Art · Cinema · Observations
A selection of films about the art world, painters and their muses, adventurers, passionate collectors and skilful forgers: cinema of various genres united by the theme of painting. Essential viewing; every one of these pictures will bear more than a single watching and will make a fine addition to the
NB! · Observations · Humour
Faith · Monarchies · Observations · Society
Ahead of the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska, scheduled for 15 August, let us recall other occasions when Alaska, hardly the most fashionable venue for diplomatic encounters, played host to world leaders. Richard Nixon and Emperor Hirohito, 26 September 1971, Anchorage. In the night of 26
NB! · Faith · The East · Observations · Society · Humour
Trump was deified in India on the eve of his visit to the country in early 2020. I understand, of course, that Hinduism is the closest living equivalent of the Hellenic religion, and that the Romans never missed a chance to admit new gods and fold them into their worldview.
NB! · Observations · Humour
Cinema · Observations · Education · Society · Pop Culture
School uniform conforming to the new GOST, developed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade together with the Ministry of Education, looks like clothing from Soviet cinema of the 1950s. Indeed, the burgundy suit with skirt and jacket prescribed for girls, complemented by a lace tie-cum-jabot, is more
Archive · Observations · Paris · People · Nature
Salvador Dalí, aged 65, emerges from the underpass of the Bastille Métro station on the rue de Lyon with an anteater. The anteater is not his: the animal was provided for the photo shoot by the Jardin des Plantes. Very well. But have you never wondered by what right, exactly?
Books · Observations
Arthur Schopenhauer
NB! · Observations
Archaeology · Geography · Observations · Society
The El Silar Complex in Bolivia Looks Just as the Splendid Achievements of Past Civilisations Do in the Perspective of Our Own Day. Have you ever driven past a ruined Sovkhoz or an abandoned factory? Many of the everyday phenomena of the developed past, seen through the sad prism of
Coming Up · Art · Museums · Observations
Works by Jean-Michel Othoniel in Avignon. Yes, this is the same contemporary artist whose chandelier of multicoloured glass beads hangs in the Petit Palais in Paris; his style is instantly recognisable. At present, works by Othoniel are on show in all the museums and historic sights of Avignon. I
NB! · Observations