© Sergio Aquindo

Some random thoughts on books

Pat Carl Watson
11 August 2026

The status of books in America today hovers between out-of-control production and irrelevance. There are probably more books being printed and published now than ever before. The ease of self-publishing, combined with the lack of literary gate keepers, produces a flood of new books every week—poetry, memoir, fiction, opinion, etc. Just send your manuscript to Amazon and they will make a book for you. Congratulations! You are a published author! Nobody will care if its good or not because almost nobody will pay attention to it.

The art of being ornamental

 

The Ladies Waldegrave is a group portrait painted by Joshua Reynolds between 1780 and 1781, now housed in the Scottish National Gallery, which acquired the painting in 1952. The work depicts the three daughters of James Waldegrave, 2nd Earl Waldegrave, and Maria Walpole. From left to right, they are Charlotte, holding a skein of silk; Elizabeth, winding Charlotte’s silk onto a card; and Anna, producing tambour lace

The art of being ornamental

Rococo fashion, hyper-femininity, and the politics of spectacle in 18th-century aristocratic culture

Mariana Carrera Díaz de Ita
30 de July 2026

The Rococo period of the early to mid-18th century represents one of the most visually extravagant moments in Western fashion history. Emerging in France during the reign of Louis XV, Rococo aesthetics celebrated lightness, sensuality, artifice, and ornamental excess. Pastel silks, cascading ribbons, lace flounces, and architectural silhouettes transformed women into living embodiments of refinement and spectacle. Yet beneath this softness lay a complex system of power, performance, and social hierarchy. Rococo fashion was not merely about beauty—it was about visibility.

 

© The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Inc. / Licensed by Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Diane von Furstenberg Tells the Story Behind Her Iconic Andy Warhol Paintings

Diane con Furstenberg
6 August 2026

Happy Birthday, Andy! Today marks what would have been 98 years of Interview renowned founder. To celebrate, one of Warhol’s closest friends and muse, Dian von Furstenberg,wrote him a birthday note reminiscing on the fateful night these Polaroids were captured and how they went on to become some of the most well-known works in Warhol’s oeuvre. The following letter provides a snapshot of the artist at work, as well as a taste of the bustling social scene of ’70s New York City. More of Warhol’s Polaroids are currently on display as part of the Andy Warhol Family Album exhibition at the Whitney Museum running now through October 19. —BRENDAN KENNEDY

Dressing the woman within

A woman lies in bed, elegantly dressed in delicate lingerie

Dressing the woman within

Reclaiming sensuality and sexiness in style and self

Virginie Tolly
22 October 2025

Having worked with many women over the years in fashion styling, I’ve noticed something striking. Most shy away from the word “sexy.” They say they prefer to be seen as “feminine,” “elegant,” or sometimes “sensual,” but almost never sexy. And yet, aren’t these just different expressions of the same experience? Different tones of the same music? It’s like a volume dial turning up from feminine to sensual to sexy. In truth, the word “sexy” doesn’t really exist on its own. It’s not something separate from us, a label we choose to wear or reject. It’s part of the much broader, richer experience of being a woman. When we resist the word, we’re often not rejecting our own sensuality; we’re rejecting what society has made the word mean. Because the problem isn’t the feeling, it’s the social consequences of embracing it.

Where have all the warriors gone?

 

A statue of a man riding a horse, depicting a samurai in traditional Japanese armor

Where have all the warriors gone? 

A reflection on men, style, and identity crisis

Virginie Tolly
2 September 2025

More than ever, men seem to have lost their connection with style. That quiet but powerful language that once said everything before a man ever spoke.

Horse, Isen’in Hoin Eishin (Japanese, 1775–1828), in the style of Ren Renfa (Chinese, 1255–1328), 1816–1828 (Edo period), ink and colors on silk, Japan and Korea. Credit line: Acquired by William T. or Henry Walters

When fashion meets the year of the horse

Using style as a grounding and intentional practice for 2026

Virginie Tolly

22 January 2026

What does Chinese New Year have to do with style or fashion, apart from selling endless tons of decorative merchandising products in retail? What if there were a more meaningful correlation between the two? What if the way you dress in 2026 could influence how you move through your year, your decisions, your presence, your being, and even your state of mind?

Madrid / A fantastic tour

Plaza Mayor

Madrid

A fantastic tour

Maya de Silva

20 de junio de 2019

At dusk, walking up to the palace I could see a statue of a horse and its rider silhouetted against the palace. The rider’s sword was raised high, standing out against the darkening sky. Groups sat on the steps of the fountain enjoying the view and each other’s company. In the evening, the area took on a fairytale atmosphere with a multi-coloured, twirling carousel and twinkling fairy lights. We were serenaded by a Spanish guy who said his mother was from the same city Viva is from (what a coincidence – it’s just too bad he knew absolutely nothing about the city or where it was) and then asked us for 10 euro. An Instagram Husband/Boyfriend provided much entertainment as he followed his partner around taking multiple pictures - maybe he was happy to do this because she only smiled at him when he was taking a picture. The palace and the vast gardens are very romantic and it was good to see that Madrid is accepting of LGBT+ couples with multiple couples freely walking around the park hand-in-hand.

Day Trips from Rome / Two things to do around Rome

 

Pope’s Summer Palace in Castel Gandolfo

Day Trips from Rome

Two things to do around Rome

Maya de Silva
20 de mayo de 2019

1. Ostica Antica: Stepping back in time

What to do
As you enter the site you will step onto what remains of an old road; large blocks of stone inlaid in the ground provide a different (if somewhat harsh on the knees) walking experience. It is considerably easier walking along the ground on either side of the road but I would recommend walking on the stones at least for a while to truly enjoy the experience of walking down a vast avenue with ancient ruins on either side. This main road is called Decumanus Maximus and as you walk along you will encounter remains of arches along the right side as well as marble pillars. 

London Insights 2

The Globe Theatre

London Insights

Five things to do around London Bridge - Part Two

Maya de Silva
1 January 2017

This is part of a continuing series on places to visit and things to do in London from a local’s perspective. From watching Shakespearean plays to visiting museums, seeing London from several hundred feet above the ground to having a drink in a pub going back to medieval times, there is never a shortage of things to do. 

London Insights 1

London by night

London Insights

Five things to do around London Bridge - Part One

Maya de Silva
1 November 2016

Visitors may not think of London Bridge as being a tourist hot spot in the same way they think of the West End but recent developments have resulted in a variety of restaurants, bars, cafes and open spaces which have created a fantastic atmosphere. The area is all the more special because it successfully balances the modern and the historic; you can walk along cobbled streets while gazing up at the Shard. 

Copenhagen / The most perfectly designed city I have seen

 

The Little Mermaid

Copenhagen

The most perfectly designed city I have seen

Maya de Silva
20 July 2019

Copenhagen may just be the most perfectly designed city I have seen. The roads are broad. The pavements are broad. All roads have a cycle track (this is necessary because 52% of the population cycle). Buses are frequent and cover most locations, supplemented by a metro. Recycling bins are divided into various categories instead of the catch all ‘recycle’ bins seen in other cities.

Carole Puéo

 

CAROLE PUÉO

Carole Puéo is a contemporary French painter born in Trévoux in 1973, who currently lives and works in Burgundy. She is a renowned figurative artist whose work focuses primarily on female portraits. Carole Puéo has a solid academic background. She studied at the École Nationale des Beaux-Arts in Dijon and then continued her university studies in the history of contemporary art. Her artistic research is strongly inspired by art history, particularly feminist art movements. While she is highly recognized for her acrylics, dry pastels, and ink works, oil painting serves as a foundational medium for her deeper psychological explorations.

Carol Carter | Watercolor on paper

 

Carol Carter (American, born 1955)

Watercolor on paper 

Carol Carter is an internationally recognized artist whose career has spanned more than 35 years. 

Photographer Torbjørn Rødland is Returning to His Perverted Roots

Another Bricolage, 2024-2026. Chromogenic print. 7 7/8 x 12 inches. Courtesy David Kordansky Gallery.

Photographer Torbjørn Rødland is Returning to His Perverted Roots

Lily McMenamy

March 17, 2026

For three decades Norwegian artist Torbjørn Rødland has constructed images that at first glance seem controlled: glossy skin, wholesome setups, meticulous lighting. But if you stick with them, reality starts to crack, and an unsettling, uncanny presence emerges. His latest show, Bones in the Canal and Other Photographs, which opened last week at David Kordansky, marks a return to the calculated perversions he’s spent years perfecting, only this time with a much smaller camera, and a different view. As he told his friend and collaborator Lily McMenamy (who also appears in the exhibition), over Zoom, it’s all about composition, Enneagram types, and his inexhaustible inner world. 

Eduardo Carbonell and Lubia Rodríguez during the new nationwide blackout in Havana.NORLYS PÉREZ (REUTERS)

Cuba in the dark: ‘There are days that go by, the full 24 hours, without electricity’

The island, already used to an unstable grid, suffered its seventh total supply collapse this year

Juan Carlos Espinosa

Abel Fernandez 

Mexico / Miami - AUG 05, 2026 - 05:58 COT

In everyday Cubans’ lives there are two unwritten rules. The first is resolver — finding ways to get by. The second is no coger lucha. In other words: keep your composure even when everything is going wrong. But recently both precepts have been pushed to the limit. Squeezed by U.S. sanctions and cornered by decades of mismanagement, islanders have seen that even after hitting rock bottom a new sinkhole always opens. Within hours the country suffered yet another total collapse of the National Electric System (SEN). The second in less than a day, the seventh in 2026, and the eleventh in the past two years.

The Treachery of Images by Rene Magritte

The treachery of language: the limits of translation

Why language never says what we think it does

Madison Leeson

5 August 2026

In The Misery and Splendour of Translation (1937), José Ortega y Gasset relays his response to a conference attendee who remarked on the “impossibility of translating certain German philosophers.” Rather than dismissing this claim, Ortega leaned into it. He suggested that translation, as a practice, is in some sense utopian – that is, that it aims toward an ideal outcome (perfect equivalence between languages) that can never actually be achieved. In other words, there is no single correct translation, only approximations shaped by context.

 

‘There have been nightmares’ … George RR Martin in 2019. Photograph: Antonio Olmos

‘Getting old is no fun’: Game of Thrones author George RR Martin speaks out about depression amid further book delays

A new blog post by the fantasy writer has outlined his recent difficulties, as fans continue to speculate on the elusive sixth book in his A Song of Ice and Fire series

Emma Loffhagen

Wed 5 Aug 2026

Emily Wilson | An Umcomplicated Man

 

An Uncomplicated Man

By Emily Wilson

Vol. 48 No. 14 · 13 August 2026

The Odyssey 
directed by Christopher Nolan.

Christopher nolan’s $250 million action movie version of Homer’s ancient Greek poem is an entertaining way to hide from the high temperatures for a few hours. Nolan’s trademark jumps and twists in the narrative structure are relatively easy to follow, and appropriate for The Odyssey, a narrative of tales nested in tales. My teenagers had a good time. Unlike some of Nolan’s other films, The Odyssey is not boring, thanks to the source material, which is impossible to mess up entirely. It’s a family-friendly audiovisual spectacle, like an elaborate Fourth of July fireworks display – and with about the same level of narrative and emotional depth.