Hasta La Ideas

Regular readers of UnBeige will recall our bordering-on-unhealthy love of documentaries and tote bags (not to mention Antiques Roadshow and dramatic reenactments of say, life on the road with the Donner Party), so it will come as no surprise that we are regular viewers of public television. We grew up with WTVS, spent our college years checking in with WGBH, and now tune into WNET, better known as Thirteen. So we’re excited to tell you about PBS Arts, a just-launched website that aims to explore the creative process through virtual exhibits, videos from PBS national and local programs, and interactive features. PBS tells us that the site will feature at least one new exhibition per month, with content spanning all genres of the visual and performing and arts, including painting, sculpture, film, photography, dance, and theater.

The initial offerings of PBS Arts include a virtual exhibition of the work of New Orleans-based artist Thomas Mann, an Art:21-curated look at how contemporary artists have reacted to the news of the day, and the documentary we told you about earlier this month—Citizen Architect: Samuel Mockbee and the Spirit of the Rural Studio—PBS has made the full film available to view online. “For 40 years, we’ve used television to give the public a front-row seat to the world’s greatest cultural experiences, and now PBS Arts will help us achieve this goal online,” said Paula A. Kerger, president and CEO of PBS, in a statement announcing the new site. “PBS Arts will also allow us to transport audiences from these front-row seats and give them opportunities to interact with artists and share their experiences of being engaged and enriched by the arts.”

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