Mid-Day: This new podcast is developing a repository to help enthusiasts learn about artistic practices in India

Mid-Day: This new podcast is developing a repository to help enthusiasts learn about artistic practices in India. “India Foundation for the Arts (IFA) launched their new podcast, The IFA Archive Podcast, this month to reach out to a wider audience and open conversations with their grantees on their projects. The organisation has provided funding to more than 750 projects, allowing the grantees to choose the most suitable medium as the outcome of their research.”

Aberystwyth University: Language teachers could ditch essays in favour of graphic novels

Aberystwyth University: Language teachers could ditch essays in favour of graphic novels. “… a team of Modern Languages academics are inspiring teachers and students to adopt new and creative ways of researching language and assessing language learning – through art. The team have launched the Creative Modern Languages Hub, a free online resource which provides examples of creative assessment and artistic research from the UK and beyond.”

Online arts and culture engagement can have a positive impact on young people’s mental health: Oxford study (Oxford University)

Oxford University: Online arts and culture engagement can have a positive impact on young people’s mental health: Oxford study. “Researchers found a link between engaging in online arts and culture and mental health, with participants in both trial groups reporting a reduction in psychological distress at the end of the pilot study, despite the pilot study being conducted at a time of increased Covid restrictions.”

Boise State University: New partnership preserves Idaho folklife

Boise State University: New partnership preserves Idaho folklife. “Special Collections and Archives at Boise State University’s Albertsons Library has partnered with the Folk and Traditional Arts program at the Idaho Commission on the Arts to create The Idaho Folklife Collection…. The first collection to be digitized, organized and made publicly-accessible contains fieldwork associated with Rosalie Sorrels. This collection includes work for the book Way Out in Idaho (Idaho Commission on the Arts, 1990). Materials include sound recordings, photographs, notes, and other ephemera related to her time spent roaming Idaho, documenting folklife practitioners and songs related to the state.”

Hyperallergic: Warhol Foundation Grants $3.9 Million to 50 US Arts Organizations

Hyperallergic: Warhol Foundation Grants $3.9 Million to 50 US Arts Organizations. “A few common themes emerged from the organizations and projects that received funding in this cycle. Some initiatives are social justice-oriented, highlighting issues surrounding Indigenous land rights, climate change and sustainability, and racial inequity. Others hope to train an eye on forgotten figures who have been buried in the historical archive as a result of structural forces that worked against them in their lifetimes: Several grants will support major museums and institutions that are putting on an underrepresented artist’s first solo exhibition or retrospective.”

New York Times: India’s Art History United in a Single Source

This is from last month but the resource is launching this week. New York Times: India’s Art History United in a Single Source. “The history of art in India, going back 10,000 years to the Bhimbetka cave drawings, has long been told through a Western lens or written by Indian scholars in a dense, academic style that felt inaccessible to many. But that will soon change, when the MAP Academy Encyclopedia of Indian Art arrives online on April 21. With over 2,000 initial entries, peer-reviewed by some of the world’s leading art historians and experts on South Asia, it is a project whose scope has not been tried before.”

MakeUseOf: The 6 Best Free Sites for DIY Arts and Crafts

MakeUseOf: The 6 Best Free Sites for DIY Arts and Crafts. “Sometimes, it’s nice to take a little time away from our devices and do something different. But it’s not always easy to find an activity interesting enough to keep us occupied for long enough. Why not give your creative side a chance? Here, we look at six free websites that offer fun and affordable DIY arts and crafts ideas to keep your mind as well as your hands busy.”

The Star (Malaysia): How Malaysian arts portals are keeping creative communities connected

The Star (Malaysia): How Malaysian arts portals are keeping creative communities connected. “After a massive housekeeping exercise and user upgrade, theatre collective Five Arts Centre can now boast a new website that is a one-stop centre, detailing its past, present and future. For the big rewind, the archival material features Five Arts Centre projects from 1984 to present day. More than 200 projects are available for research or casual nostalgic reading.”

Reuters: How a 10-second video clip sold for $6.6 million

Reuters: How a 10-second video clip sold for $6.6 million. “The video by digital artist Beeple, whose real name is Mike Winkelmann, was authenticated by blockchain, which serves as a digital signature to certify who owns it and that it is the original work. It’s a new type of digital asset – known as a non-fungible token (NFT) – that has exploded in popularity during the pandemic as enthusiasts and investors scramble to spend enormous sums of money on items that only exist online.”

Insight: Why disabled artists can’t go back to normal (The Scotsman)

The Scotsman: Insight: Why disabled artists can’t go back to normal. “For [Ever] Dundas and other disabled artists the restrictions caused by the pandemic have been a double-edged sword. Many with underlying conditions were forced to shield, but it has also created new ways of working. With live public gatherings impossible, theatre productions and literary events have moved online, allowing those with disabilities to access them for the first time.”

Herald-Tribune: New website promotes Florida arts groups

Herald-Tribune: New website promotes Florida arts groups. “Arts groups across Florida, particularly those in the Sarasota area, are getting a little promotional help from WUSF Public Media, the Tampa-based public radio station that has launched a new streaming hub of performances and behind-the-scenes activities…. Most of the Sarasota-area performing arts organizations are featured on the site, from Asolo Repertory Theatre and Florida Studio Theatre, to the Sarasota Orchestra, Sarasota Opera, The Sarasota Ballet, The Venice Symphony, Urbanite Theatre, Theatre Odyssey, The Players Centre for Performing Arts and New Music New College.”

Taking Note: New Arts Research Summit Report—and Data on Arts Field Trips (National Endowment for the Arts)

National Endowment for the Arts: Taking Note: New Arts Research Summit Report—and Data on Arts Field Trips. “The National Endowment for the Arts has posted a report summarizing results from a two-day research meeting in June 2019—a decent-sized gathering in a time that was, blissfully, COVID-naïve. Titled Arts and Research Partnerships in Practice, the report explores mechanisms and challenges for academic researchers and arts professionals seeking to partner on long-term studies of the arts’ impacts.”

MakeUseOf: 6 Kid-Friendly Websites for Free Arts and Crafts Activities for Children

MakeUseOf: 6 Kid-Friendly Websites for Free Arts and Crafts Activities for Children. “This article focuses more on non-screen activities, although some of the websites include those. But there’s always a happy go-between. these free interactive art games for kids will develop color and art skills, and are child-appropriate. It’s no substitute for paints and palettes, but it is a launching point for digital design.”

Certified Calligraphers Pedigree: New initiative for a comprehensive database (Saudi Gazette)

Saudi Gazette: Certified Calligraphers Pedigree: New initiative for a comprehensive database. “Under the sponsorship of Sheikha Khawla Bint Ahmed Bin Khalifa Al-Suwaidi, wife of Sheikh Tahnoon Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE national security advisor, Khawla Art & Cultural Foundation has recently launched an initiative that aims to build a reference database of all distinguished, licensed calligraphers worldwide. The initiative was named ‘The Certified Calligraphers Pedigree’.”