Arts and Culture

Arts and Culture highlights creative work in all mediums and disciplines with a special emphasis on artists, writers, performers, and collectives who blur the lines between art-making, personal activism, and community involvement. As they employ new artistic strategies, contemporary creatives continue to expand the role of arts and culture in public life. This section will feature intriguing and often ground-breaking work and explore how it might illuminate the challenges and opportunities we face as we move toward a commons-based world.

November 7, 2005

Clearance Culture vs. Creative Freedom

October 19, 2005

U.S. Thumbs Nose at World – Again

Alone among nations, the U.S. opposes a UNESCO treaty helping small nations and indigenous peoples protect their cultural heritages.

October 17, 2005

America’s Public Universities: “Public Control is Slipping Away”

America's public universities – the envy of the world – are quietly being privatized so as to serve corporate sponsors, rather than the public.

October 12, 2005

Wabi-Sabi and Market Culture

The Japanese tradition of wabi-sabi celebrates the imperfection of life.

October 10, 2005

When Marketing Masquerades as Philanthropy

What's in a name? Everything is for sale as public schools seek corporate funding for basic programs. The football team at Vernon Hills High School in Chicago plays on Rust-Oleum Field.

October 7, 2005

Can "Bohemian Chic" Be Owned?

Welcome to the Boho commons: Wal-Mart and a chic chain wrangle over peasant skirts.

September 28, 2005

Greedy Publishers Spur the Open-Source Textbook Movement

Textbooks are a goldmine for publishers and an increasing economic burden for students. But open-source might change all that.

September 20, 2005

Webcasting Treaty Would Seize Rights from Creators and the Public

In the latest corporate raid on the cultural commons, the U.S. is promoting a treaty that would allow the "enclosure" of works already in the public domain.