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Austin American-Statesman reportedly has been sold for $50M

The Austin-American Statesman has received a bid from Gatehouse Media to purchase the paper.

Photo courtesy of VishwaGujarat.com

The Austin American-Statesman, the dominant daily newspaper in Central Texas, may have found a buyer, according to a published report. Media blog NiemanLab is reporting Pittsford, New York-based GateHouse Media LLC appears to be the winning bidder for the Statesman. Final details are supposed to be worked out this week, according to the blog.

NiemanLab speculated GateHouse will pay close to $50 million for the Statesman. However, it’s unclear whether that deal would cover only the Austin newspaper or would also include seven smaller Statesman-affiliated newspapers in Central Texas that were put on the market last year.

Executives at the Statesman declined to comment when reached by news website Patch.com. Instead, Statesman Editor Debbie Hiott told Patch.com: “Susie Gray Biehle, our publisher, would be the best source for any statement, although I doubt Cox would have anything to say on that completely unsourced story from Ken Doctor.” (Doctor wrote the NiemanLab piece.)

Biehle also told Patch.com she had no comment.

GateHouse Media, which owns more than 130 daily newspapers along with hundreds of websites and community newspapers, doesn’t have any media outlets in Central Texas. However, its Center for News & Design is located in Austin. The center, which employs more than 240 people, handles design and editing functions for more than 250 daily and weekly newspapers, including the Dallas Morning News (which it does not own).

Hearst Newspapers LLC has long been considered the strongest contender to purchase the Statesman and its assets. Hearst publishes 24 daily newspapers in the U.S., including the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News,as well as 64 weekly newspapers (including a cluster of publications in the Houston area).

On October 31, Atlanta-based Cox Media Group said it was seeking a buyer or buyers for its newspapers in the Austin area, as well as its two daily newspapers in Palm Beach County, Florida. Cox originally put the paper up for sale in August 2008 but pulled it off the market in August 2009.

The sale of the Austin paper wouldn’t include the Statesman’s headquarters, which sits on South Congress Avenue and adjoins Lady Bird Lake. In December 2015, Cox sold the Statesman’s coveted lakefront property to a Cox family entity. Austin-based Endeavor Real Estate Group has been tapped to create a redevelopment plan for the nearly 19-acre site.

Based on daily circulation, a key measure of readership, the Statesman is the fifth largest newspaper in Texas, behind the Dallas Morning News, Houston Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News, and Fort Worth Star-Telegram. It currently employs more than 200 people.

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SKIN IN THE GAME

Renowned Hill Country tattoo artist inks new sacred geometry app

Photo courtesy of Dillon Forte

Dillion Forte at his "tattoo ranch" in the Texas Hill Country.

In the world of tattooing, there may seem to be few better rat traps left to build, but Dillon Forte aims to change that. In October, the renowned Wimberley-based tattoo artist and entrepreneur introduced a new iPadOS app to bring ancient symbology into the digital age.

Forte has made a worldwide name for his black dot work (a contemporary take on stick-and-poke techniques) and ambitious undertakings like tattooing underwater and opening a “tattoo ranch.” His ink appears on Usher, Chris Hemsworth, and Kehlani.

Still, he is most recognized for his sacred geometry designs, using patterns to convey various meanings. His interest led him to create the Sacred Geometry Drawing App, a convenient way for novices and experts to develop and export their creations.

The app grew out of his own practice. Over the past decade, he has used tablets and freehand techniques to achieve his highly symmetrical artwork but grew to realize existing tools were not always easy to use.

“The app is an attempt and fulfillment of my desire to make sacred geometry accessible and bring the ability to create into the fingertips of as many people as possible,” Forte tells CultureMap via email, adding a tagline: “symmetry made simply.”

He says he wished the app was available when developing his signature style as a tattoo artist, but it was designed with a broad range of users in mind. He hopes that designers, educators, and artists will find a use for it.

A short intro to the app's capabilities is available on YouTube. It looks like a standard drawing app, starting with a blank canvas and some tools like pens, pencils, colors, and of course, straight line and dot makers.

A "symmetry index" anchors the functionality and expands it to something between 2D art and 3D modeling. In addition to generating shapes like repeating patterns and spirals, the app also creates 3D shapes with grids, so that the artist can map their design in real space or even create sculptures. There is also an index for explaining the spiritual meaning of some standard designs.

“Geometry often prompts an intimidating feeling when it comes to making art,” Forte continues. “The fundamentally complex and often academic nature of math-based art can induce a sense of fear in the potential user instead of creating a sense of awe. The purpose of the sacred geometry app is to cultivate the latter."

Creatives interested in constructing their own geometric masterpieces can download the app at the App Store for free, and in-app purchases are available.

technology apps tattoos arts