Sun. Dec 22nd, 2024
Occasional Digest - a story for you

All eyes were on Cannes last week as the film industry’s brightest and richest descended on the French city’s film festival to give us a little peek at what could be dominating next year’s award season.

But more on that later. Here’s what else you missed in entertainment over the weekend.

Portrait of a Lady (that the subject wants to set) on Fire

Mining heiress and billionaire Gina Rinehart’s reported requests to have The National Gallery of Australia remove Vincent Namatjira’s unflattering portrait of her have officially gone global.

There was coverage of the controversy on the BBC and CNN, and comedian Dan Ilic is trying to raise $30,000 for the portrait to be displayed in Times Square.

It even merited a mention on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Colbert — whose show reaches an average of 2.57 million US viewers — covered the fracas on Saturday night’s show. He joked: “I’m no art expert but in this portrait I believe the artist really captured her expression at the moment she saw this portrait.”

Namatjira was the first Aboriginal Australian to win the Archibald Prize. The painting was first shown in 2021 and is one of 21 of Namatjira’s portraits of people who have shaped Australia on display at the NGA.

An artwork titled ‘Australia in Colour, 2021’ by artist Vincent Namatjira, which includes a portrait of Gina Rinehart
Artist Vincent Namatjira’s artwork Australia in Colour includes a portrait of Gina Rinehart.(AAP: Lukas Coch)

It’s since emerged that there’s a second Namatjira portrait at the NGA that Rinehart’s supporters are lobbying to remove.

However you feel about an Archibald winner’s right to artistic expression versus Australia’s richest woman’s right to flattering representation, it’s safe to say Rinehart’s attempts to remove the portrait have ensured it’s reached a wider audience than the usual NGA foot traffic.

— Hannah Reich

Taylor came for Billie’s album launch and fans are screaming snake

After three long years, Billie Eilish fans were blessed on Friday with her new album, HIT ME HARD AND SOFT. And in the short time since its release the pop star has garnered praise for her mature evolution.

Posted , updated 



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