"Venice turns into 'Big Brother'"
Plus: National Trust 'war on woke'
Happy Friday.
“A little bit of Tottenham in Hollywood’s Museum!” That’s how Adele captioned her extraordinary Instagram post last night revealing she’s gracing the cover of November’s American Vogue. The accompanying photoshoot to her first interview in over five years took place at the brand new Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in LA while it was still under construction (it opened just last week). Adele - and the Museum - look stunning. Oh, and she also announced she’s the cover star for November’s British Vogue, the first time anyone has been on both covers simultaneously. (As a PR, I can only imagine the total BUZZ in securing such landmark coverage) Bring on next week’s debut for Easy On Me.
Did you manage to get tickets to Yayoi Kusama? You’ll remember in last week’s newsletter I highlighted that the online queue to book swelled to 118,000 people at one point. So I’m guessing many of you didn’t. Well, if you still wanted a Kusama hit, you could book the Infinity Rooms-inspired afternoon tea at Tate Modern’s Kitchen and Bar. I’ve tried it myself, and have written a review for Luxuriate Life magazine. My tip: try the Veuve Clicquot. Read my review here.
Maxwell
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This week’s top story
Is Venice heading for a dystopian future? Long used as an example of over-tourism, the city is now acquiring the mobile phone data of tourists and using hundreds of surveillance cameras to monitor visitors and prevent crowding. Soon gates will be installed at key entry points and visitors coming only for the day will have to book ahead and pay a fee to enter. (If you stay overnight, you won’t need to pay.) New York Times
“It’s like declaring once and for all that Venice is not a city, but a museum” said one artist resident. But I think many museums would be squeamish to introduce a system which monitors visitors as much as they do here. As the Daily Express put it, “Venice turns into 'Big Brother.” The system the city employs to track phone data from nearly every person in the locale is designed to collect people’s age, sex, country of origin and prior location - albeit anonymously. “We have total control of the city” says Venice’s top tourism official. Not exactly the most alluring of sentiments for potential visitors. But I suppose that’s the point.
This week’s other stories
Remember the stunning ceramic poppies that surrounded the Tower of London back in 2014 to mark the centenary of World War I? You probably do, as over 5 million went to see it. Most were sold for charity, but over 12,000 were acquired for the nation and it’s now been announced they’ll have a permanent home at Imperial War Museum North in Manchester. BBC News
More culture wars are coming to the National Trust, as this month’s AGM is set to see an insurgent group called Restore Trust wage a campaign against perceived “wokeness.” It wants to establish a beachhead for control of NT’s 36-seat governing council and has the support of Tory MPs. And you thought the Labour party conference was divided. The Guardian
Who will be the UK City of Culture 2025? Well, it’s going to be either Armagh City, Bradford, County Durham, Stirling, Cornwall, Derby, Southampton, or Wrexham County Borough. These longlisted nominees will now work with the DCMS to finalise their bids before a shortlist is revealed. The Guardian
London’s Design Museum is marking Terence Conran’s 90th birthday with free display looking at the designer’s life and career. Conran founded the museum in 1989 and items on show include memorabilia from the launch of Habitat which he also created. Design Week
Fancy a ‘virtual flight’ over some of England’s historical sites? You’re in luck, as Historic England have released a new mapping tool which has combined aerial photographs with laser scans to reveal all the hidden heritage that lies beneath the surface of the ground. It basically shows that every lump and bump is likely something historically exciting. The Times
Temple tube station is in a bit of a no-man’s land area of central London. But now it’s become a destination in its own right as its grey (and unknown!) roof terrace has been given a kaleidoscopic makeover by London-based artist Lakwena Maciver. Expect to see it all over your Instagram. Time Out London
NFTs - yes, them - have taken the next inevitable step in their rapid evolution. You can now buy an NFT of a whole digital museum, with a ‘collection’ of 12 artworks. Created by XR studio Delta Reality, it’s been described as “a self-contained metaverse,” whatever that means. Mashable
I need your help! If you enjoy this newsletter, please consider buying me a digital coffee. Every donation helps keep it free.