Arts + Culture

Great Cincinnati Families moves to Park + Vine

Cincinnati’s Architectural Nuance

Cincinnati boasts a long list of historical and contemporary architectural statements dotted throughout downtown and Over-the-Rhine. Soapbox now gives you 10 great reasons to cut a new swath across your city as we explore some of the most stunning and surprising buildings in the region.

Lindner Athletics Center wins AIA Chicago award

The Richard E. Lindner Center and George & Helen Smith Athletics Museum on the University of Cincinnati main campus has won special recognition from the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects.Focusing on interiors and, more specifically, the trophy case, one juror called the multi-story, translucent wall of trophies "brilliant".AIA Chicago jurors also liked the "good environmental graphics and industrial design" employed by the architects in showcasing the university's athletic and academic success.Earning special recognition were Perkins+Will/Eva Maddox Branded Environments, Bernard Tschumi Architects, Glaserworks, Intaglio, Turner Construction Company, Harmon Inc., and Xibitz.Read the full release here.

Cincinnati’s library system earns top 10 ranking

For the third year in a row, the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County (PLCHC) has ranked in the top 10 nationally.Cincinnati placed 10th among 79 library systems in the "Over 500,000 population" category in Hennen's American Public Library Ratings.The ratings are based on statistics such as circulation, customer visits per hour, and number of volumes owned per capita.While PLCHC executive director Kim Fender is pleased with the ranking, she tells WLWT.com that "our Library is much more than the number of items on the shelves".Read the full article here.

Cincinnati auditions for world’s largest choir competition

The City of Cincinnati is still in the running for the world's largest international choir competition, and spent this weekend making its case.Team Cincinnati, winners of NBC's Clash of the Choirs, performed at the Aronoff Center on Saturday for a site selection committee from the World Choir Games, who became aware of Cincinnati through the television show.The competition has never been held in the United States, and the Cincinnati Arts Association (CAA) is pitching a Downtown and Over-the-Rhine "campus" of venues as its strongest selling point.The CAA estimates that the games, which would be held in 2012, would bring a $13 million economic impact, 44,000 hotel room nights and 20,000 participants.Read the full story here.

Cincinnati’s Fine Arts Fund provides a model to arts communities

Cincinnati continues to be the standard bearer when it comes to arts funding, according to the latest survey by Americans for the Arts.With a 2006 campaign totals of $11.36 million, the Cincinnati Fine Arts Fund beat out much larger metros such as Atlanta and Seattle.The Dayton Daily News attributed Cincinnati's success to tradition - it was founded in 1927 and has been campaigning annually since 1949 - and heavy corporate support.And the Fine Arts Fund won't tolerate budget deficits, meaning that arts organizations that don't operate in a fiscally responsible manner get less and less funding.Read the full article here.

Soap Dish

Cincinnati's moth balled, but not forgotten, Emery Theater at Central Parkway and Walnut is showing signs of life and a potential comeback thanks to the efforts of community super-heroes and events like CityBeat's Cincinnati Entertainment Awards on November 23.

The view from Eden Park is global

Director Aaron Betsky finds a global perspective for the Cincinnati Art Museum no stretch at all as he positions one of the city's most treasured institutions squarely into its next phase of development and growth.

The wild, wild east: Cincinnati gets first look at China’s design frontier

To crib Napoleon, China, the once slumbering dragon, has awoken.  And it’s shaking more than just the world’s economy.  Today a thriving, rapidly growing creative class is putting Chinese design on the map and the Cincinnati Art Museum is the first in the US to give a tour through the brave new world of Chinese design.