The tension between high culture and low and middlebrow culture

Blake Gopnik, in today's Post, in the piece, "Smithsonian Trades Its Cachet for Cash," complains that the Air and Space Museum will be using (or utilizing) its IMAX Theater to show the latest Harry Potter movie.

On the other hand, I've been suggesting for years that the IMAX theaters at the Smithsonian Museums (Air and Space and Natural History) are cultural assets that need to be used in the times beyond when the Museums are open.

In this blog entry from last month "Call for Museums to stay open til 10 pm at night... in London" I rementioned this, and my dream of seeing once again the Rolling Stones IMAX movie in one of those IMAX theaters on the Mall. (I don't suppose that was suggested at last night's presentation at the Corcoran about the "Third Century Mall.") This blog entry also suggests working with the Newseum and the Canadian Embassy along similar lines. The National Film Board of Canada could set up one of its "Mediatheques" at the Embassy, next to the Newseum and across the street from the National Gallery and other cultural institutions along the Mall.

I understand his point, and still appreciate his accurate criticism of low art(?) projects like painting panda bears, but I think he's wrong on this one.

The IMAX Theaters (and the theater at the National Gallery of Art for that matter) are physical assets that can be used beyond their current hours in ways that provide more cultural options for residents of the Metropolitan area as well as for visitors.

Index Keywords: urban-revitalization, arts-culture, cinema