Broad Street Review

Philly's home for arts, culture, and conversation

Gresham Riley

Contributor

BSR Contributor Since March 8, 2006

Gresham Riley ([email protected]) is president emeritus of Colorado College (Colorado Springs, Col.), former president of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and a professor of philosophy who is currently engaged in an extended research project on the topic of evil. He lives in Old City in Philadelphia.

In addition to the articles listed below, Gresham Riley writes jointly with his wife, Pamela Riley. To view those articles, visit Pamela Riley's bio page by clicking here.

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Page 1

The young Hannah Arendt: A new definition of an indefinable crime.

The Eichmann verdict revisited (a response)

Crime, punishment and Eichmann: Hannah Arendt's contribution

Was hanging the appropriate sentence for the architect of the Holocaust? Hannah Arendt argued persuasively that Adolf Eichmann deserved to die. But can justice can ever truly be achieved in cases of “radical evil”? That question remains on the table.

Aug 03, 2013 Essays 9 minute read

The real Hannah Arendt eludes an Israeli-German-French film project.

"Hannah Arendt,' ill-served again (2nd review)

When bad movies happen to profound philosophers

Attempting more than a courtroom drama of the Eichmann trial but less than a full biography of Hannah Arendt, the filmmakers pack too many complex relationships and big ideas into 113 minutes with far too little intellectual substance for support.

Jul 08, 2013 Articles 5 minute read

Conallen (left), Ford: Implausible confessions.

"Gruesome Playground Injuries' by Theatre Exile

Is this what Nietzsche had in mind?

Gruesome Playground Injuries is a small play with a large theme: Nietzsche's notion that “Whatever doesn't kill me makes me stronger.” It's an edgy and ambitious two-person play that ultimately fails to live up to Theatre Exile's high production values.

Nov 19, 2011 Articles 5 minute read

Castellan as Biedermann: Give the audience slapstick, or shivers? (Photo: Earl Wilcox.)

Max Frisch's "The Arsonists' (2nd review)

Rod Serling, where are you?

Contrary to its promotion as an “absurdist romp,” Max Frisch's The Arsonists is a moral play with several morals. It deserved better than this heavy-handed trivialization.

Sep 10, 2011 Articles 3 minute read

Allaert van Everdingen's 'Fishing Boats in a Harbor,' from the Cleveland Museum: Up for sale.

When museums sell art: A better way

To sell art or not to sell: A modest solution for struggling museums

For the sake of art and the public interest, museums are prohibited from selling art works to fund their operations. But in practice, many art works are stashed in basements where the public never sees them, while the museums themselves struggle for financial survival. The former president of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts proposes a solution for this quandary.

Feb 01, 2011 Articles 5 minute read

Lloyd and puppet friends: Sorting out the wives.

Molière's "Scapin,' by the Lantern

Adults acting childish

Although Scapin was first staged in 1671 in Paris, the English adaptation of this archetypical French farce not only retains much of Molière's original structure but also thrillingly engages a 21st-Century audience, adults and children alike.

Dec 19, 2009 Articles 3 minute read

Moving the Barnes: A done deal

Yes, Dan, there are lost causes (and preventing the Barnes move is one of them)

Amid the debate over moving the Barnes Foundation, Dan Rottenberg argues that very often the supposedly “done deals” of history wind up becoming undone. And he's right. But many historical developments are irreversible. The Barnes move is a likely example.

Oct 26, 2009 Articles 5 minute read

The Barnes debate is over (a reply)

Yes, Victoria, someone is accountable for the Barnes

Opponents of the Barnes Foundation relocation mistakenly think that because the design issue remains open, so does the move itself. Hello, is anyone listening? The latter debate is over, and has been since December 13, 2004.

Oct 19, 2009 Articles 3 minute read

John Adams: But what would the fourth generation study?

The real "soft power': Cultural diplomacy

Dear President Obama: What works better than carrots or sticks?

After eight years of Bush's muscular diplomacy, Obama has embraced the virtues of “soft power” in theory. So why is the U.S. deliberately reducing its use of the arts as a foreign policy tool?

Feb 25, 2009 Essays 6 minute read

Protesters at the ceremony: Be careful what you wish for.

Barnes on the Parkway

Better times for the Barnes, at last

Whatever the merits of moving the Barnes Foundation, further argument is irrelevant. The new Barnes Museum will open on the Parkway in 2011, offering at last the kind of education programs Albert Barnes wanted.

Oct 19, 2008 Articles 5 minute read

470 Picasso Headof Woman

What the Barnes must do next

The bad news: Arts education in America, like public education in general, is increasingly treated like an unwanted stepchild. The good news in Philadelphia: At long last the Barnes Foundation has attracted the interest of three major foundations that possess the resources to change the face of arts education— if they so choose. Gresham Riley offers concrete suggestions.

Jun 10, 2007 Articles 7 minute read

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Eakins vs. Barnes

Is it hypocritical to support the Barnes Foundation’s move from Lower Merion while opposing The Gross Clinic’s move from Philadelphia? Not at all, argues the former president of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. The two owners in question are very different institutions with very different missions and ground rules.

Dec 16, 2006 Articles 6 minute read

Public art, private ownership

Yes, “The Gross Clinic” belongs in Philadelphia. But the painting does not belong at Jefferson University and probably should have been moved elsewhere long ago. The onus is not on Jefferson; it’s on local public leaders and private wealth. Mayor Street’s well-intentioned rescue strategy will harm, not help, those efforts.

Nov 22, 2006 Essays 7 minute read

Public art, private ownership

Yes, “The Gross Clinic” belongs in Philadelphia. But the painting does not belong at Jefferson University and probably should have been moved elsewhere long ago. The onus is not on Thomas Jefferson University; it’s on local public leaders and private wealth. Mayor Street’s well-intentioned rescue strategy will harm, not help, those efforts.

Nov 22, 2006 Essays 7 minute read

Constitution Center's '9/11: A Nation Remembers'

Predictable patriotic symbols dominate this clichéd exercise in post-9/11 photojournalism. I found little related to victims, the war in Iraq, or even expressions of hope. But the sight of one tattered flag alone is worth the admission price.

“9/11: A Nation Remembers.” Photographs by Jonathan Hyman.
Through January 1, 2007, at the National
Constitution Center, 525 Arch Street. 215-409-6700 or www.constituti

Sep 26, 2006 Articles 5 minute read