9/19 SLTRIB: Here’s the timeline for the massive overhaul of Abravanel Hall, UMOCA and the Salt Palace

Construction plans for Salt Lake County’s portion of the downtown sports, entertainment, culture and convention district call for breaking ground on major overhauls of the Salt Palace Convention Center, Abravanel Hall and the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art as early as February 2027.

That detail emerged from a contract the county signed with MHTN Architects, which The Salt Lake Tribune obtained through an open records request.

MHTN is a partner of Populous, a global architectural design firm that has worked on major projects like Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London and is currently working on a new stadium for the NFL’s Buffalo Bills. MHTN designed Millcreek City Hall and the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office building in Salt Lake City, among others.

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9/10 SLTRIB: ‘It’s hard not to feel targeted’: Utah theater company loses state funding over anti-DEI law

For the first time in more than 20 years, a Salt Lake City theater company dedicated to telling stories that center women will not receive funding from the state.

And it’s all because of a 2024 Utah law that severely curtails diversity, equity and inclusion measures.

Frances Pruyn, the artistic director of PYGmalion Theatre Company, said the company will not receive a grant from the Utah Division of Arts and Museums for its 2026-2027 season.

PYGmalion, Pruyn said, had requested $9,000 — the same amount it requested last year. The company shared the state’s rejection letter in a newsletter and on social media.

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9/10 CITY WEEKLY: Utah arts organizations look to the future by inviting and educating young audiences.

If you care about the arts, or even make your living from them, the present is kind of a scary time—funding cuts, threats of censorship and creeping economic uncertainties. That’s one reason why it’s always worthwhile to look to the future.

Utah has long been the youngest state in the nation by median age—32.4 years, compared to a national median age of around 39—primarily due to the larger-than-average size of Utah families.

That means a lot of children, and a lot of potential, future art lovers, in a state that has long ranked near the top for per-capita attendance at live performing arts events.

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9/7 How federal funding cuts could hurt a Utah radio station that’s entirely focused on arts, music and culture

Tune in to 90.9 FM every weekday from 6 to 7 p.m. and the steady, curious voice of Lara Jones and her bill of guests will greet you over the airwaves.

Jones hosts “RadioACTive” — a show that proudly features “grassroots activists, community builders, punk-rock farmers, and DIY makers and musicians” — at KRCL. The Salt Lake City station’s programming focuses entirely on arts, culture and music.

In one year, Jones estimates that her show has 900 guests. In August alone, she featured the new president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Association of Utah, had a show dedicated to National Senior Citizens Day and highlighted Utah Americana band Hectic Hobo.

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9/5 : THE CENTER’S STUDIO PODCAST: A Leap into the Darkness: The Relationship of Artists and Galleries, with David Ericson and Justin Wheatley

Most people are unaware of the symbiotic relationship between artists and the gallerists who represent them. How does a gallery support, encourage, and market an artist’s work? And how does an artist rely on the expertise of a gallerist when they are starting out, in mid-career, and when they want to defy expectation with something new? This interview brings visual artist Justin Wheatley and David Ericson, the owner of David Ericson Fine Art in Salt Lake City, Utah, together to uncover surprising ties of trust between creativity and commerce.

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15 Bytes

UTAH’S ART MAGAZINE SINCE 2001, 15 Bytes is published by Artists of Utah, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.