Zaha Hadid Architects Unveil Hydrogen Refueling Station, and More News

Abandoned LA Skyscraper Transformed Into Graffiti Tower

A couple days before the Grammy Awards lit up the stage at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Sunday, February 4, more than a dozen people climbed into one of the abandoned Oceanwide Plaza skyscrapers directly across the award show’s venue and covered the windows in graffiti, according to The New York Times. The Oceanwide Plaza project has been sitting vacant since 2019 when the developer’s funds ran dry, and rebellious community members ventured to publicly protest the structure’s continued negligence just in time for the exclusive music industry event. Once intended to become a combination of luxury apartments, retail shops and a hotel, the 27-storey tower is now decorated with colorful tags. “This is people taking it upon themselves to use a space that in many ways was abandoned by people with money and power," said professor and cultural geographer Stefano Bloch.

Stolen Chagall Returns to Its NYC gallery

After the theft of a $100,000 lithograph entitled Eve (1971) from Carlton Fine Arts’ at the end of September, the stolen work by early modernist Marc Chagall has unexpectedly made its way back home. Their getaway may have been unglamorous, tossing the piece into the backseat of a slightly beat-up 1996 Honda Accord, but the three responsible perpetrators were able to remain off of police radar for the few months that followed the 2 am break-in. Even though one of the suspects involved remains unknown, the artwork has returned to the Madison Avenue gallery and has since then been put back on display. This return comes just a few weeks after another stolen Chagall painting was recovered by Belgian police. 

British Museum Organizes Exhibition Featuring Recovered Artifacts 

After the British Museum discovered that their longtime employee had quietly stolen over 2,000 objects from the massive storeroom, extensive efforts were made to retrieve the various gems and golden trinkets. Even though “hundreds” of the ancient jewels have been recuperated, only ten of them will be on display at the museum’s Rediscovering Gems show, which opens February 15. The exhibition's central premise, besides good PR, hinges on the role gems and jewels have had as personal tastemakers and collectables. The museum will recreate typical 18th-century-style collector’s cabinets, and display the dainty objects alongside frequently found accessories like magnifying glasses and cast impressions.

John Cage's Experimental Organ Piece Changes Chord

The mechanical organ playing As Slow as Possible by Avant Guard composer John Cage changed chords on Monday for the first time since February 5, 2022. The piece, originally from 1987, is an eight-page composition with no direct instruction except for that of its title. Performances of Cage’s work have ranged from his own 30-minute rendition, to a 14-hour-and-56-minute interpretation by organist Diane Luchese. This version of the project, nicknamed Organ²/ASLSP, first began in 2011 and uses an electronic wind machine and sand bags to play itself. It’s programmed to take 639 years to reach its end, which leaves 611 years of anticipation to go. The next chord isn't set to change until August 5, 2026.