the US will be announced later. Visit www.nyphil.org and click Broadcasts and Recordings at top.

The Story Of Anne Frank To Open As Musical In Madrid
Anne Frank died in a Nazi concentration camp in 1945. Now 63 years later, The Diary of Anne Frank will be made into a Spanish musical. The show, to be performed by a 22-strong cast including a 13-year-old girl in the lead role, will open at Madrid's Calderon Theatre in February. The show's director, Rafael Alvero, said the "emotional" staging was comparable to a tragic opera.

London Festival of Architecture 2008 Opens June 20
The month-long London Festival of Architecture 2008 (LFA2008) is set to become one of the world’s major international celebrations of architecture and the built environment. LFA2008 takes place June 20 to July 20 in association with Design for London. It involves major players on London's architectural scene including the Royal Institute of British Architects Trust, The Architecture Foundation, RIBA London Region, New London Architecture and CABE. It will focus around five major hubs across London, each of which will host free and ticketed exhibitions, lectures, temporary structures and events around the theme of ‘FRESH!’

National Theatre In London Announces Its 2008 Season
The National Theatre announced his month its 2008 season. On the agenda is a return by actor Jeremy Irons in Never So Good, a new play by Howard Brenton about the British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. Other highlights include a dance work directed and performed by Juliette Binoche and Akram Kahn; a new verson of Sophocles’ Oedipus by Franks McGuiness starring Ralph Fiennes and a new work by Michael Frayn, Rebecca Lenkiewica and Tony Harrison. Also on the agenda is Joan Didion’s Year of Magical Thinking, which was performed on Broadway in 2007.

2008 Art Fairs

February

New York
The Art Show
February 21 to 25, 2008
The Art Show
Seventy of the nation's most prominent art dealers will exhibit paintings, sculpture, drawings, prints, and photographs by artists of all periods at the twentieth annual The Art Show. Organized by the Art Dealers Association of America (ADAA), the exhibition will run from February 21 through February 25, 2008, at the Seventh Regiment Armory, Park Avenue at 67th Street. All proceeds from the The Art Show Gala Preview on February 20 and regular show admissions benefit Henry Street Settlement, one of New York City's oldest and most comprehensive social service agencies.
Website: www.artdealers.org/artshow

Art Expo
February 28 – March 3
Website: http://www.artexpos.com/ME2/
Audiences/Default.asp?AudID=B70772E607C54F859649A5BFC852BBE0

Works on Paper
February 29 – March 3
Website: http://www.sanfordsmith.com/wop_info.html

March

New York
PULSE New York
March 27 – 30
Website: http://www.pulse-art.com/pulse-art-new-york.html
PULSE New York will take place at the 69th Regiment Armory and will coincide with The Armory Show at Pier 94. In its third year, PULSE New York will feature works in all media from over 60 established and emerging galleries.
The 69th Regiment Armory is located on Lexington Avenue and 26th Street.

Red Dot New York
March 27 – 30
RED DOT is a vetted, hotel-based art fair in New York where approximately 45 galleries will show and sell works to the public on three adjacent floors of the elegant Park South Hotel. Galleries participating in RED DOT come from across the US and abroad. RED DOT’s roster includes young dealers exhibiting for the first time, as well as more established dealers turned off by the pressures of other art fairs.
Website: http://www.reddotfair.com/NY2008/schedule.htm

SCOPE New York
March 26-30
SCOPE New York will open at Damrosch Park at Lincoln Center
Website: http://www.scope-art.com/new_york_info.php

BRIDGE Art Fair
March 27 to 30
Known for spectacular shows of new emerging and contemporary art in Chicago, London, and Miami, BRIDGE Art Fair takes place for the first time in New York City this spring at the Waterfront, concurrent with the Armory Show 2008. Some 70 exhibits will be on hand to display contemporary art.

ART NOW FAIR
March 27 to 30
The ART NOW FAIR will be held at the Hotel 30/30, a European-style hotel ideally located at 30 East 30th Street, and only two blocks from Red Dot Fair. ART NOW FAIR will showcase over 40 contemporary galleries with a diverse background in their location, artists, and the medium represented. Website: www.artnowfair.com

April

Beijing
China International Gallery Exposition
April 24 – 28
Presenting artworks from the 5 continents and over 20 countries, including Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, India, Singapore, Indonesia, Israel, Spain, Germany, Austria, Italy, France, Mexico, Cameroon, CIGE has been the most internationally diverse contemporary art fair to date in Asia. Under the strong impulse of the Chinese emerging market and other rising emerging markets in Asia and around the world, CIGE 2008 is a unique global arena for the emerging contemporary art markets.
Website: http://www.cige-bj.com/main_en.html

NEXT
April 25 to 28
A new invitational art fair, installed on the 7th floor of the Merchandise Mart aand running concurrently with Art Chicago 2008, will offer focused curatorial visions of some of the most important developments in contemporary art. NEXT will include works from both commercial and non-commercial arts organizations as well as galleries, project spaces, artist collectives, art publications and key private collections. With this wide reaching and inclusive list of participants, NEXT presents a new exhibition format that brings together, in one exhibition space, the most cutting-edge work in contemporary art from both the public and private sector. www.nextartfair.com;

Paris
12e Pavillon Des Arts Et Du Design
April 2 to April 6, 2008
Drawings, Paintings, Sculpture from 1860 to our days, Antiquities, Modernism,
Photography, Design, Primitive Arts, Asian Art, Contemporary Glass, Jewelry, Silver, Carpets, Tapestries ...
Where: Tuileries - Esplanade des Feuillants Facing 234, rue de Rivoli )Across rue de Castiglione)
Open daily from 11 am to 8 pm--Thursday and Friday until 10 pm
Website: http://www.pavillonartfair.com/

May

November

New York
Asian Contemporary Art Fair
After its successful debut in 2007, the ACAF will hold its second fair in November at Pier 92. More information is forthcoming.

NOTE: This listing will be updated as we receive news of other art events/fairs taking place around the world in 2008.

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Holiday Destination: New York
Cultural Briefs
The Cultural Calendar

Holiday Destination: New York

New York: The Ultimate Destination During The Holiday Season
New York is the popular holiday destination as store windows transform into festive panoramas and Christmas lights herald the holidays. Visitors will find much to do and experience during this joyful season.
The season kicks off with the arrival of Santa Claus in Herald Square during the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade www.macysparade.com on November 22. On the eve of the parade, watch the parade’s balloon characters get inflated on West 77th Street and Central Park West in the evening hours. The parade begins the next day from there and proceeds down Central Park West to Broadway down to the Macy’s store on Herald Square at 34th street. If you can’t be there, the parade is televised on local NY channels.
Black Friday follows, known as the country’s busiest shopping day, when hoards of shoppers attempt to buy their holiday gifts. Be prepared to be overwhelmed by crowds in the Big Apple at this time, especially the Fifth Avenue/ Rockefeller Center area as shoppers and decorations enthusiasts converge.
Tree Lightings….
One of the most magical parts of Rockefeller Center is the Christmas tree. The annual Tree Lighting, takes place on November 28, and the tree will stay lit until January 7, 2008. If you miss the lighting, you can skate on the Rink at Rockefeller Center just below the Christmas tree. Open daily from 8:30 am to midnight, gliding across the ice is a magical experience. Website: http://therinkatrockcenter.com
Another annual tree lighting takes place on Monday, November 26 when Lincoln Center will present its 18th Annual Holiday Tree Lighting from 5:30 to 6:00 p.m. on Josie Robertson Plaza, next to Lincoln Center’s plaza fountain at Columbus Avenue and 64th Street. Highlighting this year’s festivities will be performances by dancers from the New York City Ballet’s production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, the Metropolitan Opera will present an excerpt from their Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel, the Hot 8 Brass Band from New Orleans will heat up the Plaza, and special guest Dar Williams, a folk-pop singer-songwriter who has appeared in Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series, will perform songs of the season. The fun-filled event is free and open to the public.

And the traditional lighting of the Christmas tree and Neapolitan crèche at the
Metropolitan Museum of Art takes place on November 20 and lasts until January 6. A favorite of New Yorkers and visitors from around the world is the vivid eighteenth-century Neapolitan Nativity scene—embellished with a profuse array of diminutive, lifelike attendant figures and silk-robed angels hovering above—adorns the candlelit spruce.
Dramatic tree-lighting ceremonies will begin November 27 and take place Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 4:30 p.m., and Saturdays and Sundays at 4:30, 5:30, and 6:30 p.m.
In lower Manhattan South Street Seaport will present their 25th Annual Tree Lighting celebration on November 23 at 6 pm, which will include the 50-foot Chorus Tree Lighting. The celebration will take place at Fulton Street, Front Street and Pier 17. Caroling from The Big Apple Chorus, performances by American Girl Holiday Singers and a chance to meet Santa and his parade of merry friends will round out the event. Website: www.southstreetseaport.com http://www.southstreetseaport.com/html/events.asp
Musical Celebrations . . .
This year, the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular celebrates its 75th birthday and invites visitors to see snowfall, experience fireworks, and watch the Rockettes debut new numbers. Running until December 30, tickets range from $40 to $250. Website: www.christmas.radiocity.com
Also celebrating a birthday is the Big Apple Circus, which celebrates its 30th anniversary season this year with Celebrate!, an all-new show under its famous Big Top tent at Lincoln Center. Performances take place through January 13, 2008, with two performances on Christmas Day and one on Christmas Eve. Renowned Canadian director Michel Barette returns for his fifth collaboration with the Big Apple Circus. Tickets range from $28 to $66. Website: www.bigapplecircus.org .
Another choice holiday production is the annual performance at Lincoln Center of George Balanchine's The Nutcracker. The New York City Ballet presents an awe-

inspiring 90-minute show that transports audiences into a magical world featuring marching toy soldiers and fighting mice, a glowing one-ton Christmas tree that rises magically on the stage, the Dance of the Snow Maidens in a winter wonderland, the Land of Sweets and some of the most glorious dancing the City has to offer. Performances run from November 23 to December 30. Tickets range from $30 to $100. Website: www.nycballet.com
Returning to the stage at the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center this year is the new English-language production of Humperdinck's Hansel and Gretel. The Brothers Grimm fairy tale, a timeless children's favorite, features a sophisticated score in this new staging that will appeal to audiences of all ages. The presentation includes four matinee performances and five evening performances: Monday, December 24 matinee; Saturday, December 29 matinee; Tuesday, January 1 matinee; Friday, January 4 matinee; Tuesday, January 8; Friday, January 11; Wednesday, January 23; Saturday, January 26; and Thursday, January 31. Website: www.metopera.org
At the WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden, the world premiere of Wintuk, a new Cirque du Soleil production that tells the heartwarming winter tale of a boy's quest for snow in a land called Wintuk. The show, which runs to January 6, includes acrobatics,

theatrical effects, and memorable songs. Tickets range from $30 to $110. Website: www.cirquedusoleil.com/wintuk
For other musical offerings, mark your calendar for the annual presentation of Handel’s Messiah at St. Thomas Church, 53rd Street and Fifth Avenue. The concert is presented in its original form with period instruments on December 11 and 13 at 7:30 pm and song by the noted church choir of boys and men with guests soloists. Also in December another musical presentation not to be missed is the concert at St. Thomas is Britten’s Ceremony of Carols and the inspiring La Nativite du Seigneur by Olivier Messiaen on December 20 at 5 pm. Other Messiahs are performed during this season throughout the season, notably at Avery Fisher Hall in Lincoln Center on December 19 or at Carnegie Hall on December 20 and December 21. Check the websites www.nyphil.org and www.carnegiehall.org for other musical offerings this season.
Other holiday happenings . . .
The annual model train exhibit in the atrium at the Citigroup Center between Lexington and Third Avenues at 53 Street holds its annual holiday display. The Station presents a lavish display of passenger and freight trains winding their ways through cities and country settings. The exhibition is free and open daily, except Christmas, from November 23 to December 28.
Another notable display of model trains takes place at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx sure to wow both young and old. Wrapped in the glow of twinkling lights, model trains and trolleys zip along over bridges and on winding tracks past scaled replicas of New York landmarks in the Conservatory. Orange slices, cinnamon sticks, poppy pods, pine cones, and other plant parts make a festive brew as the materials used to create the more than 140 architectural reproductions. The show opens November 23 and closes January 13. Website: www.nybg.org
Close by the 265-acre the Bronx Zoo’s Holiday Lights show illuminates the night with more than half a million twinkling lights and larger-than-life lighted animal, dinosaur, and holiday sculptures. Wander through the Butterfly Garden to follow the children’s classic story The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Board the one-of-a-kind Bug Carousel for a spin. Do some holiday shopping for the animal lovers in your family at the Zoo Store, and enjoy hot soups, candy apples, and make-your-own s’mores! Until January 6. Website: www.bronxzoo.com
Store windows with holiday themes and holiday fairs . . .
The city abounds in a myriad of boutique shops and department stores offering temping wares for the holiday giver. One seasonal delight are the elaborately decorated storefront windows of major department stores.—Bloomingdale's, Bergdorf Goodman, Barneys, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord & Taylor and Macy's. But you might want to try the holiday shops around the city for a different gift, one that is hand crafted and unique. Here’s a sampling of Christmas markets (just like Europe famous Christmas markets):
Holiday Shops at Bryant Park transform the park into an old-fashioned holiday market styled in the European tradition. This free holiday fair features more than 100 artisans and merchants from around the world. While you're there, take a shopping break for free ice skating at The Pond at Bryant Park. Bryant Park is located at 6th Avenue and West 42nd Street. Open daily through December 30.
Union Square Park Holiday Market at the southern end of Union Square Park at East 14th Street becomes a winter shopping wonderland through December 24 with an outdoor holiday market featuring 100+ artisans and offering goodies like jewelry, candles, pottery, and more.
Columbus Circle Holiday Fair—Shop for special gifts in Central Park at the Columbus Circle Holiday Market at 59th Street and Central Park West. The Columbus Circle shopping fair features 100+ vendors and a wide selection of unique and handmade gifts.
Open daily through December 24.
Grand Central Terminal Holiday Fair is a shopping extravaganza held in the magnificent 12,000 square foot Vanderbilt Hall located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue. Lasting through December 29, 76 vendors of unusual, exotic goods are on hand. Open daily.
As for New Year’s . . .
Central to the celebration of New Year’s Eve in the Big Apple is the famous ball drop in Times Square. This year, a new hi-tech crystal New Year’s Eve ball will debut to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the event. The new crystal ball, more than twice as bright as the previous one and with enhanced color capabilities and state-of-the-art LED lighting effects, will descend from the 77-foot flagpole at the top of One Times Square (Broadway at 43rd Street). The best viewing points are along Broadway, from 43rd Street to 50th Street, and along Seventh Avenue, as far north as 59th Street. At approximately 6 pm, the ball will be raised to the top of the flagpole and lit. At exactly 11:59 pm, the ball will make its 60-second descent down the flagpole to signal the start of the New Year. More information at www.timessquarenyc.com.
Elsewhere in the city on New Year’s Eve . . .
Circle Line cruises take passengers on a New Year’s Eve Cruise with breathtaking views of Manhattan and an incredible night of dancing, fireworks and celebration aboard the Zephyr. Board at 9:30pm, sail at 10pm and return at 1:30pm. The boat docks at South Street Seaport, Pier 16
For those who prefer more active pursuits, the Annual Brooklyn Bridge Walk into the New Year gives visitors a chance to walk along one of the City’s most inspiring landmarks (newyorktalksandwalks.com, 718-591-4741).
Another option is the 10th Annual New Year’s Eve Bike Ride that offers a ride from Washington Square to Central Park, just in time for the fireworks. Meet at 10:30pm at Washington Square Park, 10:50pm at Madison Square Park, or 11:15pm at the Sherman Statue in front of the Plaza Hotel at 59th Street and Fifth Avenue (times-up.org or call 212-802-8222).
Get the New Year off to a healthy and energetic start by joining the New York Road Runners' 4-mile Emerald Nuts Midnight Run in Central Park. The fun begins at 10 pm with a DJ spinning tunes to get you warmed up. At 11 pm, there will be a costume contest and parade. And at midnight, runners take off from the 72nd Transverse at Bethesda Terrace while fireworks explode overhead. You can register online before December 27 to run in the race, and all are welcome to join the fun and cheer the runners on. New York Road Runners website: http://www.nyrr.org/

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Cultural Briefs

Nobel Prize Awards Ceremony Held In Oslo and Stockholm On December 10

The Nobel Laureates take center stage in Stockholm on December 10 when they receive the Nobel Prize Medal, Nobel Prize Diploma and document confirming the Nobel Prize amount from King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden. In Oslo, the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates receive their Nobel Peace Prize from the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee in the presence of King Harald V of Norway.
An important part is the presentation of the Nobel Lectures by the Nobel Laureates. In Stockholm, the lectures are presented days before the Nobel Prize Award Ceremony. In Oslo, the Nobel Laureates deliver their lectures during the Nobel Peace Prize Award Ceremony. http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/lists/2007.html
Topping the list for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 is Al Gore, former Vice President-cum-warrior fighting against global warming and the Geneva-based Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change
Other Nobel Laureates for 2007 are:
-- Physics: Albert Fert and Peter Grünberg for the discovery of Giant Magnetoresistance
-- Chemistry: Gerhard Ertl for his studies of chemical processes on solid surfaces
-- Physiology or Medicine: Mario R. Capecchi, Sir Martin J. Evans and Oliver Smithies for their discoveries of principles for introducing specific gene modifications in mice by the use of embryonic stem cells
-- Literature: Doris Lessing that epicist of the female experience, who with scepticism, fire and visionary power has subjected a divided civilization to scrutiny" Peace:
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr. ""
-- Economics: Leonid Hurwicz, Eric S. Maskin and Roger B. Myerson "for having laid the foundations of mechanism design theory"

Three Newly Renovated Galleries Reopen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Open
In late October, the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Wrightsman Galleries reopened after an extensive renovation. The spectacular 18th-century rooms, which include the De Tessé Room, the Cabris Room, the Paar Room, the Varengeville Room, the Bordeaux Room, and the Crillon Room, house the Museum's renowned collection of French furniture and related decorative arts. Named for Jayne and Charles Wrightsman, who amassed one of the finest private collections in America of the decorative arts of the ancien régime, the galleries first opened to the public between 1969 and 1977. The galleries also include a number of significant donations from other collectors. With additional built-in showcases, the new location permits more of the collection to be seen than ever before. A new case established in an alcove adjacent to the Sèvres objects affords the opportunity to triple the previously exhibited number of gold boxes and objets de vertu, many of which came from the collection of J. Pierpont Morgan in 1917. One of the distinctions of the Museum's furniture collection is the royal provenance of a large number of its pieces.
Following an extensive three-year renovation, the Met’s New Galleries for Oceanic Art in November. The completely redesigned and reinstalled exhibition space for the display of one of the world's premier collections of the arts of the Pacific Islands is divided into three separate galleries in The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing. The 17,000-square-foot exhibition space will present a substantially larger portion of the Metropolitan's Oceanic collection than was previously on view.
The inaugural installation features more than 425 works from the five major artistic regions of Oceania – Polynesia, Micronesia, Melanesia, Australia, and Island Southeast Asia – allowing visitors to experience the full breadth of the region's diverse artistic traditions. Oceania is the collective term for the more than 25,000 islands of the Pacific, which are scattered across more than a third of the earth's surface. The region is home to more than 1,200 different cultures and hundreds of artistic traditions.
The centerpiece of the new Oceanic galleries is the spacious, sunlit gallery for Melanesian art, dedicated to works from New Guinea, Australia, and the islands of the southwest Pacific. Featuring a completely redesigned open floor plan, this grand gallery will include nearly 300 works, ranging from monumental sculpture to jewelry and personal accessories.
The Gallery for Polynesian and Micronesian Art adjoins the Melanesian gallery and displays the sculpture and decorative arts of the islands of the central and eastern Pacific, including Hawaii, Tahiti, and Easter Island. Highlights include the Metropolitan's renowned figure from the island of Mangareva, southeast of Tahit, and an exquisite group of wood sculptures from Easter Island and an intricately carved temple drum from the Austral Islands.
The third gallery—Gallery for the Art of Island Southeast Asia—is the Metropolitan's first-ever gallery devoted to the indigenous arts of Island Southeast Asia, including sculpture, jewelry, and boldly patterned textiles from Indonesia, the Philippines, and adjoining regions.
Oceania's diverse artistic traditions are typically divided into five primary stylistic regions: Melanesia (New Guinea and the islands of the southwest Pacific), Australia, Polynesia (the islands of the central and eastern Pacific), Micronesia (the islands of the tropical northern Pacific), and the indigenous artistic traditions of Island Southeast Asia (Indonesia, the Philippines, and neighboring areas). In Oceania, male and female artists typically work in different media. Men work in harder materials such as wood, shell, and, more rarely, stone, creating figural sculpture as well as practical and ceremonial implements. Women, by contrast, excel in the fiber arts. The new galleries include, for the first time, areas specially dedicated to the display of women's art forms such as Polynesian bark cloth and the rich and varied textiles of Island Southeast Asia.
Another renovated and expanded gallery dedicated to native American art also opened this month. The Gallery for Art of Native North American Art displays the art of Native North American peoples. A select group of approximately 90 works presents the art of various North American peoples, regions, and time periods in which distinct cultural, stylistic, and functional aspects are shown.

New Design/Fashion Museum To Open In Lisbon In 2008
A new design and fashion museum named MUDE will open in late 2008 in Lisbon. The museum with eight floors of exhibition space will promote Portuguese and international design and be a meeting place for the arts. A highlight will be the Francisco Capelo collection, featuring about 1,000 items of furniture, plus 1,200 fashion pieces of the 20th century and not previously shown in Portugal. French designers Le Corbusier and Chanel are included, as well as Portuguese designers Ana Salazar, Cristina Filipe, Fernando Brízio and Miguel Vieira Baptista. Website: http://www.mude.pt/

Detroit Symphony Orchestra Names Its New Music Director
Leonard Slatkin was recently named the Detroit Symphony’s new Music Director. Slatkin will take up his new post in fall 2008, conducting five weeks of concerts followed by 13 or 14 weeks for each of the following two seasons. Slatkin, who is also music adviser to the Nashville Symphony and principal guest conductor at the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London, will also be a principal guest conductor at the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in 2008.
Michelin Publishes 2008 New York City Restaurant Guide
The Michelin Guide New York City 2008 contains more than 100 new establishments in this year's guide. The new edition features 619 establishments in all, a number that includes 565 restaurants - representing 46 types of cuisine - and 54 Manhattan hotels.
The Michelin Guide New York City 2008 again features the Bib Gourmand category, which indicates Michelin inspectors' favorites for good value. This year's Bib Gourmands include 52 restaurants that serve a menu with two dishes and a glass of wine or dessert for $40 or less. The restaurants awarded this distinction can be identified by a red pictogram depicting the head of Bibendum®, the Michelin Man.
The Michelin Guide New York City 2008 also includes 71 restaurants serving a meal (two dishes and a glass of wine or dessert) for $25 or less. In the selection, these establishments are indicated by the coins pictogram.
Establishments receiving stars are:

ONE STAR
ESTABLISHMENT	BOROUGH	NEIGHBORHOOD
Annisa	Manhattan	Greenwich, West Village & Meatpacking
Anthos	Manhattan	Midtown West
Aureole	Manhattan	Upper East Side
A Voce	Manhattan	Gramercy, Flatiron & Union Square
Babbo	Manhattan	Greenwich, West Village & Meatpacking
Blue Hill	Manhattan	Greenwich, West Village & Meatpacking
Café Boulud	Manhattan	Upper East Side
Café Gray	Manhattan	Midtown West
Country	Manhattan	Gramercy, Flatiron & Union Square
Cru	Manhattan	Greenwich
Danube	Manhattan	TriBeCa
Dévi	Manhattan	Gramercy, Flatiron & Union Square
Dressler	Brooklyn	Brooklyn
Etats-Unis	Manhattan	Upper East Side
Fleur de Sel	Manhattan	Gramercy, Flatiron & Union Square
Gilt	Manhattan	Midtown East & Murray Hill
Gotham Bar & Grill	Manhattan	Greenwich, West Village & Meatpacking
Gramercy Tavern	Manhattan	Gramercy, Flatiron & Union Square
Jewel Bako	Manhattan	East Village
JoJo	Manhattan	Upper East Side
Kurumazushi	Manhattan	Midtown East & Murray Hill
L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon	Manhattan	Midtown East & Murray Hill
Modern (The)	Manhattan	Midtown West
Oceana	Manhattan	Midtown East & Murray Hill
Perry Street	Manhattan	Greenwich, West Village & Meatpacking
Peter Luger	Brooklyn	Brooklyn
Saul	Brooklyn	Brooklyn
Spotted Pig	Manhattan	Greenwich
Sushi of Gari	Manhattan	Upper East Side
Veritas	Manhattan	Gramercy, Flatiron & Union Square
Vong	Manhattan	Midtown East & Murray Hill
Wallsé	Manhattan	West Village
wd~50	Manhattan	Lower East Side
TWO STARS ()
ESTABLISHMENT	BOROUGH	NEIGHBORHOOD
Bouley	Manhattan	TriBeCa
Daniel	Manhattan	Upper East Side
Del Posto	Manhattan	Chelsea
Gordon Ramsay at The London	Manhattan	Midtown West
Masa	Manhattan	Midtown West
Picholine	Manhattan	Upper West Side
THREE STARS ()
ESTABLISHMENT	BOROUGH	NEIGHBORHOOD
Jean Georges	Manhattan	Upper West Side
Le Bernardin	Manhattan	Midtown West
Per Se	Manhattan	Midtown West

Note: Other 2008 Michelin Guides for Las Vegas, Los Angeles and San Francisco are also now available.