Arts

117 posts

Hirst World Problems Come to the Tate Modern

This week the Tate Modern in London opens a Damien Hirst exhibit that it’s calling the “first substantial survey” of the British artist’s work in twenty years. So if you have a hankering to see a dead shark suspended in formaldehyde—that would be his curiously titled The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living—or a human skull covered in 8,601 diamonds—the Tate is your place. And if you have  £36,800—that’s nearly $59,000–to spend on a plastic skull dripped with multi-color paint, don’t miss the gift shop on your way out. You can also pick up a Damien Hirst-ian set of plates for £10,000 ($16,000) or, if you’re feeling cheap, a scarf for a mere £125 (a steal at $200).  Continue reading →

Movie Review: Jiro Dreams of Sushi

In a subway station in Tokyo you will find a tiny, windowless, sushi restaurant called Sukiyabashi Jiro. If you are lucky enough to get a reservation, you will pay upwards of $300 for a meal of fish and rice—the restaurant serves no appetizers; no miso soup, no salty bowls of edamame. The ten seats are booked months in advance. Foodies come from all over the world. Because this unprepossessing little underground establishment is one of the only sushi restaurants in the world to have garnered a 3-star (highest) rating from Michelin. After watching David Gelb’s delightful new documentary, Jiro Dreams of Sushi, you’ll fantasize about booking a ticket to Tokyo. Continue reading →

Explore the Beauty of Wood

As humans we’ve had a long relationship with wood. First we lived up in the trees, lounging like a bunch of lazy monkeys feasting on our day’s gatherings as the savanna sun set. Then we discovered we could burn the trees. We had become cooks, pit-masters, and fire-keepers. Then we decided to start making useful things out of trees. We called these “tools,” “weapons,” and “houses.” Then we started making pretty things out of wood, things which were also useful. We called these things “furniture” and “architecture.” Then some people decided that beauty has utility all its own. We called the things they made “sculpture” and “art.” Continue reading →