Category Archives: Art

Laurie Anderson Flies Lou Reed Drones

By Roger Catlin | Published: June 15, 2022

More than a half century ago Lou Reed would end the sparsely attended shows by the Velvet Underground by leaning their buzzing guitars against the amps, allowing the pulsing waves of feedback to continue long after the band had left the stage.  Nine years after Lou left for this mortal coil for good, he would […]

Also posted in Music, Review | Comments closed

Laurie Anderson Muses Under a Tree

By Roger Catlin | Published: June 21, 2021

On a splendid summer’s night in the shadow of Rodin’s greatest work, Laurie Anderson sat with her electric CR violin before a laptop before two invited audiences of a couple dozen each last week to tell some stories that cast their usual spell. Live performance in any form is still a rarity as the COVID-19 […]

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Antonio Banderas Becomes Picasso

By Roger Catlin | Published: April 24, 2018

Smoldering leading man Antonio Banderas takes a big turn Wednesday portraying the second 20th century giant to get the spotlight in the miniseries “Genius: Picasso” (National Geographic, 9 p.m.). Odd that the man who portrayed Zorro and Pancho Villa would play the bald, white-haired artist in a striped sweater, even though the series has provided […]

Also posted in What's On TV, Winter Press Tour 2018 | Comments closed

Frank Underwood Bares His Knuckles

By Roger Catlin | Published: February 25, 2016

It’s not like he threw me in front of the Metro train as he did poor Zoe Barnes. But I feel a little bit of what it’s like to be witheringly dismissed by Francis J. Underwood, the ruthless politician at the heart of Netflix’ hit “House of Cards.” It was at the unveiling of a […]

Also posted in Politics, Television | Comments closed

The Triumph of ‘The Beach’

By Roger Catlin | Published: September 7, 2015

The last official beach day of the summer is also the last day for “The Beach,” the terrifically popular installation at the National Building Museum by Snarkitecture, which I’m so proud to say is run in part by my stepson Alex Mustonen. I had heard of his idea of following up last year’s popular BiG […]

Also posted in Personally Speaking | Comments closed

Scandinavian Art Standards: Slipping

By Roger Catlin | Published: July 23, 2015

“Art is anything you can get away with Check this out,” Marshall McLuhan once said. And I think of that quote every time I sense an artist is testing me, needling me, getting to that line. In Oslo recently at the shiny new Astrup Fearnley Museum of Modern Art, I got that feeling right away. […]

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When Business Writes History

By Roger Catlin | Published: July 7, 2015

I expected another benign array of American dates, names and artifacts when the Smithsonian’s Museum of American History opened its new Innovation Wing last week. Zippier display cases, sure. A greater emphasis on interactive materials, well, that’s just what the times demand to wrest kids from staring at their phones. But a wholesale change in […]

Also posted in Politics | Comments closed

Other Things I’ve Written Lately

By Roger Catlin | Published: June 16, 2015

Here are some links to some other pieces I’ve written lately: Recalling a local legendary DJ who steered the Soul Train tracks to Annapolis gets some attention in the Smithsonian’s new permanent exhibit. An interview with the ever-sassy Kathy Griffin. Trying to keep up in an occasionally mind-blowing interview with Sebastian Thrun, the guy who […]

Also posted in General, Music | Comments closed

Other Things I’ve Written Lately

By Roger Catlin | Published: June 1, 2015

Here are some links to some other pieces I’ve written recently: A slave ship found off the coast of South Africa has artifacts that will come to the Smithsonian’s new National Museum of African American History and Culture next year. A National Symphony Orchestra violist plays once a year plays an instrument made by her […]

Also posted in Music, Theatre | Comments closed

Uploading the Whole Museum

By Roger Catlin | Published: December 16, 2014

With a ceremonial click with a foot pedal, the last of the 40,000 items of 2-D art being uploaded for free public use was digitally photographed last week. Starting Jan. 1 the whole of the Smithsonian’s repository of Asian art, the Freer Gallery of Art and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery will be available for […]

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