An old drawing of a nude woman kneeling beside a swan among reeds, with an inscription at the bottom.

Art · Museums · Observations · Paris · Society Pages

Impressions of a rare exhibition at the Fondation Custodia

Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael at the exhibition of Italian Renaissance graphic masterpieces from the collection of the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, closing today at the Fondation Custodia in Paris. It is impossible to see every exhibition there is, and I am usually calm about the openings I

Architecture · Faith · Observations · Humour

Completion of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is expected in 2026

It is reported that the construction of the La Sagrada Familia cathedral in Barcelona is expected to be completed in 2026. Just in time for the centenary of the death of its legendary architect, Antoni Gaudí. That is to say, in 2026 the longest-running building project in the world

Books · Observations · Humour

Ivan Krylov's two fables “The Peasant and the Fox”, including the 1829 version

The Peasant and the Fox. Ivan Krylov, 1829 Curiously, this is not the only fable by Krylov with such a title. In the second, the peasant asks the fox why she lives by thieving, risking her life and committing sin besides: would it not be better for her to come

Cinema · Books · Observations

Netflix series based on García Márquez’s “One Hundred Years of Solitude” as a reason to reread the novel

Without exaggeration, Netflix's adaptation of Márquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude" is a masterpiece. I cannot say which of their projects could rival it for beauty. Flawlessly beautiful and unhurried, it neither wrecks the harmony nor interrupts the flow of the text. I did

Observations · Science · People

Somewhere, Something Incredible Is Waiting to Be Known

The American astronomer Carl Sagan

Faith · Observations · Society

China on Course to Become the "Most Christian Country in the World" Within 15 Years

The number of Christians in Communist China is growing so steadily that by 2030 it may have more churchgoers than America. What can one say but: thank God!

Observations · Science · Society · Humour

The editorial board of the palaeoanthropological journal Journal of Human Evolution has resigned over the publisher's imposition of artificial intelligence tools, which increased neither the efficiency nor the quality of the work, but…

In particular, it is reported that when, in the autumn of 2023, an AI-based machine assistant was brought in to edit texts, it began replacing the capital letters in proper names with lower-case ones and altering the typefaces specially used to set off terms and scientific nomenclature. As

Art · Observations · Humour

Life Imitates Art

A burning Bank of America somewhere at the foot of the Hollywood Hills, and in a painting by Alex Schaefer

NB! · Books · Observations · Society

A fine time it was, when "Russians" was written with a capital letter

NB! · Faith · Observations · Rome · Humour

Another Circus in the Vatican

Another circus in the Vatican. Nothing new.

NB! · Observations · Paris · Humour

As the French actor Ivan Odouard put it, no opinion polls this week: let us try to guess our own true intentions unaided

Cartoon of a bearded man with an angry expression lying in bed under a blanket.

NB! · Observations · Society · Humour

Complaint about prolonged days off and their effect on business activity

Good Lord, it turns out today is still a day off. How much longer? Can anyone explain why there are so many non-working days? It literally paralyses every form of business activity; surely people have rested enough by now?