2000 Review: The Big Roundup
Daily Arts Alert ... by Cathleen Bond
Monday Jan. 1
Welcome to 2001. The dawn of a new day and the beginning of a whole new year in the Canadian arts scene. Before we launch into the next annum, I think it's important to look back to where we've come from, for it's in reflecting on our past that makes for a better tomorrow. That's why today I'd like to briefly sum up some of the most significant stories from the wild and wooly world of Canadian art and culture. Let's rewind through our coverage the past couple of weeks and look for emerging trends, point out additional hot stories and really digest 2000 before we leap into 2001. Here are the highlights -- Click on the links for in-depth coverage of each topic, then hit the back button for more. First stop, the lofty world of literature.
 Literature: Okay, so not everybody liked The Blind Assassin, but nobody can deny that Margaret Atwood deserved The Booker. Canadians cried at the passing of Carole Corbeil. And classics professor Anne Carson won the prestigious (not to mention $500,000 U.S.) MacArthur Fellowship. Carson, a renowned poet and essayist, has become one of Canada's most valuable literary treasures. I've just begun The Autobiography of Red: A Novel in Verse. It's a challenging read, but worth the sweat. I predict in a year or maybe less, you won't be considered a serious reader if you're not familiar with Carson. Stay tuned for more news.
TV or not TV: TV or not TV, that is the question. For me television's pretty much a big yawn. I don't care about reality programs (which left me out of much of the Survivor water cooler chitchat) and I'm dismayed by the lack of content in the multi-channel universe. Not to mention the alarming decline in true CanCon offered up in today's TV guides. With the exception of CBC's Canada: A People's History, our programming appears to be going to the dogs. And with all the megamergers going on, only a few big players have been left standing on top of the entertainment heap. How can this truly be a good thing?
Film: The big story in Canadian film wasn't another cerebral chiller by Atom Egoyan or a horror ride with David Cronenberg. Instead it was a trip Waydowntown by Winnipeg native Gary Burns. Plus Bell Canada got into the movie game by running a webcast of the fabulous Preludes series, courtesy of 10 directors at the Toronto International Film Festival. If you haven't seen the series you should genuinely check it out.
Architecture: Rem Koohaas and Bruce Mau win the Parc Downsview Park competition in Toronto. Bruce Mau leaps into the literary arena with Life Style, a well- received book on the impact of design on contemporary life. Plus, there was a philosophical punch up over the question of architectural competitions, and it looks like we're going to be getting more and more from the mind of Mau as the year(s) unfolds.
Digital: The CBC turned out to be an unexpected fairy godmother to the digital arts in 2000. Plus Trailervision and Zapavision show us that Canadians can really cook in the zany, made-for-the-web frontier. I just can't get enough of their crazy Goop! I predict great things for Trailervision founder Albert Nerenberg. And if the CBC can avoid its own serpentine bureaucracy, Mother could actually be a serious player in new media.
Visual Arts: What an incredible year for visual arts! French impressionist landscapes hung at the National Gallery, Cornelius Krieghoff took his paintings on the road, Francisco Goya's nightmares enjoyed a great run at the AGO and moose galloped across Toronto. Video artists Douglas Gordon and Stan Douglas emerge as two major artists to watch in the new millennium.
Music and Opera: The Canadian Opera Company still awaits a new home. More and more Canucks are abandoning rock concerts and lining up at classical venues. What could this mean? Do baby boomers have a problem with Britney Spears; clubbing and hip hop, or is it simply a function of aging? Ticket sales could reflect a real shift in what people genuinely want to hear. It might indicate a generational divide. Or in the best case scenario, people of all ages are becoming more receptive to a wider range of music. That would be very good news indeed.
Dance: Kicking up their heels. Kimberly Glasco took James Kudelka to court and it's still not really clear who won the great dance war. However one thing's certain. Artists were thrilled to see Glasco reinstated, as it meant that performers couldn't be perfunctorily disposed of by the capricious whims of artistic directors. However the hairy scary flip side of the coin is getting the courts involved with the arts. Do we really want judges making artistic decisions? This could turn into a very nasty precedent setting case.
Public Art: Speaking of moose, thanks to the Millennial Fund, public art is dusting itself off and emerging as very real conduit between artists and the rest of the population. Could public art be a way of breaking down intimidating gallery walls and deliver the joy of art to all the people?
Fine Tuning: A fine telecast for New Year's Day: The Governor General's Performing Arts Awards, taped at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. 8 p.m. on CBC TV.
Email me Got any ideas or tips?
Archives: We've got news and reviews in our previous Arts Alerts
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 Updated each weekday by Cathleen Bond ... bookmark this page and come back for the latest news, reviews and gossip on the Canadian arts scene.
RECENT FEATURES:
More from our year-end review:
>> Public Art
>> Film
>> Digital
>> Visual Art
>> Literature
>> Dance
>> Architecture
>> Music and Opera
>> TV or not TV
>> Kid Stuff: Toy displays for Christmas at Canada's museums
>> Bruce Mau: Big designs in LifeStyle
>> Robert Service: Musical tribute to a Canadian hero
>> Circle of Trees: Art and nature come full circle
>> Atwood: The critics and The Blind Assassin
>> Public
Art: Who decides what art will fill our civic spaces and
expand our imagination?
>> Public
Art: Who decides what art will fill our civic spaces and
expand our imagination?
>> Mags
& Zines: A review of the best in Canadian arts publications.
>> Digital
Art: Clickable Cancon, a quick tour of the latest in digital art.
>>
Cancon Quiz
Twenty clicks through Canadian culture: Test your memory, from Anne
of Green Gables to Shift.
START QUIZ
>> Iron
Road: The Arts & Culture forum follows the creation of a new Canadian
opera
>> Interview:
Carole McDowell tells us how she and artist Helen Lucas made the transition
from gallery walls to the www gallery.
>>
Public Library in Peril How should libraries be transformed to
meet future needs of Canadians?
>> Culture
at the Crossroads
New statistics tell us where we've been, and point to future trends
for Canadian arts, artists and audiences.
>> Web
Wizard
Margaret Leong's resources for Canadian music students.
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