At home, Ms. Lam and her husband, Steven Bourne, tried to do the opposite, buying and renovating a traditional "lilong" house that was built in 1936, when Shanghai's financial and artistic influence was at its peak.

WSJ: Luxury Real Estate: Embracing Old Shanghai in a French Concession Lilong

Ballet is a world where competition is fierce, and where the artistic director wields considerable influence in making or breaking careers.

CNN: STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Many of those countries were part of the Ottoman Empire (between the 13th and 16th centuries) and were thus strongly influenced by the Mughals, originally from India, who brought with them a pervasive Muslim influence, tempered by the artistic traditions of Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism.

FORBES: Communications Through Art

By denying its musical and artistic merit, hip hop's critics get to have it both ways: they can deny the legitimate artistic standing of rap while seizing on its pervasive influence as an art form to prove what a terrible effect it has on youth.

NPR: Author Comes to Hip-Hop Music's Defense