#its a research work on different smells of berlin

[spit8]

“22 - Molecular Communication” Sissel Tolaas (2019)

[pochiperpe90]

Beware of the thief

How do you become the longest-lived criminal in the history of Italian comics? For LUCA MARINELLI it all started as a child, at the zoo. Before the eyes of a panther

«The cold determination of a panther that silently approaches its prey: this is the expression I tried to instill in our Diabolik's gaze». When Luca Marinelli frowns and lights up the panther's eyes - the writer has had the opportunity to get a taste of it during the interview - the first instinct is to flee that look: too intense. It will be him, armed with a dagger and dressed in the famous tight black jumpsuit, with a hood that leaves only the icy eyes uncovered, to interpret the anti-hero born from the imagination of Angela and Luciana Giussani - the two sisters of Milan well known in history as the Queens of Terror - in the awaited cinematic adaptation of the comic directed by the Manetti Bros. (Ammore e malavita), in cinemas from December 31st.

«Fifty years in the homes of Italians. 150 million copies sold. Impressive numbers. Diabolik is an icon, it belongs to the IMAGINARY of hundreds of thousands of people"

During a walk along the Kreuzberg canal in Berlin, his adopted city since 2012, the Roman actor explains that the choice to be inspired by the feline for the interpretation of the character is not accidental. «Fans will know that Diabolik takes his name from a panther. Their meeting, which lasts a few moments, is significant: after a high-tension face-to-face, the feline decides to spare the boy, almost as if he had smelled a fellow in him. The panther was one of my favorite animals as a child. I remember like it was yesterday the day my parents took me to see it at the zoo, and my amazement in front of that creature, that night-black mantle, shiny and iridescent, with bluish reflections, and that deep, rhythmic breathing. Finally, particularly indelible in my mind is the feeling of sovereign calm that emanated from the animal». “From the beginning, I had a good feeling about this film,” continues the actor. «The first meeting with the Manettis, which I have been following with interest since the time of Zora the Vampire, took place in Rome, in the neighborhood where both Antonio and Marco and I grew up. They explained to me that they had a very specific vision of the character's personality, but that they would like to see what I could offer them. We auditioned together, which was very useful in igniting the spark of collaboration. I have a clear memory of that day and the subsequent exchange of emotions and thoughts. When I later found out that I was chosen for the part, I was very happy».

Luca Marinelli is certainly not new to acting challenges. From the dazed Mattia in ‘The solitude of prime numbers’ (2010), the character with whom he conquers notoriety, over the years he engages in roles that are not very easy, very different from each other ("The only thing they have in common is my nose", ironically, pointing to his face), showing great versatility and an extraordinary capacity for psychological identification. Among his most convincing interpretations, that of the Zingaro in ‘They call me Jeeg’ and that of Martin Eden in the homonymous film by Pietro Marcello, with which he won, respectively, the Silver Ribbon and a David di Donatello as best supporting actor and the Coppa Volpi as best actor. But dealing with a myth like Diabolik, the object of an almost sacred cult, is a new challenge.

«Fifty years in the homes of Italians. 150 million copies sold. Impressive numbers. Diabolik is an icon, and for this reason it belongs to the imagination of hundreds of thousands of people. If you think you can satisfy them all, you start off on the wrong foot: you risk that the final result is not what you really want to stage, but I'm sure the public will not be disappointed, or at least I hope. You will see how much love and respect there was in implementing this transposition", explains the actor, who speaks with full knowledge of the challenge of interpreting an icon: in 2018 he plays a true sacred monster, Fabrizio De André, in ‘Principe Libero’ by Luca Facchini. A friend told him: you're crazy to take this part. But he, careless, immerses himself in the biography of the singer-songwriter, ventures like a shrink into the maze of his psyche, and he returns to the man of that icon, receiving critical acclaim for that insidious role. The only flaw, some malevolent purists observe, is his Roman accent.

Despite being a comic book hero, to face Diabolik, the actor «decided to avoid any comic characterization of the character, trying to give a convincing representation from a human, psychological point of view. Who is this mysterious man, who with his criminal findings terrorizes the rich city of Clerville? What vicissitudes lead him to become a king of crime? Questions that have become the starting point of my research. For months and months, my flat was flooded with comics, scattered all over the place. And for every hundred I read, the Manettis - who I suspect know all the 800 and more numbers in the series - were ready to lend me as many». Day after day, Marinelli has thus sneaked into the lair of the King of Terror: he spied on his objects, opened his wardrobe, rummaged in his drawers. “I fell in love with him, unconditionally, without giving in to the temptation to express a condemnation or an acquittal. It is a precious lesson, which was passed on to me in the Academy: never judge your character. You risk that a distance will form between you and him which, I play hard, is negatively reflected in the quality of the interpretation».

The result is a film that is radically different from the first film adaptation, directed by Mario Bava, in 1968. "Among its strengths, there is a fascinating 1960s aesthetic, made up of machines, costumes, places and a thousand technological inventions of our Diabolik», he says. “To my great pleasure, I was involved in the discussion of the character's look right from the start. Particularly difficult was the development of the mask and the legendary black suit, designed by Diabolik himself and equipped with fantastic characteristics, not repeatable in reality. An almost impossible mission, but after weeks of attempts, thanks to the collaboration of all departments, we arrived at a result that was very satisfied: we did it by working together. I want to emphasize the all together. When you work with the Manetti Bros., this aspect is deeply tangible: everything takes place in an atmosphere of great exchange and collaboration. Many have known each other within the crew for years, and one almost has the impression of having been adopted by a large family, rather than working on a normal set ».

“Who is this mysterious man who terrorizes the rich city of Clerville? What led him to become what he is? For months these questions have been my RESEARCH"

The film - which the Manettis defined as "darkly romantic" - will also tell, to the delight of fans, the prodromes of the love story between Diabolik and his partner in crime, Eva Kant (Miriam Leone). "Two special, different people who first sniff each other with suspicion, only to recognize each other as soul mates," he explains. “I really like their level of complicity. Diabolik, however, is a very tough and reserved character, who rarely shows a feeling: this is certainly one of the differences, perhaps the clearest, between him and me. I am his opposite: as a good romantic and empathetic, I confess, I often cry. I think that doing so can be an important moment of openness, growth and awareness, which we should learn to actively seek. Are you feeling down? Play the saddest song you know and give yourself a treat: enjoy your tears, a friend once told me. Holy words: woe to keep everything inside. You run the risk of walling yourself up alive behind a senseless wall of hardness».

Although "very interesting", the actor prefers to gloss over future film projects out of luck. "At the moment my wife and I (the German actress Alissa Jung) are very busy with our association: we are about to open the headquarters of PenPaper-Peace in Italy, the association founded by Alissa in Germany, with which we built two schools in Haiti after the disastrous earthquake of 2010». As the actor launches into the memories of his first trip to the Caribbean island, the weeping willows of the Kreuzberg canal that framed the interview mentally give way, for a moment, to the lush vegetation of the Caribbean. «Indelible memories. Two years after the disastrous earthquake, I found a country on its knees, surrounded by rubble, pain and despair, but also many smiles and a contagious desire to live", he says. As the name of our association suggests, all you need is a sheet of paper and a pen, and you can give a child education, and with it a possibility, a future. And this not only in Haiti, but all over the world. At the moment we are focusing on a project in Italy that will support the boys and girls who are going through this difficult period of the pandemic».

GQ Italia

Just wanted to translate this interview for the non-italian’s fans ^^ (sorry for my English)  

[thelioncourts]

title: the mannequin gallery fandom: captive prince pairing: damen/laurent rating: (eventually) mature words: 5428 for chapter two (2/?); 10116 all together

story summary: If things would have gone the way they were supposed to, Damen and Laurent would have never met. But things didn’t go the way they were supposed to, not at all, and their meeting ended up being the equivalent of skydiving with a malfunctioning parachute. Damen tried not to complain. After all, he was now living his dream; he was travelling with his best friend without having to make sure their “I"s were dotted and their "T"s crossed. And, sure, Laurent was difficult to work with, to work for, but he was also great to look at and they made it work well as long as they were anywhere but in Paris. But when Laurent’s past begins to cause present-day problems, Damen finds out those difficulties Laurent constantly displays were a bit more warranted than he could have ever imagined. And Laurent? Laurent finds out the truth – and finds out how to smile.

“You can practically smell the croissants already,” Damen said as they adjusted their carry-ons over their shoulders and entered terminal 2D of the Charles de Gaulle Airport.

The flight from Berlin to Paris had been two hours long, just long enough for Damen to feel the slightest ache in his legs, and the stretch of walking them to the baggage claim felt refreshing. While Damen talked and chattered, Nik was quiet next to him. His eyes were taking in the bright red of the carpet, the arched glass ceiling, and the hundreds of people surrounding them, some so close they all kept bumping shoulders. None of them lost their stride. Damen wondered if the red of the carpet reminded Nik of the pictures he had been showing Damen on the plane, pictures of past Etoile fashion shows. Red seemed to be one of their favorite colors.

Despite his silence about all this during their stopover in Berlin, Nik had clearly been doing his research in preparation for Paris. Once they had settled into their seats on the plane and the pilot had announced they could unfasten their seatbelts, Nik had pulled out his laptop and said with an edge of excitement, “Do you want to see some of my favorite photos from Etoile’s past shows?”

It turns out, there was a whole lot more to fashion than Damen had ever given any attention to. His head told him ‘Duh, Damen, of course there’s a lot to fashion,’ but it was as though the complete confirmation of that hadn’t hit him until he saw the pictures. Nik seemed to have come to the same realization just days earlier. It had been the main reason for his endless list of saved photos, some cropped and zoomed in to give attention to the embroidered sleeves, the silk waves of scarves, and the jackets all strewn with jewels that glittered differently in angles of light.

“I’m not used to having to pay attention to clothes,” Nik had said before closing the laptop and stuffing it back in its bag. “You barely own a shirt.”

Now, the closer they got to the baggage claim, the looser Damen’s muscles felt and the more that a new excitement settled in instead. It had been a long time since they had gone somewhere unknown to them. He voiced as much.

[Continue on AO3]

“I’m excited about it too,” Nik agreed. His eyes were taking in different things now, scanning the multitude of signs as they wandered and wandered down a seemingly-endless airport with no baggage claim in sight. “Though, to be honest, I don’t know how we’ve never been to Paris.”

“We’ve barely been to France while we’ve travelled,” Damen pointed out. “We’ve only ever been to Nice and I’m pretty sure we went there because we had been in western Italy all the week before.”

“Why haven’t we been here before now?” Nik asked. Without even a break in step, he turned and started another direction with one finger pointing at a welcome and needed ‘Baggage Claim →’ sign above a different area to their right.

Damen didn’t break his step either while he said, “Not sure. I think France has always been not far enough away from home and too close all at once. We couldn’t just take a long weekend here like we could with places close to Greece but it also didn’t seem worth it to plan a long trip here when we could plan a long trip over to the United States to go hiking by the Grand Canyon or to fly down to Australia and hold koalas, you know?”

There were too many people waiting at the baggage claim already, but this was familiar territory after years of travel. Patiently, Damen and Nik waited for their too many bags. Damen’s hands were in his pockets and he was rocking on his heels while listing off a few things he wanted to do while they were here.

“Surprisingly,” he started, “I haven’t planned all that much.”

“Really?” Nik asked, one eyebrow raised skeptically.

“Really. I figured it’d probably be best to wait until you find out your schedule. Can’t be making the boss-man angry,” Damen said. Nik rolled his eyes.

Right when Nik was about to come back with a retort, Damen felt a finger poke at his shoulder and turned around to a group of teens, each one with hearts in their eyes.

It wasn’t that uncommon for Damen to get recognized in public settings anymore. Hitting two million followers on Instagram would do that for a person. Luckily for all those that recognized him, he was an easy-going guy, hence him posing with the kids for the video they were filming on their phones. It was a quick thing; the five of them stood around Damen, his height dwarfing them by comparison, and they all – Damen included – smiled wide, all their pearly whites on display while they waved at the camera and the girl holding the phone moved her thumb up and down on the screen, zooming the camera in and out. After another minutes of giggles from the teens, they disappeared, no doubt to immediately go edit the footage, and Damen rejoined Nik to wait for sight of their bags.

“Oh, is the king done mingling with the commoners at last?” Nik mocked.

“Man, I think I’m getting too old for this social media thing,” Damen said, laughing a little. “They’re making a TikTok, or whatever. I thought that was only people dancing? Am I missing something?”

“You know we’ve never been good at keeping up with the trends,” Nik said. “And for guys who rely on social media for their way of living, it’s not the smartest thing we’ve done. Or not done.”

Their bags finally rolled out from behind the curtain of the carousel and Damen stepped forward to heft each bag over toward Nik. They both had two bags on the carousel. Nik had one for his clothes and whatnot while the other held an array of camera equipment. Damen’s, meanwhile, were filled with clothes, products from advertisers, and half of one suitcase was full of workout gear and tubs of preworkout and protein that Damen couldn’t go without. Luckily, a few years ago, they had invested in nice luggage sets that stacked together like puzzle pieces in order to make moving them easier. They also had USB ports in them so they could keep their phones charged at all times.

It was another maze to get to the exit. They got lost once, Damen got stopped by two boys who were also filming a TikTok, and Nik bought an overpriced water for their drive into town all before they finally found the main doors. The doors were thronged with people, with loved ones waiting for family and business moguls waiting for their called cars, and Damen and Nik were talking over the cacophony, so it was a miracle Damen saw what he saw.

“Nik?” Damen asked, pointing over to where a bunch of men in suits were standing, eyes scanning the crowds. In that crowd stood a guy with a sign that read Etoile in fancy script and had Nik’s name underneath.

The man was inconspicuous in appearance, his suit nice but not standout-in-the-crowd-nice. His hair was cropped and a standard shade of brown, he was short and a bit stocky, and the sunglasses on his face only drew attention to his unsmiling mouth. He looked completely average.

Nik turned to Damen and said, “They never said they were sending a car.”

They both approached the man, Nik the slightest bit more hesitant than Damen, and shouldered their way through the crowd until they could stand in front of him. Behind the sunglasses, they could see his eyes jump from Nik to Damen then back to Damen before he asked in accented English, “Are you Nik?”

“I am,” Nik said after a beat.

“My name is Jord. Etoile has sent for me to escort you to our head office before then taking you to your hotel. I have been informed that you may be tired from your journey and may wish to go directly to your hotel instead. That can be done as well.”

“I’m going to Etoile already?” Nik asked.

“The owner likes to make connections with his possible hires as soon as possible,” Jord said, moving to fold the sign up. Damen stopped him with a hand out and the man eyed him cautiously still behind dark glasses.

“Can I keep that?”

The man kept a cautious eye on Damen even as he handed the sign to him and Damen, feeling Nik’s gaze, said, “We have to document this, Nik.”

“Well, we’ve only just come from Berlin, so it wasn’t a long journey. I’d be glad to go right over,” Nik said in response to Jord, bringing the conversation back around. “Is that okay with you, Damen?”

“Absolutely.”

“Wonderful,” Jord said, sounding like it was anything but that. “Follow me, please.”

The car was just outside the main doors, surrounded by dark taxi cars, a few buses, and several drivers from phone apps. The car, however, wasn’t so much a car. It was a sleek black Rolls Royce instead, the true standout in a crowd like this. Damen raised both eyebrows appreciatively at it before sliding into the seat through the open back passenger door. Nik followed, a quieter kind of awe on his face, and Jord closed the door behind them before they heard and felt the luggage being loaded into the trunk.

“This is crazy, Nik,” Damen said. The interior of the car was all a soft black leather and there was plenty of room for the both of them to stretch their legs out, something that was no small feat for two men several inches over six feet tall.

“They sent a car,” Nik said. His right hand couldn’t stop touching the seat underneath him.

“And not some shitty car. They sent the nicest car we’ve ever sat in that wasn’t at an Italian car show,” Damen said.

Jord was getting in the driver’s seat now, sunglasses still firmly in place, and he adjusted the rearview mirror before asking, “Is there anything I can get the two of you before we leave?”

“I’m not exactly dressed for the occasion,” Nik said after a beat. The fact seemed to have just dawned on him, perhaps when he took in how his black joggers looked next to the car’s interior, and Damen was in no better shape with a pair of slide-on shoes and a baggy neon orange sweatshirt.

“It won’t be a problem,” Jord said and he started the car, the engine purring as it came to life. “As long as you know what you’re doing with a camera, it won’t matter what you look or dress like.”

The drive from the Charles de Gaulle Airport to the heart of Paris was a hair over thirty minutes. It was just long enough for Damen and Nik to sit on the edge of the too-nice seats in the car and take in the sights. At first, it started like most drives near or in a big city: surrounded by a bunch of cars and monotonous buildings. But the closer they got, the more that ‘real’ feeling started to sink in. When they set sight on the first Parisian landmark, a statue that was too far away to read the plaque, Damen smacked Nik with the back of his hand and said, “Welcome to your new home for the next month.”

Sights started to get more and more recognizable. When they turned onto Rue de Rivoli, the Seine came into view. It was wider than it looked in pictures and it was impossible to decide if it was worth it to spend more time looking at the blue of the water or the beautiful French architecture all around them.

“We definitely have to plan something there,” Nik said, a sort of awe in his voice as he pointed to the Louvre. The pyramid was just visible enough to see the sunlight bounce from its glass.

“You’ll have plenty of opportunity,” Jord said. The car turned left down Rue de l’Amiral de Coligny. “Etoile’s building is just next to the museum, right outside the Tuileries Garden.”

“Wait, we’re almost there?”

Jord only hummed, the sound just loud enough to reach Damen and Nik’s ears, and then they were on Quai Franςois Mitterand and the Seine was practically at their fingertips. They were both leaning forward in their seats again, taking in the boats touring the river, the people sitting on the river’s edge, and the buildings across the river all framed by the sun. They felt the car ease to a stop.

The Tuileries Gardens were bright green. The flowers weren’t yet in bloom, the weather was too cold for that, but it was still beautiful in its contrast against the uniform color of all the surrounding Parisian buildings. But more eye catching than the gardens was the Etoile headquarters directly to the car’s right. The building went with everything else in Paris, its color a neutral cream, its design recognizably Haussmanian. It stood out though with its added ornamentation, the building busy even if lacking in colors. And right above the door was a sign in script writing, the letters enormous and undeniable: Etoile.

“Well,” Damen started, and he pulled his eyes away from the building to look at Nik expectantly.

“Well,” Nik repeated.

Jord had already gotten out and rounded the car to open the door before Nik even thought about unclenching his fist still holding onto his carry on. With a deep breath, Nik got out and smoothed down his shirt.

“You’re going to be fine in there, Nik,” Damen said reassuringly. He was still sitting in the car, one arm over the seat where Nik had just been, and he was flashing his biggest smile. “Can’t wait to hear about it when you get out.”

“Actually,” Jord interrupted whilst still holding the door wide open, “it’s been requested that you join.”

“Me?”

“Potential hires are looked through thoroughly for both professional and personal purposes,” Jord explained. “As you are in most of the photographs that were sent in for review, it was decided that you would be an important person to meet as well. Of course, if you’re opposed, you can wait in the lobby.”

“What do you think, Nik? This is your thing.”

“I’d like you there,” Nik said. “If you’ve been asked for personally, I don’t have any reason not to have you there.”

“And I’m your best friend in the whole world so you want me there for support,” Damen said, filling in the obvious gaps in Nik’s reasoning.

Jord led the way inside.

Though the outside was the same cream color as the other buildings around, probably due to a city restriction, the inside was like entering an entirely different universe. The floors were marble, a real marble that made everything from voices to footsteps echo, and right at the center, just in front of the desk where two beautiful secretaries sat on their phones whilst typing at a maddening pace on their computers, was a gold inlay, its design immaculate swirls and crossed lines. It was a labyrinth of busyness and it wasn’t calmed down or contrasted by an unbusy surrounding. No, instead the walls – which were white, yes, but – were brimming, overflowing, with solid gold decoration that covered every inch. Each arcaded window had a foot of gold surrounding its edges, the designs cherubs and flowers and muses like the palaces of old. There were a dozen gold gilded statues around the room that matched the gold gilded paneling taking up most of the walls’ space. None of it, however, compared to the chandelier hanging from the center, the piece looking like the one out of The Phantom of the Opera.

Damen and Nik shared a look that said everything. Jord was walking forward without hesitation and they followed as close behind as they could, trying not to get too distracted by their surroundings. Finally, after what felt like an eternity of walking, they reached the elevators which also, to no surprise now, were decorated all in gold.

“Take the elevator to the top floor. Someone will greet you and escort you to the owner’s office,” Jord said. He went to turn, his sunglasses reflecting all the gold in the room back in Damen and Nik’s face, when Nik asked, “What about our bags?”

“I will be taking your bags to your hotel,” Jord said. “And yes, your hotel has been arranged and paid for already. Once you are done, I will be here to pick you up and bring you there.”

Damen and Nik shared another look before Damen said, “Thank you very much, Jord. You’ve been a great help to us.”

Jord seemed hesitant to do anything for a moment and even more hesitant to say anything, so after an awkward pause he nodded curtly and turned the way they had come.

The elevator had a mirrored ceiling inside and it glittered the gold inlay of the floor back up. Nik hit the button that was above all the others, the one to take them to the top floor, and then Damen and Nik both sighed in unison.

“Are you feeling claustrophobic?” Damen asked. “I’m feeling claustrophobic.”

“I knew they used a lot of designs on their clothing,” Nik started, “but I didn’t think that would transfer to the building as well.”

“You ready for this?”

“Not much I could do right now if I wasn’t,” Nik said.

“That doesn’t answer the question.”

“I’ll be fine.”

They reached the top floor soon enough and this floor wasn’t much different from the main one. In other words, it was busy and overwhelming. There was a desk directly in front of the elevator doors, a smaller desk than the one on the main floor, but it sat empty. The mirrored panelling of the desk showed just how much Damen and Nik’s sweatpants went against everything Etoile stood for. To the right was a narrow hallway and to the left was another and, for a minute, Damen and Nik looked back and forth between the two, looking for a sign. It felt like the airport all over again.

It was just when they had decided to go to the right that a child came around the corner.

‘Child’ was the best word for him for he didn’t look a day over twelve, even if he was dressed like a little adult. He had a mess of artfully wavy brown hair and a stunning pair of blue eyes that matched the sapphires around the necklace on his throat. There was a shimmer to his eyelids, a golden glitter that went well with the actual gold glitter covering the jacket so big he appeared to be swimming in it. He was a beautiful child and he would have been more beautiful if his face didn’t have such a distasteful expression on it.

The child had stopped when he saw Damen and Nik and once they had taken him in and he them, the child scoffed and said in a voice clearer than a bell, “Les bêtes envahissent la ville, je vois,” before continuing to walk in a way that said this was definitely not worth his time.

Damen couldn’t help but laugh, the sound drawing both Nik and the child’s attention to him. “Les bêtes sont là pour voir le propriétaire de l'Etoile. Savez-vous où nous pourrions le trouver?”

The child’s face grew pale, if only for just a moment, before he recomposed himself. “This way,” he said with agitation, not pausing to ensure they were following him before he went down the left hallway. At the end of the hallway was a huge door, one that screamed of importance.

Damen and Nik expected the child to knock on the grand door that was clearly the entrance to the main office, but the child went in without a care.

“You have visitors,” the child said.

They couldn’t see the man, but they could see the top of his head. He was in a tall chair, large enough to be a throne, and the back of it was facing them as he typed away at the computer. If he had heard the child, he didn’t pay him any mind, but the child didn’t seem to be bothered. Instead, he stepped up to the desk, plucked a red lollipop from a gold gilded bowl, and left without another word or a spared glance in Damen and Nik’s direction.

“Assieds-toi.” The man’s voice was deep, a rumble in the delicacy of the room, and Nik turned to Damen for guidance. Damen, silently, pointed at the two chairs in front of the desk and they both sat down, listening to the clicking of the keys on the keyboard and the tapping of Nik’s toe on the ground.

Damen decided to give all his attention to the ticking clock on the wall. It was both to keep the time and to also try to figure out just how a clock could have so many things going on with it: an opal face, gold numbers, jewel encrusted hands, and Damen didn’t even know where to begin with the outside of it. Still, it was how he knew exactly three minutes and twelve seconds could feel like an eternity. Luckily, that was when the man turned around in his seat and smiled at them openly.

He didn’t look like what Damen thought a fashion designer and modeling agency owner would look like but, then again, Damen supposed he had never given much thought to what a fashion designer and modeling agency owner would look like in the first place.

The man was large; he had a broad chest and shoulders to match and Damen guessed that if he were to stand, he would be close to Damen’s own height. His hair was dark and neat and his beard full, if sprinkled with just enough gray to make him look dignified. His suit was dark and made him look regal, someone who would draw the eye and demand respect.

When he stood, it confirmed what Damen had thought about the man’s height, but it was hard to give that much mind when his smile went up to his blue eyes. “Bonjour bonjour. Bienvenue à Paris.” He must have seen something on Damen and Nik’s faces, especially Nik’s face, because he quickly came back with, “L'anglais serait-il un meilleur terrain d'entente pour nous? J'ai peur de ne pas parler grec.”

“English would be great, thank you,” Damen said, smiling at the smallest expression of relief on Nik’s face.

“Of course,” the man said agreeably and then he leaned forward, hand out. “And you must be our talented photographer, Nik.” The two of them shook hands.

“I am. Nik, that is. Thank you for having me. Us. It’s an honor just to be here.”

“We here at Etoile are honored to have you.” The man turned to Damen. “And you must be Damen.”

“Yes, sir,” Damen said, shaking the man’s hand. His grip was strong, his fingers rough. “Paris has been wonderful to us already and we’ve only been here an hour.”

Everything was all polite smiles as they each sat back down and adjusted into the chairs. The man had his fingers clasped together on the deeply rich colored desk and his eyes fell to Nik. “Do you prefer to go by Nik or is there something else you’d like to be called?”

“Nik is fine. It’s less of a mouthful than Nikandros.”

“Indeed, it is.” The man laughed just a bit. “So, Nik, I have to say that all of us here at Etoile, myself especially, were incredibly impressed with your portfolio.”

“Thank you,” Nik said genuinely. Damen could already see Nik’s shoulders dropping their tension, even if just a little.

“We normally receive applications from fashion photographers, people who live in the business of finding the perfect shots to display clothing made of every kind of fabric, clothing cut into every kind of style. It isn’t often we look over action shots of people surfing,” he said, motioning over to Damen, “or pictures of the stars over a desert. It was a nice change of pace. This brings me to two questions I have for you, Nik. The first is simply to sate my own curiosity: what drove you to want to photograph Paris Fashion Week? The second question, if you wouldn’t mind, is the question of how you came into the opportunity to photograph all around the world? It’s astonishing, especially for a photographer so young.”

“Well,” Nik said after a deep breath, “to answer your first question, I can say that fashion shows were never a thought, not until I started to meet other photographers as we travelled over the years. There was a photographer, from France actually, that we befriended while in Norway a few years back and last year he was given the opportunity to shoot for Silversio and he said he learned so much. I’ve been expanding my photography more and more as the years have gone on and I thought that this would be another great way to expand my art.”

“That’s quite a drive you have.”

“I owe a lot of it to Damen,” Nik continued, moving onto the second question. “When we were children, we made a pact to spend our gap year travelling the world together. We wanted to climb mountains and see every ocean. The older we got, the more I wanted to skip gap year all together and go straight into working for my family. But Damen convinced me of the worth held in our planned gap year and I realized one year wouldn’t cause me any harm and I would have hated myself for not giving it a chance. But our one year got ahead of us in terms of our social media. We started all of our accounts as a way to document the year. We never guessed it would turn into what it did and what it has.”

“I think congratulations are very deserved for all that you’ve accomplished. I’m assuming this means you’re a self-taught photographer as well?”

“Yes.”

The man hummed, the sound not unpleasant, just thoughtful, and after a pause as though to collect his thoughts, he turned his attention to Damen. “And I believe a congratulations should be given to you as well. Nik here has quite a talent with a camera, but from what I have seen, your charisma is remarkable. It explains much of your success, I would think.”

“Damen could rally himself an army if he wanted to,” Nik said.

“Charisma is everything in this world,” the man said. “You need it to survive.”

Damen smiled the smile he gave in pictures. The man smiled back and clasped his hands together again.

“I don’t want to keep you two any longer than necessary, I’m sure you would like to rest, and I have a few more meetings to attend before my day is over. The reason I asked for you to come meet me as soon as you arrived was to explain how the first part of this is going to go.” He plucked a folder from a small and neat pile on his desk and handed it over to Nik. Even the folders here looked expensive, Etoile’s fancy script all over the front. “In two days’ time we will begin our first photoshoot. I’ve learned over the years of building and perfecting Etoile that the best shows were shot by photographers who had a relationship with the models. This photoshoot will give you the opportunity to begin building those relationships. The clothing line you will be shooting is our new “Gold Label” line. It’s much different than anything we’ll be premiering at fashion week.” Inside the folder was an itinerary and an array of photographs of the most important pieces in this specific line of clothing. “The photoshoot is scheduled for three days. This is to ensure that each of the photographers have plenty of time to shoot with the group and to work with the individual models. There will be five photographers there, but only three of you will be going to fashion week.” He turned to Nik and smiled that same open smile. “Nothing like a little friendly competition.”

“And that’s all we’ll be doing before the actual show?”

“Yes. I will then be giving you the rest of the week to put together your shots from the photoshoot in order to present them to me. From there, a decision will be made on which photographers will be staying with us. Then you’ll have a week before the show to further prepare for the big event. Are there any questions about that?”

“I don’t believe so, no.”

“Well then, I believe we are settled here.” He stood up from his desk promptly, a physical end to the quick meeting, and Damen and Nik stood to follow him to the door. “Inside the folder are phone numbers for Jord whom you’ve already met and a few of my other men. If you need anything, do not hesitate to call them during your time here in Paris.”

“Thank you,” Nik said, shaking his hand once more, “for the opportunity and your generosity.”

“Yes, thank you,” Damen repeated.

“Of course, gentlemen. I’m looking forward to what this week will bring.”

They passed the child again as they were leaving. The lollipop was down to almost nothing on the stick and he watched them near predatorily, a finger twirling the gem attached to the zipper of his jacket.

“Bonne soirée,” Damen said with a wave.

The child flipped them off, his painted nail glittering.

Once they were downstairs, it was a quick journey to the hotel they had been put up in. The hotel was located in an old palace just across the river. Sadly, they were one building behind a river front view, but neither could care, not when the view itself was another bustling Parisian apartment complex that radiated life and sophistication, its inhabitants clearly upper class.

They were on the fifth floor and their room was spacious and decorated much more simplistically than anything Etoile could dream up. It was appreciated after the blinding display of wealth and ornamentation. The cream-colored walls matched the exterior of all the iconic Haussman buildings and the arched window and doorways gave it the elegance so expected from something in this part of Paris. The gaudiest thing were the curtains and Damen and Nik were quick to pull those back and secure them. After all, they blocked the best part of the room, the terrace overlooking the street.

They spent the next two hours taking turns showering the plane off of them, unpacking all their things, ordering room service, and chatting away about the things they couldn’t say earlier.

“What was with the kid?” Nik asked as he folded another shirt and put it in a drawer.

“I don’t know,” Damen said. “Maybe he’s one of the models.”

“He’s a little young to be a model,” Nik said.

“He was dressed like one.”

“He looked twelve.”

“Well the kid doesn’t matter. What matters is that the meeting went really well. He seems to like you,” Damen said.

“I’m not sure,” Nik said.

Damen rolled his eyes. “Don’t start with that.”

“I didn’t start anything.”

“What also matters,” Damen interrupted, “is that I could very much get used to this.”

He was standing at the open entrance of the terrace. The terrace itself was just large enough to fit a small table and two chairs, perfect for early morning coffee or relaxing at night. At the other building, the one just across, were other terraces full of people doing just that as the sun slowly began to fall over the city. On the streets were people all bundled as the nighttime temperatures began to settle in. Best of all, on the terrace table was a bottle of wine, a nice deep red, with Etoile’s script signature and a note from the owner himself bidding them, yet again, a welcome to Paris.

“I bet you could,” Nik said. He was already grabbing the available bottle opener. “I’m the one doing all the work.”

[architectuul]

Curating an Exhibition in 2020: Handle with Care

Architecture exhibition Handle with Care: Tales of the Invisible opens at the Lisbon Architecture Triennale on October 15, as part of this year’s program of the Future Architecture Platform. To mark the occasion, here’s the interview with Sonja Lakić, architect, researcher and curator of the exhibition.

Preparing the exhibition at Lisbon Architecture Triennale headquarters, August 2020. | Photo © Sara Battesti

As we’re approaching the winter season of the pandemic which has pushed the entire world into various forms and intensities of isolation, it seems like there could hardly be a better time to reflect upon the practice of care and its relationship to architecture. Our rooms are becoming our worlds. When you began dreaming up this exhibition, did you anticipate it opening in this context of increased awareness of the spaces we inhabit? Absolutely not. The only spaces that curating this exhibition was supposed to unfold in, apart from Lisbon Architecture Triennale headquarters, were, obviously, interiors of Future Architecture platform partners institutions that I was, as it was originally planned, about to visit last spring. I would also add interiors of airports and airplanes to the list. Hotels included. I am still curious about all the breakfasts I missed due to pandemic. I, obviously, ended up making my dreams happen in front of my screen, meeting people sitting in front of their own laptops and/or computer screens, mostly inside their homes around Europe. I vividly remember the variety of blankets, cozy sofas and afternoon naps that violently came to an end due to numerous online meetings across Europe, as well as scaffolding outside an apartment in Turin that reminded me on L’Aquila, where I completed my PhD, planting a garden on a rooftop terrace in Lisbon, dilemmas from Berlin, and, finally, being taken next to a window in Barcelona to clap and support all the caretakers. I dreamt inside all of these homes without stepping inside any of them, appreciating them as the new landscapes of care, and, finally, landed in Lisbon: we are all, obviously, still in the mode of the increased awareness by all means, yet, the exhibition will get you covered from A to Z. It is, after all, handled with care.   

Space Which Meditates: Future Architecture Accessories | Photo © Sonja Lakić

How did your background in architectural research and your lasting interest in lived forms of buildings inform your work on curating this exhibition?

I am somewhat a dissident from the discipline: I work visually, yet, I operate at the scale of the everyday, chasing after the non-evident and doing the storytelling by often using the language of urban anthropology and urban ethnography. I do not believe that architecture is only a physical matter: there is more to the story than meets the eye. That being said, there was only one way to curate the “Tales of the Invisible”: zero concrete. Zero final solutions. Hardly any material architecture. From the very beginning, I knew there would be no space for the permanently built structures: instead, I, again, chose to focus on the human clay and bring different people and thinking experiments to light. I searched for different concepts and ideas, digging deep for passion and determination, attempts and failures, individuals and groups that once made the architecture world turn around, traveling back and forth in time, myself unlearning what architecture may (not) be. There is never a wrong moment to celebrate humankind and this exhibition is, to a certain extent, an excuse to do so: a gentle reminder of what still surrounds us and what we are made of, or, at least, once were.

The creative process: keeping it as analogue as possible. | Drawings and photos © Sonja Lakić

Curator's Log. An excerpt. Preparing "Handle with Care: Tales of the Invisible" exhibition for Lisbon Architecture Triennale under the Lisbon sun. | Video © Sonja Lakić

In your curatorial statement, you refer to this exhibition as to “homage to the quirks of the human mind”, “a call to re-think where we stand” and “a gentle reminder that life comes before buildings”. Can this be interpreted as an invitation to (re)consider the political role of architecture? I, most of all, envisioned the exhibition as a conversation, or, more precisely, a call for heart-to-heart exchange of this kind: my intention and desire is that people experience it and understand it in a variety of ways, yet, in full accordance with who they genuinely are. I never aimed to reach a consensus of any kind since that would mark an end of any debate. I, therefore, thank you for this question: I am more than happy to see that, days prior to the opening, the exhibition already lives its purpose by being interpreted. Thus, to a certain extent, the answer to your question is: yes, this is also an invitation to (re)consider the political role of architecture. What, for example, influenced my curatorial approach is “the awareness to the wonders” that Alberto Pérez-Gómez believes and, moreover, propagates in the book “Built upon Love: Architectural Longing after Ethics and Aesthetics”: we, whoever we may (not) be, should develop and nurture this skill that I interpret as “to stop and smell the roses”. This exhibition does this as well. Referring to your question, I have to say that I, obviously, find architecture political and this is, with no doubt, where consensus is inevitable.

Creating models from a discarded box of chocolate cookies | Photo © Sonja Lakić

Can architecture amplify the human potential for care-giving and care-receiving, and if so, how?

I believe that architecture itself stands for the noble discipline of care. This is why I, once upon a time, decided to study it: I recognised it as an opportunity to care about people while never letting go of mathematics, arts and drawing. For a nerd like me, to be engaged in this wide spectrum of disciplines is even nowadays of crucial importance, and was, therefore, as equally important during the early university days of mine, when I managed to detect  traces of psychology and sociology in very few courses I was enrolled in. 

Architecture, most of all, is all about a very particular responsibility that first comes with the vision of an architect and next translates to “a program” of how to use a building: this is where one needs to be very careful, while, simultaneously, to care a lot. The program is, say, often a recipe for how to live one’s life, as prescribed by an architect: of course, this rarely happens, for the life itself is not to be tamed. Architecture already amplifies the human potential for care-giving and care-receiving. Or, should I say that there are architects who do so? Maybe that would be more ethical. There are beautiful individual minds and collectives who stand for care by their mere existence, embracing their ethics in their texts and variety of programs. To paraphrase Esra Akcan, one of my favorite minds of all times: architecture can heal. And I believe it should. The process of healing may happen through the process of (un)learning, collaboration with other disciplines, seeing the world through the eyes of the other, while, simultaneously, never ever considering anyone as the other. Same goes for care. 

Taking a break in the summer of the 2020: the Sun, the ocean, the drinks, and the disinfectant gel. | Photo © Sonja Lakić

What, however, instantly comes to my mind when thinking about architecture and care, especially the healing process, is whether it is possible for the healing of post-conflict societies, including the country of my origin, that is, the region of former Yugoslavia, to happen via architectural programs that, to put it simply, celebrate life. What if, instead of constantly exposing one to memorabilia that recalls past events and somewhat advocates for the culture of mourning, we take care of people by gently reminding them of all the reasons why it is good to be alive? I am aware that this is somewhat calling for a revolution, yet, this is how “the awareness to the wonders” I previously mentioned may be attempted to achieve, without any actual construction happening: this is where temporary structures, installations and performances and engaging in performative planning and tactical urbanism, could play an important role. We owe it to ourselves, as well as to each of our individual human potentials, regardless of who we as individuals are, to, at least, try, having a little faith in architecture as an event rather than the final say. 

Sonja Lakić at Lisbon Architecture Triennale headquarters, August 2020. | Photo © Sara Battesti

The exhibition draws from the collections of the Museum of Architecture and Design in Ljubljana, MAXXI National Museum of 21st Century Arts and the Estonian Museum of Architecture. What does curatorial collaboration with museums scattered across Europe look like in a time of Covid-19? 

On the one hand, it resembled any other “new normal” kind of experience and, in that sense, it was not any different from any of the pandemic-imposed daily routine since it evolved around the absence of movement and the impossibility of touch. Simultaneously, it was quite a challenge: can you imagine curating an exhibition without stepping into an institution and getting to see a collection? I did dig deep within myself, looking for answers, and have to admit that, occasionally, it seemed to be a bit of a challenge. However, I have to say that I am immensely grateful to all the people that I crossed paths with and whom I collaborated with on this project: words are not enough to describe how easy and smooth the overall process was and how helpful, patient and caring were partners from Ljubljana, Rome and Tallinn. I learned a lot and indeed grew, yet, not only in professional terms: rather, collaboration with Museum of Architecture and Design in Ljubljana, MAXXI National Museum of 21st Century Arts and the Estonian Museum of Architecture had a profound impact on me personally as well and was, in this sense, a game changer. They were all extremely devoted and committed, helping me connect with architects and scientists that I, prior to this exhibition, have only read about. Oh, I went places I never dreamed of, and I will come back for more, however, in person. Hopefully no more screens.

Lisbon people and their balconies. | Photo © Sonja Lakić

A while ago, you stayed in Lisbon as a visiting researcher at ISCTE-IUL; now you’re back to curate an exhibition commissioned by Lisbon Architecture Triennale. What about the city preoccupies you these days? If Lisbon, as a living archive, could preserve one message from this exhibition, what would you like that message to be?

People. People always preoccupy me regardless of my geographical location. I am currently collaborating with ISCTE-IUL again and am also affiliated with ETNO.URB, so there are many big fishes to fry, and I am extremely happy and beyond excited for this. Of course, I could not help it: again, I observed the Lisbon edition of glazed balconies, and I found that one of them is especially dear to my heart, as it conceals the story about the most notorious apartment in the 1980s neighborhood where I found my home. 

As far as the message, I would say it is rather evident: life comes before buildings. People first. Always and forever.

Sonja Lakić (1983) is an internationally trained architect and researcher with a PhD in Urban Studies. Her work evolves around open architecture and dialectical urbanism, with a keen interest in lived forms of buildings hence anthropological and sociological aspects of architectural design and the built environment. Topics of her curiosity that she nurtured in Gran Sasso Science Institute and while briefly appointed as visiting researcher at ISCTE-IUL in Lisbon, include the everydayness of architecture, home(making), housing and informality, buildings as living archives, post-conflict societies. Sonja operates across different disciplines and scales, works visually, and collects oral histories, practicing unconventional ethnography and storytelling mainly through photography. --- By Sonja Dragović

[xathia-89]

Playing in the Alpha’s World - Pt 7

The private German lessons had been helpful, even when Hideyoshi had baulked at the cost for three of us to be tutored. Then his eyes had threatened to bug out of his head when I insisted that our tutor would be moving with us for a few months to Berlin to ensure that we could manage to continue managing to converse in a fit business etiquette properly. Mitsuhide just signed the cheque to authorise it and passed it to Nobunaga for the second signature.  

Kenshin had passed the bar officially over to Kagekatsu to manage now he had graduated from university. He listed the Berlin office as to where to get hold of him for future correspondence, and it meant he could open a bar with the same name since he kept himself still down as the owner. A Japanese theme dive bar would have its own merits and also something different to offer.  

We couldn’t seem to open the office fast enough, we had a demand to manage the accounts of so many businesses that we were getting Shingen to do our recruiting. I never felt like I was going home at any point aside from to sleep and shower, and the amount of times I’d been woken up by Mitsuhide after falling asleep looking over resumes or someone else’s request for us to manage them.

“Kayda,” Mitsuhide’s voice was something I heard more than Kenshin the past couple of months, as I looked up at him. “You’re exhausted. Don’t come in tomorrow. In fact, make it a four day weekend. I already know Kenshin has a bar manager and he’d rather close the bar than leave you be. You need to relax.”

“It must be bad if you’re the one telling me to do that,” I sighed, tidying up the executive desk I’d taken over with potential clients requests. “And before you say a word, no one will be ever able to find anything if I don’t organise this all before I go home.”

Mitsuhide didn’t trust me to get wrapped up in a new task, he lingered, waiting for me to finish filing everything away before I was escorted out to the street. He smirked as I flipped him off and said I’d see him next week, shifting my bag on my shoulder.

Berlin was like most capital cities. People came here to make their mark and way in the country, it was constantly busy. It wasn’t uncommon for us to arrange dinners to take place at eight pm at night, and then clients would go back to their offices afterwards. Not that we hadn’t had plenty of times of ordering in take away because it was so late and we couldn’t let problems sit overnight. The time zone difference was killing everyone. Nobunaga and Ieyasu had landed a few days ago in New York, and I was getting calls at all hours when people weren’t able to work out that I was GMT+1, making me eight hours behind Kyoto, and then six hours ahead of New York. We didn't keep very regular hours at the moment, and I suspected that may become the standard case for myself and Mitsuhide for the immediate future. One of us would need to take over the contact with New York and the other to focus on Kyoto with enough of a crossover to touch base. I was silent and focused on my thoughts as I walked home. I had insisted that the flat we had would be close enough of a range that I didn't have more than a ten-minute walk in heels to go. I never fancied needing to get transport home when I could walk.  

Kenshin was stuck on the news when I opened the door.

“Things must be bad if you’re being sent home for a four day weekend,” he smiled from the couch.

"I knew you and Mitsuhide exchanging phone numbers would be bad for me," I shook my head, locking the door behind me before I took my shoes off. "Well, I've fallen asleep at my desk every day this week, and I've been in for the past forty-three days on the trot as well," I shrugged. "I'm surprised I haven't had a heat," I sighed, sinking down onto the sofa next to him. I breathed his scent in deeply, snuggling into his chest as my head was resting on his shoulder.  

Kenshin didn't give me a chance to settle, though. "Your heat may not have started yet," he grunted. I was flat on my back on the sofa, and under him, my eyes wide open as the smell hit me and made me cream my panties immediately. "But my rut has," he murmured against my throat, kissing and nipping alternately as my skirt was pushed up around my waist to allow him unrestricted access with the removal of my tights and panties. "So I told Mitsuhide you would likely come into heat since my rut has started. Hence his instructions,” he mumbled, nuzzling into my neck as I felt the pleasure of his mark starting to bloom on my skin. “So, be a good girl and please your alpha,” he purred.

***

True to form, it was several days later as we fucked our way through the mutual heat and rut before I was back in the office. I saw a few of our workers giving each other looks, Kenshin had left a few markings more than a little visible given my office wear of open-collar shirts. I didn't have the energy to deal with it as Mitsuhide smirked to see the state I was in on my return.  

“It was hell without me, then?” I asked, looking through the post on my desk. It was starting to look like I was as much an equal partner in this branch as Mitsuhide was, instead of the secretarial role I had inhabited before.

“Yup. But you needed that, as did Kenshin,” he shrugged. “Nature is a fun thing,” he smirked.

“Tell me about it," I sighed, my computer taking its time in opening my inbox. "Shingen is on for getting us more employees at least, and he's offered to come over for a week too," I read off the top email with a nod, already bringing up a calendar to synchronise all three of us. "Also, have you put out for a secretary for us yet?" I sighed, peering around to look at Mitsuhide.  

“I was going to ask how you’d feel about it,” he replied. “Half of the things I am looking at I feel like I should be delegating, but I don’t have the staff to delegate to yet.”

“I know that feeling," I agreed, blocking us all out for the following Monday, Shingen would get the first flight in and land around 9.30am. He would stay with Kenshin and me to save on some costs, and there were enough restaurants to eat at around here where we could break and then work again. I was literally watching Shingen populate my diary with him as interviews were already being proposed for times at the office.  

Our reputation had preceded us. Everyone knew we could deliver the services, it was just mostly getting the staff. The late nights and early mornings continued, though not without the majority of people knowing that we were practically living at the offices to get things established. It wasn't uncommon for us to get messages or employees sticking their heads into our joint office, asking if they could help with anything. It was then we put the internal memo out that we were going to hire a secretary to assist with the management of our workload with the instruction to send a resume and cover letter to Shingen via email.

Both of us had been busy working through some potential new clients when my phone line went dead, and Mitsuhide was glaring at his screen. Then I looked up to find a smiling Shiori holding my phone line and power cable in one hand and then pointed to one of her co-workers holding the power and phone line for Mitsuhide. She smiled and waved as Shingen was chuckling to himself in the background, while Kenshin was glaring at the office in general. He must have been feeling a little territorial before being shown in as Shiori was already picking up the phone to call back the potentials with a cheery smile.

“I didn’t realise it was this bad,” Shingen frowned, looking over our desks. “I’ve got a lot of interviews starting at 9am tomorrow, and last for the whole week from 9am to 7pm, with an hour for lunch. But I feel like I should be making them for that scale for next week as well.”

“You’re all making it worse than it is,” I waved my hand dismissively. “We have interviews for four days, we can see who will fit in the company. They are all aware that just because they’re interviewing for one role, doesn’t mean that they won’t be offered another role, correct?”

“Yes, I’ve emphasised that it’s a booming company, and anyone who has done their research will be aware that it’s not a startup, just a new location,” Shingen nodded. “You sound like you aren’t talking to an experienced recruiter.”

His tone was a little rap on the back of the knuckles before my handbag was picked up, and then my backpack and Mitsuhide's.  

“What are you doing?” I asked, glaring at Kenshin and Shingen accusingly.

“You two need to catch up with me over lunch and then go through the resumes,” Shingen shrugged. “And we’re doing it at your two’s ‘flat’,” the way he used the air quotes made me frown. “It’s huge,” he laughed. “And you’re living in downtown Berlin, so I know it’s not cheap-”

“Someone’s grandmother sent us a down payment for buying property after the news of us being in a relationship was shared,” I explained. “We used it.”

“I did wonder,” Mitsuhide smirked, reluctantly joining us in the elevator to get going.

***

Going through resumes while perched on Kenshin's lap on our stupidly comfortable sofas was heaven. I had been forced to shower and get into one of Kenshin's sweaters and a pair of leggings on getting out before I was allowed back out to work. The coffee was made en mass, while we were doing individual evaluations and even some of the ones that Shingen had been on the fence about but not offered an interview were dragged out for potentially being brought in the following week.

One order of Chinese takeaway later and we had enough extras to bring in for two more days of interviews. Now, we glanced up at the clock in time to realise that it was time to get some sleep. Shingen smiled at Kenshin and me before showing Mitsuhide out, making him promise to get some sleep before letting him have his backpack back.  

“Will I get some sleep tonight?” He teased.

“The place was soundproofed already,” I yawned, before realising what I had implied, and blushed.

“Just checking, since Kenshin had never bothered,” he laughed, waving before taking himself off to bed.

Kenshin picked me up, refusing to let me get off him.

“Kenshin,” I whined.

“I want you to have the staff so that I know I can come home to you, and have you to myself for a while, but I don’t want you to be gone like you will be for interviews to ensure that,” he sulked.

“Mm, soon,” I murmured, nuzzling into his neck as I enjoyed the feeling of his arms around me.

[thecrowryblog]

Emergency exit

By Athina Antoniadou“

Artists have no choice but to express their lives”

Anne Truitt, 1974

I watched art adopt a role of a desirable lifestyle and ignore the fundamental responsibilities we have as artists, to counteract the negative energies of our time. Berlin had become the center for the arts; it was hip to be there as an artist and even if you were not one, …in Berlin you became one, let me exaggerate a little... you wouldn’t meet anyone, in the city by 2007, who wasn’t an artist. That is not necessarily a bad thing… But it started to dawn on me that history was repeating itself, it was probably something like the 1920s and ‘30s in the same city, you know, sexual promiscuity, cabarets, artists from all over europe and the world living “the life” while the Nazi movement and the Second World War were getting ready to take over. Berlin was and still is the golden egg of the art world, so we were packed into that amazing city, playing art, while in the rest of the world there were stupid wars, hunger, misery, death, destruction of the earth and all the rest. Competition and lies have forced us to be more selfish, more fearful, and more materialistic and isolated in our little enjoyable lives. In the words of Jonathan Jones, “The modern world has screwed itself and art had led the way, it has become the enemy of truth, the murderer of decency” So I started getting really nervous and agitated in the city. I started to wonder what is the importance of art, what is its responsibility! Why are we doing art? Who are we? Where did we come from? What are we doing here? Where are we going? Questions that have been asked again and again, through the centuries. My gut feeling was to hit the road, it was time to get a distance, go somewhere far, warmer with a lot of sun…and passion. Look at things and compare things from a distance. Buenos Aires was, in my mind, a great place to start, a big city, with beautiful people and tango….what more do you want?

But it did not do it for me, you see we are already “global”... I started thinking of mainstream art as a global “misfortune”. At that moment I knew that I had to go beyond, beyond the mind, beyond myself, beyond life as I know it. So, I took off, with airplanes and boats, to find out what I am made off. I walked in jungles and on mountains; I found people, and others I lost. In the corridors of my mind, I entered with a thread, not to get lost, I thought… But if not lost, you can’t be found… Peru was magical! I entered into the shamanic world… My world crashed; everything I thought I knew was wrong. I knew nothing; I was overwhelmed by nothingness. I started to re-educate myself; I went back centuries and I dug in… I read, I wrote and I listened. And for the next 3 years I was back and forth from Berlin to the Amazon. I started to understand the importance of language in the process of creation. I started looking into people who talked of themselves as psychonauts: people interested in traveling into the other, sometimes, but not always using psychedelic plants. I discovered Terence McKenna’s comparison of the shaman to the artist and the poet because they can see the beginnings and the endings of things…and can communicate that vision”. The idea is that “the cosmos is a tale that becomes true as it is told and as it tells itself”… So if the world is talked into existence, then is the world made of language? Misia Landau, an anthropologist in Boston University, clearly tells us that “The twentieth century linguistic revolution ……is the recognition that language is not merely a device for communicating ideas about the world, but rather a tool for bringing the world into existence in the first place. Reality is not simply experienced or reflected in language, but instead is actually produced by language.” (Landau, DATE) The book of Genesis tells us that the Logos existed at the beginning of time, the word of God, and it was the Logos that extracted the Order that we live in from Chaos, this idea is religious because it is fundamental, the ultimate idea in Christianity is the Logos, meaning carefully articulated, truthful speech transforms chaos into habitable Order. (Jordan B Peterson, DATE) Artists, always had that little door of escape unlocked. That door of perception, of intuition, of inspiration, in-spirit communication with something beyond. Manly Hall (DATE) puts it like this “Art was a very sacred thing during antiquity; it was held as part of religion, of what was important and significant in life. It was an example of what was noble and beautiful, and gave strength to people in their everyday lives, induced growth and spiritual integrity. In its original form, art helped.”

What is finally the artistic endeavor if not the inventory of human condition through the eyes of an individual who “is self selected for being able to journey into the other” (Terence McKenna), as the one that can translate the untranslatable and reveal the unseen and undetectable?! This research took me back to Spain where I was living from 1989-1994, after a scholarship I got for a PHD. In those years, the early 90s, I remember heated debates about how academics were trying to turn art into a science. There was a polemic between artists and those who wrote about art. They were creating a new language to talk about art. A language only they seem to understand. Of course all this before the idea of the contemporary art curator! This scientification of art (the phenomenon of artists often not being able to understand what is written about their own work) means that artists have given up on articulating things themselves, to articulate the truth about their world. We have stopped using the words. We have stopped using language to create our own realities. We have given this power to others. We are no longer shamans. We need to become shamans again. Let us return to the words of Terence Mckenna, “arts task is to save the soul of man kind because anything less will be dithering while Rome burns, because the artists, who are self selected for being able to journey into the Other, if the artists can not find the way, the way can not be found.” We need to recover that power of vision, of imagination, that amazing ability to dream the world, and articulate it in the most truthful and inspiring way, because we as artists have no choice but to express our lives (Anne Truitt). the Russian DNA researchers, Gosar and Bludorf, in their book, ‘“Network Intelligence’” …think that if humans with full individuality would regain group consciousness, they would have a Godly power to create and alter things on Earth. And for me that is the ultimate creation that an artist can hope for. So, as artists, we travel on slower, winding roads that gives us time to smell the flowers and a certain distance to have a clearer picture of our world and our humanity. Not a lot of people understand that. Our sense of time and space is different. Being an artist does not only entail fun and games, openings and parties, sex and Rock n Roll, it entails magic. We are the magicians of our world; politics and business is not our concern, although we need to have a clear vision of it all to be able to counteract it, our job is to find and honor what is most beautiful in this world, and communicate that vision. We need to reclaim our imagination,

and understand that we are driven like sheep, into a deeper and deeper boxed-in reality…the Spider Web, having in mind that there, the spider will do, what the spider does best. Getting out of the web, is not easy, some of us never make it, some of us never get it, we keep on swimming, just like the other fish, completing our “traditions” and quieting our suspicions. We need dialogue, we need to articulate our ideas in order to regain that lost connection with our audiences with the public with the people that we ask to support us in this amazing experience called life. This effort has to be made now, now is the time, even it feels, sometimes, that is too late.

[mercurygray]

Mercy Street? I'm a little one-track right now. Alternately, A Discovery of Witches - what's another major even in world history Matthew's been through?

So, I took this prompt and kind of squished it with another post - I think it was from @begins-with-an-absence-of-desire - about a Downton crossover and said, Interwar Oxford and  vampires on shooting weekends. That’s a thing we need.

Sometimes his mother could be infuriating.

Matthew had finally settled into his new rooms at Oxford, one more pale, anxious face among all the other pale, anxious faces, and what had Ysabeau done but come barreling in fresh from Paris like some over-zealous society mother hen to drag him away to the country.

He knew she didn’t approve of his experiments, nor did his father - but if Baldwin could brood in Threadneedle Street buying and selling the world, and Verin swan through the backstreet cabarets of Berlin, and Stasia sit in state somewhere in Shanghai presiding like an empress over a string of gambling houses and opium dens, then he was entitled to something to call his own, and if it was too staid for his parents -  well, that was just too bad.

This would be his…fourth? fifth? time at Oxford - a new degree, a new college, new people and new ideas to explore. This time would be easier, after a fashion - so many of the new men were already older, coming out of the army to finish degrees that the war had pushing into a waiting room. They came with a sense of comradeship already built, their proving under fire forging links far stronger than ties of school colors and cricket games ever had. And if they assumed that he had passed the war as they had, what was the harm in that? He had been a soldier, more than once, for England and for France; he knew something of mud, and blood, and death, and he knew what it was like to do things that terrified you, that you’d never thought yourself capable of doing.

 It would have been simpler to move back into Woodstock, but there was something about being in the thick of the university that comforted him, grounded him to his work. At Woodstock, he remembered being a spy, a courtier, a poet. In Oxford, he was a scientist, an examiner of puzzles, a fellow sufferer on the wheel of academia.

Except, of course, for this weekend, when he would have to play the handsome, available son for whatever bored daughters of England’s aristocracy had come along for a shooting weekend.

Was his mother bored? Had she done this to spite him? Was this payback for abandoning her (her words, not his) during the war? Or simply one more effort to get him to abandon his research? Matthew didn’t truly know, but if several centuries had taught him nothing else, it was pointless to argue with Ysabeau de Clermont.

Whatever the reason, the matriarch of the Clermont clan was, at present, looking very pleased with herself in the backseat of the saloon car conveying them up to whatever country estate they were meant to be visiting this weekend.

“You haven’t asked where we’re going.” She sounded a little put out, but Matthew would be damned before he gave her the satisfaction.

“One English country house is much like another.”

“It’ll be fun,” his mother said with a smile, nudging his knee with her own. “You’re too serious these days, Matthew - you need a little color in your life.”

Ah, color. Cecelia had been colorful, and how had that ended? Debutante found dead in Seine; foul play suspected. Matthew hardly trusted himself any more where color was concerned. Let Stasia have her exiled White Russian princes to fuel the family gossip and let him have a quiet, uncomplicated, colorless life in Oxford.

Well, if this was the price for a few months’ peace, he’d pay it - a few days to shoot, and ride, and pay pretty compliments, and then he could go back to his lab and his books.

They drove for an hour or two down roads that had been set down around the time of the Conquest and only macadamed to suit current taste, making a turn into an old and well-maintained park, the road opening up for a moment on the long park in front, the house crowning a small hill.

Ysabeau smiled, their destination in sight. “Ah, Godwit.”

Godwit Park was not really what it claimed to be, its pedigree just as complicated as that of the family that lived within, built 17th century in the Jacobean, remodeled 18th century in Free Gothic, appended, added on, gardens redone, redecorated by the wife of the 14th holder of the title, until the thing being presented was as far from the original as its creator had intended.  It was, for Matthew, a painful artistic exercise, coming back to a place that he had known and loved in its first incarnation only to see the things that gave him joy taken away, the ghosts of well-carved cornices and chimney pieces lingering only in his memory. Not to mention the actual ghosts - most homes in England had at least two or three - which naturally flocked to creatures like moths to candles.

It had not always been thus - he could remember a time when every self-respecting noble house in England had at least one witch on staff, a housekeeper or nursemaid who managed these things along with other small domestic concerns. Alas, those days were long gone, fallen prey to Victorian respectability and universal education. There was less magic left in England, now, and less creatures to remember it.

And Matthew was old enough to remember, at least, the days when the park had taken its name and the first Lord Belhurst had declared that he would only have people of ‘good wit’ at his table. There had been dancing in the hall, and great quantities of wine, and toasts had been drunk to Charles and his pretty, witty Nell. Yes, that had been a party -and this weekend would be very, very different.

Here was the drive, and here the front door, servants assembled in black and white, and here was the lady of the house to welcome them. “Isabelle!”

“Louisa!” They kissed in the continental manner, like two old schoolfriends, though that was hardly how they knew each other. (There was something about charity work for French refugees, and tea dances, and Claridges.) “You remember Matthew, I hope.”

Lady Belhurst looked him over with an assessing eye. “I feel like every time I see you, Mr. Clairmont, you get taller. Isabelle tells me you’re at Oxford, studying!”

Matthew silently remembered a time when no one sent to Oxford (including young Lord Belhurst, son of the house’s builder) had actually studied, and smiled. “One has to keep busy somehow.”

“Well, I am glad you’ve made time for us,” Louisa said. “We’re only a small party this weekend, just twelve, and I had such a time making up my numbers. None of Freddie’s friends could get away and when Isabelle said she would bring you it was such a blessing. I think Lydia’s through here.”

There was no time to see what changes the family had wrought in the intervening years - Matthew caught a glimpse of the young Lord Belhurst with his dogs at his feet in a heavy gilded frame, a flash of the young Lady Belhurst, his wife, in full court array down another corridor. (Her hair always smelled of chamomile, to keep its color; Charles had given her those pearls, and she’d gambled them away for - but it hardly mattered now.)

There were two women sitting in the drawing room enjoying their tea. Lydia Belhurst was built in the family pattern, with a generous face and a jolly smile that would have looked well under Cavalier curls, but the woman sitting with her was a different creature entirely, all fine lines and flashing eyes and cultivated coldness, her beauty of an older stamp, dark where Lydia’s was light. She did not seem the kind of woman who would greet a friend as Lydia did, rising quickly from her seat and coming to embrace him.

“Oh, Matthew! Mama said you might come. Has she told you you’ve saved the numbers?”

“I’m in danger of having that be how I’m introduced all weekend,” he quipped, and Lydia laughed. But was that anger he had seen on the other woman’s face? Disdain, perhaps?

“I’ll try hard not to say it again, then. Do you know Lady Mary Crawley? Her people are up in Yorkshire - the Earls of Grantham. Mary, this is Matthew Clairmont - one of Freddie’s friends.”

Again that flash of unease! “A pleasure.” A slim, elegant hand was offered, delivering a handshake that meant business. Power seemed to crackle around her shoulders, but Lady Mary Crawley was no witch - only a woman used to getting what she wanted. A dark dress and a wedding ring told him everything he needed to know - widowed, doubtless. Some well-meaning relative had dispatched her in the same way that Ysabeau had dragged him along. Well, there was a kinship to be had there.

What on earth was that damnable smile of Lydia’s? She looked like a cat who’d gotten into the cream. But there was no time to ask - her attention was quickly drawn out the window. “Good heavens, is that the Seatons? I thought they wouldn’t be here for ages! There’s tea here, Matthew, if you’d like some - must dash!”

And, just like that, she was gone, leaving the two of them alone. Mary watched Lydia leave and sighed. “I wish they wouldn’t be so damn obvious about it.” She turned to Matthew and gave a thin, belabored smile, the kind that is generally sick of playing games and having to give such smiles. “I’ll apologize now, Mr. Clairmont, and spare you the effort - I’m afraid Lady Belhurst’s romantic plotting won’t come to anything.” He tried to look politely confused. “I’ve been listening to Lydia extol your considerable virtues for the last half-hour and now she has - conveniently - left us alone.”

Ah. Yes, that rather explained it. “I appreciate the honesty - but Lady Belhurst’s plotting wouldn’t have come to anything from my end, either. At the moment I’m rather married to my work.”

“Oh?” She looked interested at that - a welcome changes from her usual round, then. Mary Crawley was used to being an object of universal desire. (As she would be, if she were beautiful, titled, and - were the Earls of Grantham rich? He couldn’t remember.)

“I’m down at Oxford. University College - Chemistry.”

She looked him over, making some small sound of amusement. “Funny, you don’t look at all like an academic.”

Was that a challenge? “Why, what should an academic look like?”

“Well, I don’t know…thinner and less …rigorous. And you’re missing a pair of glasses and a…a general air of derangement.”

There was something about the way she said rigorous that sparked something - this was a woman well-used to managing her desires, a common enough type for women of her class. A physical attraction was to mean little to her, the primary prize a man’s wealth and his station. But if she was a widow, she’d presumably made the first marriage that her family had so desired - which meant she was now free to do as she wished in the matter of her second. So you find me attractive, Mary Crawley, and you’d rather you didn’t - because that would make brushing me off just that much easier.  Well.

“I’m so sorry, I seem to have left all of those in my other trunk. I can go and come back wearing something more suitable, if you’d rather.” A smile - genuine, this time. Why did that feel like victory? Why did he care? “So,” he asked, bending down to pour himself a cup of tea and settling into the sofa.  “What shall we do to encourage their plots?”

Are Mary and Matthew going to re-invent fake dating for their shooting weekend? Probably, because…that would be entertaining to me. Why not set this at Downton? I liked the idea of being in a sort of ‘neutral’ territory. 

I can’t remember right now the name of the other woman Matthew fell in love with, after Eleanor - was it Celine? Cecelia? It started with a C. 

On a side note, I’m totally in love with the idea of Matthew having a kind of kinship with this generation of the shell-shocked officer class. 

[healthistip]

Preliminary analysis finds that even gentle circumstances of COVID-19 depart a mark on the mind – however it’s not but clear how lengthy it lasts

With greater than 18 months of the pandemic within the rearview mirror, researchers have been steadily gathering new and necessary insights into the consequences of COVID-19 on the physique and mind. These findings are elevating issues in regards to the long-term impacts that the coronavirus might need on organic processes resembling getting old.

As a cognitive neuroscientist, my previous analysis has centered on understanding how regular mind modifications associated to getting old have an effect on individuals' capacity to assume and transfer – notably in center age and past. However as extra proof got here in displaying that COVID-19 may have an effect on the physique and mind for months or longer following an infection, my analysis workforce grew to become concerned about exploring the way it may also impression the pure technique of getting old.

Peering in on the mind’s response to COVID-19

In August 2021, a preliminary however large-scale examine investigating mind modifications in individuals who had skilled COVID-19 drew an excessive amount of consideration inside the neuroscience neighborhood.

In that examine, researchers relied on an present database known as the UK Biobank, which accommodates mind imaging knowledge from over 45,000 individuals within the U.Ok. going again to 2014. This implies – crucially – that there was baseline knowledge and mind imaging of all of these individuals from earlier than the pandemic.

The analysis workforce analyzed the mind imaging knowledge after which introduced again those that had been recognized with COVID-19 for extra mind scans. They in contrast individuals who had skilled COVID-19 to individuals who had not, fastidiously matching the teams primarily based on age, intercourse, baseline check date and examine location, in addition to widespread danger elements for illness, resembling well being variables and socioeconomic standing.

The workforce discovered marked variations in grey matter – which is made up of the cell our bodies of neurons that course of info within the mind – between those that had been contaminated with COVID-19 and those that had not. Particularly, the thickness of the grey matter tissue in mind areas often known as the frontal and temporal lobes was decreased within the COVID-19 group, differing from the everyday patterns seen within the group that hadn’t skilled COVID-19.

Within the basic inhabitants, it’s regular to see some change in grey matter quantity or thickness over time as individuals age, however the modifications have been bigger than regular in those that had been contaminated with COVID-19.

Apparently, when the researchers separated the people who had extreme sufficient sickness to require hospitalization, the outcomes have been the identical as for individuals who had skilled milder COVID-19. That’s, individuals who had been contaminated with COVID-19 confirmed a lack of mind quantity even when the illness was not extreme sufficient to require hospitalization.

Lastly, researchers additionally investigated modifications in efficiency on cognitive duties and located that those that had contracted COVID-19 have been slower in processing info, relative to those that had not.

Whereas now we have to watch out decoding these findings as they await formal peer evaluate, the big pattern, pre- and post-illness knowledge in the identical individuals and cautious matching with individuals who had not had COVID-19 have made this preliminary work notably worthwhile.

What do these modifications in mind quantity imply?

Early on within the pandemic, some of the widespread reviews from these contaminated with COVID-19 was the lack of sense of style and scent.

Some COVID-19 sufferers have skilled both the lack of, or a discount in, their sense of scent. Dima Berlin by way of Getty Photos

Strikingly, the mind areas that the Unoka. researchers discovered to be impacted by COVID-19 are all linked to the olfactory bulb, a construction close to the entrance of the mind that passes indicators about smells from the nostril to different mind areas. The olfactory bulb has connections to areas of the temporal lobe. We regularly speak in regards to the temporal lobe within the context of getting old and Alzheimer’s illness as a result of it’s the place the hippocampus is positioned. The hippocampus is more likely to play a key function in getting old, given its involvement in reminiscence and cognitive processes.

The sense of scent can be necessary to Alzheimer’s analysis, as some knowledge has advised that these in danger for the illness have a decreased sense of scent. Whereas it’s far too early to attract any conclusions in regards to the long-term impacts of those COVID-related modifications, investigating attainable connections between COVID-19-related mind modifications and reminiscence is of nice curiosity – notably given the areas implicated and their significance in reminiscence and Alzheimer’s illness.

Trying forward

These new findings result in necessary but unanswered questions: What do these mind modifications following COVID-19 imply for the method and tempo of getting old? And, over time does the mind get well to some extent from viral an infection?

These are lively and open areas of analysis, a few of which we’re starting to do in my very own laboratory at the side of our ongoing work investigating mind getting old.

Mind photos from a 35-year-old and an 85-year-old. Orange arrows present the thinner grey matter within the older particular person. Inexperienced arrows level to areas the place there’s more room full of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) on account of decreased mind quantity. The purple circles spotlight the brains’ ventricles, that are full of CSF. In older adults, these fluid-filled areas are a lot bigger. Jessica Bernard, CC BY-ND

Our lab’s work demonstrates that as individuals age, the mind thinks and processes info otherwise. As well as, we’ve noticed modifications over time in how peoples’ our bodies transfer and the way individuals be taught new motor abilities. A number of a long time of labor have demonstrated that older adults have a tougher time processing and manipulating info – resembling updating a psychological grocery record – however they usually preserve their information of info and vocabulary. With respect to motor abilities, we all know that older adults nonetheless be taught, however they accomplish that extra slowly then younger adults.

With regards to mind construction, we usually see a lower within the dimension of the mind in adults over age 65. This lower is not only localized to 1 space. Variations will be seen throughout many areas of the mind. There’s additionally usually a rise in cerebrospinal fluid that fills house because of the lack of mind tissue. As well as, white matter, the insulation on axons – lengthy cables that carry electrical impulses between nerve cells – can be much less intact in older adults.

As life expectancy has elevated up to now a long time, extra people are reaching older age. Whereas the purpose is for all to dwell lengthy and wholesome lives, even within the best-case state of affairs the place one ages with out illness or incapacity, older maturity brings on modifications in how we expect and transfer.

Studying how all of those puzzle items match collectively will assist us unravel the mysteries of getting old in order that we might help enhance high quality of life and performance for getting old people. And now, within the context of COVID-19, it’s going to assist us perceive the diploma to which the mind might get well after sickness as nicely.

[Get the best of The Conversation, every weekend. Sign up for our weekly newsletter.]

Jessica Bernard receives funding from the Nationwide Institute on Growing older and the Nationwide Institute of Psychological Well being.

[youngbloodinitiative]

2020 - Finding New Ways of Making, Showing and Thinking about Art

This was a difficult year to say the least. The irruption of COVID19 meant significant disruptions for many professions, businesses and organisations, and for many other fields like art and culture, it meant a complete undoing of the usual ways of making, showing and thinking about art.

Artistic and cultural events depend almost in its entirety on direct contact with the public: talks, workshops, exhibitions, concerts, symposiums, and the like, they all require the audience to come together and gather at the place where the event is taking place. Simply put, art and culture are community based. Their enchantment comes from being in the same room with like-minded people, feeding from each other’s energy and amplifying the feeling of belonging. Of course, this also applies to the economical sustainability of art and cultural organisations, whose main income comes from ticket and merchandise sales, both of which are non existent without an audience.

The pandemic pushed artists to look for new ways of making and showing their work, and art organisations had to think of new ways to present and bring art to the audience. But crucially it also made us (like all of us) change the way we think about art and our relationship to the public. As Seth Godin puts it “We are not going to step into the void by taking the collection the Museum of Modern Art and making it free online because nobody is going to look at it. Celebrity art doesn’t count as celebrity art if you are not in the same room as the art.” Suddenly, we had to ‘step into a void’ that was full of questions and figure out what the role of art was on times of unprecedented turmoil, how to extend the affective touch of art to the virtual world, what were the new ways of creating art for the specific channels that were available for dissemination, how to create public programs around online exhibitions, how to make all this economically sustainable for artists and organisations, and how would the art landscape incorporate all these questions going forward and how doing this would change the art landscape forever.

Our organisation Young Blood Initiative was no different. Our usual way of doing things was rendered impossible after the lockdown and further restrictions were implemented in the three main cities in which we operate (Amsterdam, London and Berlin). Each year we chose a current issue, write a brief outlining the subject and our community of artists create a showcase and public programme around it. Of course all of this was no longer possible, at the end of 2019 we had chosen to explore the relationship between art and activism, wondering how art could have an effect in the world, and now the same question needed to be re-framed for a completely different context. For us this was a mayor challenge, it meant putting the showcase in some cities on hold and working on reorganising our community in others. So the decision was made that the showcase would go on in one city: London.

Wake Up and Smell the Tear Gas! - Exploring how to make a hybrid showcase. Since the beginning of 2020 we knew we wanted this program to be different from our previous efforts. As the global situation kept on developing and the gravity of the problem became painfully clear, we realised we needed to do things differently this year. Our organisers couldn’t travel to other cities, audience numbers had to be caped, and the situation could change from one week to the next as regulations continued to be adjusted. While looking for ways to adapt to the new situation, we came to the conclusion that while we could not abandon the physical side of the showcase and still wanted to present part of the work in a physical space, we needed to extend our programme online and settled for an hybrid program that mixed both physical and virtual presence. Furthermore, we also aimed to work with the conditions at hand, and make this showcase a slow burner: We would make this a long research process looking at the subject from different angles and questioning through interdisciplinary methods ranging from visual and performing arts to talks and workshops.

This entailed a shift in our understanding of what making and showing art could be. Instead of concentrating our efforts in a physical showcase that would be the climatic point of our work, we adopted a more extensive and open-ended program that changed our focus to the process of showing how the ongoing research takes different shapes on different locations both off and online, and the diversity of forms that proposals could take depending on individual artistic practices and the context in which they are presented. There was no rush to present everything over a week long exhibition, but there was time to follow a research question through time, to allow for small events to connect with the community in an intimate setting without the pressure to fill the venue, there was time to show how an artist develop her/his practice by setting open week-long open studios, there was opportunity to explore different ways of connecting online, and the artists didn’t have to show an artwork but could rather organise talks or workshops that connected to their practice.

So the programme for ‘Wake Up and Smell the Tear Gas!’ started with an art residency and exchange with Pispalan kulttuuriyhdistys ry (Pispala Culture Association ry) the arts organisation running Hirvitalo – Pispalan nykytaiteen keskus (Center of Contemporary Art Pispala) a non-profit cultural space in Finland. For a few days the local community came together to exchange points of view with our members and kick started a long term conversation that including physical and online talks.

Overall, this exploration of what art can do and the different ways in which it can connect with people, resulted in very interesting projects: Talks to political activists around the world, workshops designed to listen to each other and to our bodies, online reading groups to explore political ideas, online research that used memes as a tool, computer files that could be downloaded and printed at home and could then be taken to the gallery or be kept at home, workshops on how to make soap and compost, performances that took place on google docs, discussions about slacktivism or how to be an introvert activist, to mention some of the amazing events created by our artist community.

The result was a rich and interesting hybrid showcase, catering for people worldwide but for the local community as well. The subject was approached from so many different angles including politics and climate change, and explored a wide toolkit ranging from conceptual art to silent walks. We got the chance to hear from politically engaged Polish artists and learn how to make protein choices that would protect our planet. In all, we are proud of the results, it changed our way of doing things and force us to think twice about what art is and what it could be. It open new connections and exposed us to new ways of thinking. It revealed how creative artists are and how they thinking can branch to exiting new possibilities. These are lessons that we are taking with us for our next events, since we can tell for sure that making and showing art will never be the same.

[torixus]

How Reading Positively Affects Your Brain, Mood, and Relationships

  If you love reading, then you'll know how incredible it is to get lost in a work of fiction. Once you're in the zone, it's as if you're transported into a dreamlike state where you can touch, taste, and feel the surroundings and characters that are being described. You can breeze through a good book, unaware even that you're reading words or turning page after page. A good story can affect you and stay with you, long after you've closed the cover. I had just finished reading Calypso by David Sedaris when I realized that the book hadn't just helped me pass some time during lockdown, but it had brought me joy, laughter, and a sense of calm amongst the storm of this new normal.

Does reading bring more than a little escapism? Is it, in fact, a mindfulness tool for those who find meditation too frustrating for a mind that's forever wandering? I called on five experts to reveal exactly what is happening to our brains, mood, mental health, and more when we read a good book.

What Reading Does to Our Brains

Reading plays such a crucial part in learning when we are young—surely, those benefits don't go away once we're older? According to the University of Rochester, our brains are fully formed by age 25, but can reading as adults help keep our brains fit and healthy? In a word, yes. "The benefits of reading on our cognition are well-documented and are associated with increased cognitive function, working memory and higher-order thinking such as creative problem-solving," says learning expert and founder of tassomai.com, Murray Morrison. "Put simply, the sustained, gentle effort of building images in your head as you read keeps your brain fitter than more passive forms of entertainment, like film or TV."

And where a film is often over in 90 minutes, a novel may take days or weeks to complete. "his exercises the memory and gives us time to unconsciously speculate on the directions the plot may take, stimulating the imagination," Morrison explains.

Put simply, the sustained, gentle effort of building images in your head as you read keeps your brain fitter than more passive forms of entertainment, like film or TV.

In fact, reading goes beyond just stimulating your imagination. Natalia Ramsden, the founder of brain optimization clinic SOFOS Associates in London, explains that "when we read certain things, the part of our brain that is activated is the same part as if we were doing those things. Fiction acts as a sort of simulator and this has numerous implications for the way we ‘exercise’ parts of the brain, form new synapses, and strengthen existing ones." This helps to explain why a sad story can leave us feeling emotionally fraught, whereas a thriller could have us on the edge of our seat.

Reading is something that is worth factoring into your daily routine, just as you would brushing your teeth or doing yoga. "Reading is an activity which can keep the brain young—with every page turned or chapter devoured, the brain is working to decipher, store and retain more information," notes Dr. Emer MacSweeney, consultant neuroradiologist at Re:Cognition Health. "Reading provides mental exercise, which is very important in helping to protect the brain against cognitive decline in diseases such as Alzheimer’s. [It] heightens brain function and can help parts of the brain connect. Your brain is a learning machine and it needs to keep learning to optimize performance and improve your memory and thinking ability."

"Reading is more neurobiologically challenging than other methods of gathering information, such as speech or listening," adds MacSweeney. "It helps the brain process information more effectively both verbally and visually."

Not only is reading a good exercise for your brain, but it also helps help you relax and the act of it reduces stress in your body and mind, which can lead to improved mental and physical health. MacSweeney says that reading before bed is a good idea to help you unwind and prepare your body for sleep—just be mindful of reading good old fashioned hard copies instead of e-books, since the light from them can prevent your brain from entering relaxation mode.

 7 Ways Lack of Sleep Can Seriously Mess With Your Life (and Health)

What Reading Does to Our Mood and Mental Health

"As an avid reader, I am surely biased when I say there is nothing more delicious, indulgent, or satisfying than becoming lost in a good book," says Ramsden. "Page after page, soaking up spectacular writing bringing to life worlds unknown and characters misunderstood...much more is happening for us than sheer entertainment." She explains that getting lost in a good book provides a form of escapism for many and in doing that, the act of losing yourself in a book can help to lower cortisol levels—the primary stress hormone that can wreaks havoc on our bodies when spiked.

Morrison agrees, saying that reading must be celebrated for its positive mental health impact. "Where so much of our free time is spent at the mercy of dopamine-inducing technology products and cliff-hanger reality TV, the opportunity to sit quietly, comfortably, and lose oneself in a book is a valuable mental balm," he says. "Our brains are simply exhausted by 2020s life. Developing the habit of reading—and reading well—can not only be enlightening, transporting, and inspiring, but can genuinely make our lives happier, more balanced, and more worth living."

It's during times of crisis that reading can be the quiet support we all need. Dr. Maite Ferrin, Consultant Psychiatrist at Re:Cognition Health makes the point that "in crisis, we all need some reassurance and something to hold on to—this is for our personal mental well-being."

Ferrin suggests that now is a good time to take a walk down memory lane. "Reading books from childhood serves as a reminder that things will get back to “normal” or the way we used to like them," he says.

What Reading Does for Relationships

Reading may be a solitary hobby, but it's one that can reap rewards when it comes to our relationships. "Reading fiction develops us emotionally," says Ramsden. "According to Keith Oatley at the University of Toronto, reading makes us think and feel in different ways. As we bond with the fictional characters, we are learning to better understand people both on the pages and off."

She references a team of researches led by Chun-Ting Hsu at the Free University of Berlin, who coined the term "fiction feeling hypothesis," describing how narratives with emotional content actually encourage readers to feel empathy, "activating a special neural network located in the anterior insula and mid-cingulate cortex regions of the brain."

Reading makes us think and feel in different ways. As we bond with the fictional characters, we are learning to better understand people both on the pages and off.

What Different Genres and Types of Books Do to the Brain

Getting lost in a book can have a powerful effect on us. "Reading can be a virtual experience for the brain, so the genre of books we choose to read can have a serious impact on our mood and emotions, giving different virtual experiences," says Dr. Dimitrios Paschos, consultant psychiatrist at Re:Cognition Health. "A book can evoke various emotions, such as happiness, relief, anger, and sadness." 

Below, Paschos reveals how different genres and types of books can affect us—plus, we share some of our favorite book recommendations for each genre.

Thrillers

"Reading thrillers adds excitement and can help us step away from our own problems, making us realize that there are people in worse situations than ourselves."

Already hooked, right?

Literary Classics

"Literary books stimulate different parts of our brain and give them an intense workout."

Happy Stories

"Happy books can be highly beneficial to mood and can be a good distraction when you're struggling with the complexities of life, giving hope and assurance that a 'happy ever after' can exist."

"Reading nostalgic books, such as those we read and enjoyed as young adults or teens can take us back to a happier period of our life. Because the book has already been read, there is an element of comfort, safety, and reassurance; you are familiar with the characters, the contents, and, of course, the ending, so uncertainty is eliminated. 

For people struggling emotionally throughout this pandemic, reading books about nostalgia can be highly beneficial (and the smell of an old book is just wonderful!)"

Biographies and Autobiographies

"This genre can be hugely beneficial to the intellect as well as emotions. They are history lessons as told through the lives of extraordinary people, teaching us life lessons—the highs, lows, and failures. They can give us validation of our own successes and challenges, strength to face our failures, and the confidence to make self-improvements."

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[journalofsportsmedicine]

Considerations about Doping in Sport: A New Solution-Juniper Publishers

JUNIPER PUBLISHERS- Journal of Physical Fitness, Medicine & Treatment in Sports

Barriers and Exclusions in Sport

At the turn of the 19th and the 20th century various institutions connected with sport created redundant barriers, which slowed down development of modern competitive sport including its Olympic forms. It refers, among others, to restrictions put on participation in the Olympic Games, which were introduced by Pierre de Coubertin and restricted it to an elite social group which could afford the expensive sports extravagance. In 1899 Thorstein Veblen [1] called them the leisure class. It refers, inter alia, to aristocracy and other persons who have inherited big money. It concerns also individuals and social groups who grew rich in the heyday of the self-made man social model-that is, in the heyday of growing and prospering capitalism. It led to a conclusion-which was proclaimed also by Pierre de Coubertin- that competitive sport should be practiced by those individuals who can afford that and who can fulfil their personal hedonistic needs connected with physical effort and specialized movement activity unimpeded. It referred to a definite sport requiring an appropriately long and costly effort-especially in the time free of earning activity-and extraordinary expenses connected with sport.

The majority of people talented in movement activity could not take part in various sports events-among others, because of the fact, that:

a) They had to work hard for a dozen or so hours a day, including Saturdays and Sundays, for a low wage which was barely sufficient for living costs.

b) They could not afford proper sports clothes, sports equipment, and a club fee or renting a stadium, a sports hall, a skating rink, a swimming pool; moreover they had no free time, because work and recovering lost strength before another day-long effort filled almost the whole day.

Summing up, it can be said that exhausting work, low wages, chronic lack of free time and restrictions which were consciously introduced into the axiology of modern Olympism by Pierre do Coubertin were efficient in eliminating wage labouring young people and adults from sports life and participation in the games. Exclusion from sports activity connected with the Olympic Games refers also to women. Pierre de Coubertin refused them participation in the form of competition in the Olympic Games he had renewed and made Olympic sport accessible only for so- called gentlemen coming from financially well-off social strata. It refers, among others, to the then parasitic aristocracy as well as to capitalists, who were consumed by extremely ravenous hunger of surplus value then, and to rich bourgeoisie consciously increasing and consolidating unjust social differences.

Bankrupted Pierre de Coubertin found out how important and how universal women's sport can be among others during the Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936. Then as John Mac Aloon writes-he manifested covertly corrupt support for the choice of just that place for the discussed games, supported with German-that is, tainted with blood-fascist money [2]. That way he consolidated-fully advertently, because people in France and Switzerland were fully aware of a social situation in Germany after 1933-Adolf Hitler's criminal and even felonious internal policy as well as his prestige and significance on the international stage. Coubertin’s curse and fatal decision restricting women's participation in sport still weighed heavily on Olympic sport-and hence on global sport-as late as in the 21st century, in spite of the fact that they continued demanding their rights. Only during the Olympic Games in London in 2012 all teams for the first time included not only men but also women. They had been waiting for it for a very long time-116 years. Baron Pierre de Coubertin contributed to it shamefully too. He also-as I have already mentioned-exerted a negative influence on participation of youth and adults coming from the working class in the Olympic games, because they did not fit the category of gentlemen.

    Development of Training Methods and Technologies, Professionalization and Commercialisation of Sport

Nor did the French baron foresee that the main factor stimulating development of competitive, record oriented, spectacular, Olympic sport, which nowadays is also described as elite sport, top level sport or marketable sport-besides aggressive (especially nowadays), highly expansive, more and more modern economy as well as more and more refined training methods (which inhumanely exploit and deform a human organism), would be its professionalization. Its aftermath-that is, a result of Pierre de Coubertin's nonsensical restrictions were decisions of his successors in the position of the International Olympic Committee's chairperson until the times of Avery Brundage and including him, who eliminated and excluded professional athletes from the Olympic games, while professionalization (or covert professionalization, like in the so-called socialist countries), similarly as increasing commercialization of sport- were major factors contributing to a qualitative leap in sport, to heightening the level of sports achievements in general and to making spectacular and simultaneously competitive sports more attractive. Nowadays it refers mainly to competitive sport; record oriented sport, professional sport, spectacular sport, Olympic sport, top level sport, elite sport or marketable sport.

In the times of promoting amateur sports in the Olympic Games the commercialization of sport used to be commonly condemned. It referred also to the other abovementioned forms of sport. It was emphasized that the discussed commercialization is some shameful and blameworthy fetish of our modern times, which diminishes or even compromises the significance of sport, its supposed autotelic values appearing only during the Olympic Games. When it turned out that the Olympic games-and other competitions of global importance-are too expensive and donations from budgets of particular states are insufficient, rich sponsors (and others with sufficient resources), who, thanks to their costly donations, could also increase and broaden the range of advertising and their companies' offer as well as increase their profits, started to be invited for close cooperation. It was one of the reasons why it was possible to intensify investments in the abovementioned forms of sport significantly that is, enrich and modernize its infrastructure, optimize research, provide production of better and more expensive equipment, increase athletes’ and coaches' remunerations significantly, invest more money in staff taking care of excellent teams and outstanding athletes. The superior aim was-and still is-to make spectacles more attractive, increase viewership of sports events as well as to inspire new advertisers and to encourage longstanding ones for further activity, which significantly increase sports budgets enabling intensification of various investments qualitatively strengthening various ultramodern athletic infrastructures.

A negative attitude towards commercialization of sport- which was supposed to be its shameful malady-and a negative evaluation of its professionalization, which was to lead to its degeneration, changing competition into its own caricature and athletes into regrettable clowns-considerably slowed down development of competitive sport, record oriented sport, professional sport, spectacular sport, Olympic sport, top level sport, elite sport or marketable sport. Hosting cities and governments of particular states were-according to the IOC’s opinion-the only subjects to bear the costs of holding the games. That view was radically changed during Antonio Samaranch's presidency and thanks to him. He made the committee which was directed by him a company in the strictly business sense too. He strove for the highest possible and all-embracing income for his institution. The optimization of income, besides sports competition, became-and still is-the main aim of the IOC’s activity.

    Factors Facilitating Development of Sport

Nowadays we witness an unprecedented period of fantastic development and full bloom of the abovementioned forms of sports as well as of broadening and increasing its reception and attractiveness. The view about its deepening crisis is outmoded and archaic and it smells exaggerated attachment to:

a) Coubertin's and Brundage’s idea of supposedly autotelic character of competitive sport, record oriented sport, professional sport, spectacular sport, Olympic sport, top level sport, elite sport or marketable sport. The abovementioned forms of activity what is only too obvious do not include and do not support such a value as the highest one. Sports activity which is required in their field is not an aim in itself at all; it is an instrumental value making it possible to achieve a variously understood sports success of praxeological (effectively-oriented, after Tadeusz Kotarbinski 1982) and pragmatic (bringing a relativistically conceived benefit and utility, after William James [3]) character.

b) Assumptions of Marxism or Marxism-leaning Catholic personalism, especially according to Emmanuel Mounier's and partly Jacques Maritain’s interpretation, pointing out that intense professional activity reifies, depersonalizes that is, deforms a human individual's personality and, as a consequence, alienates and dehumanizes, makes a human being an individual involved only in horizontal (that is, social and material) relations and not in spiritual relations: vertical ones, oriented towards God and developing a person [4-6].

The abovementioned contemporary forms of professional sport similarly as other manifestations of professional activity are saturated with a subject’s reified dependency on an employer, who appoints tasks and expects demanded and relevant (to the proposed remuneration) effects of activity (the subject undergoes obvious reification in that case). It is a normal and common dependency, because it concerns all people undertaking work: doctors, nurses, paramedics, politicians, firemen, guards, teachers, clerks, policemen, coaches or masseurs. These types of relations are not a proof of any dehumanization or alienation. In spite of that, some individual deviations or pathologies are possible in those forms of professional activity similarly as, for example, in family relations or among priests, but they are not binding norms as they were in the case of the optimal and common exploitation of an employee in the times of the 19th century capitalism.

Of course, in the abovementioned forms of sport there are various deformations, aberrations, deviations and social pathologies. However, they do not reflect the magnitude of manifestations of social pathologies, deviations and deformations appearing out of sport proportionally. Breaking regulations of the Penal Code, the Civil Code and the Administrative Procedure Code among persons connected with sport is significantly less frequent than in society as such. For example, drug addiction or other criminogenic behaviours are present to a much smaller degree. Murders, kidnappings or theft are rather absent. Athletes and the connected milieu focus on striving for a broadly understood sporting success. A big problem is constituted by gambling, which is, however, imposed by a nonsport mafia milieu and brings criminals from outside of sport enormous profits. Some of the abovementioned restrictions which appeared in sport stopped its development in the past. Nowadays it is slowed down first of all by a negative attitude to various forms of doping such as pharmacological doping, genetic doping or doping connected with blood transfusions [7-11]. It is possible to distinguish several main factors advantageous for development of sport:

a) Proper individual or team qualities of an athlete or athletes: physical, mental and relational ones,

b) Sports training more and more enriched with new technical solutions and methods, requiring huge sacrifices,

c) Highly developed technology, which is applied, among others, for production of sport suits, facilities and equipment- for example, bicycles, motorcycles and cars, and of modern sports infrastructure, which requires almost billion-dollar expenditures.

d) Highly effective and attractive commercialization of sport.

    Sport Doping as a Necessary Stimulator of Sport Development

Probably one of the last besides professionalization and the abovementioned commercialization and technologization attempts at accelerating development of sport will be abolition of a ban on sport doping by sports authorities and penal codes in several countries. Its negation has mainly irrational, baseless and mythologized that is, mythical foundations of secular character It inevitably leads to coming into being of a "grey area" of doping, what has already resulted in tragic deaths of young cyclists (for example, of Joachima Halupczok), shortened lives of, among others, former Bulgarian, Turkish or Soviet weightlifters or painful lasting medical complications e.g., of hormonal character or concerning a liverat an advanced age.

It is said that inevitable harmfulness of forbidden doping or undermining the principle of equal chances supposedly valid in sport resulting from using doping are also myths (but myths of secular character). The aim of activity in competitive sport, record oriented sport, professional sport, spectacular sport, Olympic sport, top level sport, elite sport or marketable sport especially in the time of preparations is increasing one's own chances in confrontation with rivals as much as it is possible. It is achieved thanks to, among others, innovatory coaching methods which have not been disclosed yet, purchasing the best athletes, employing the most excellent coaches, introduction of the newest and the most expensive technological solutions which are unaffordable for other teams. Application of sport doping which is forbidden nowadays, but which be probably permitted in the futures going to contribute not only to possible and maybe radical increase of chances of competing athletes and teams, but also to development of particular sports.

Statements about high harmfulness of doping e.g., of pharmacological doping -which are presented in papers and during conferences, are also a myth. There is no certainty regarding that issue. In that case we have at most to do with a working hypothesis, because there has not been done any empirical research concerning using doping by children (and it will probably never happen), which could affirm or falsify that myth and we have to do with a metaphysical supposition. Abolition of a ban on doping implies also necessary and competent medical care pharmacological one as well as that provided by doctors fostering optimization of sports results and simultaneously neutralizing its harmful influence. That type of doping is going to significantly contribute not only to further substantial progress in sports results, but also to significant increase in interest in and attractiveness of sports spectacles and to considerable intensification of financial investment. It means that its skilful use is going to release considerable capacity, endurance and proficiency potentials which have not been used yet. They are going to be objectivised without any harm for health that is, without physical injuries which now are caused by excessively exploitative modern sports training. Nowadays correctly used doping contains the greatest reserves for sports development, which is not only possible, but also necessary. A ban on doping must be abolished and it will certainly be. The sooner it happens, the better it is for sport.

Presently that ban is an anachronistic relict, similarly as the fair play principle, which is sometimes still conceived in a strange and mistaken way as the highest value in contemporary and Olympic sport [12,13]. In sport in its forms which are considered in this paper all normative ethical systems are, at most, of secondary or tertiary importance in relation to rules of a particular discipline. Those rules and not variously (pluralistically, subjectivistically, relationally, relativistically, discretionarily or panthareisticallyas fluent and changeable) conceived demands of normative ethics (including fair play values) determine principles of conduct during sports competition, including Olympic agon [14]. Each institutionalized sport must be legally approved (together with its regulations) that is, registered together with particular institutions which are connected with it and professions which are planned by it by proper National Court Registers.

Pharmacological institutions are going to optimize doping in the qualitative sense and, taking into account their own reputation and possible enormous profits, compete in creation and providing proper (that is, tested) doping substances, similarly as they do in the case of drugs which are necessary in pharmacological therapies applied by doctors. The supply of defective or just harmful substances on the market is going (what is obvious) similarly as in the case of other past and possible pharmacological cases to result in serious legal sanctions, which can even ruin pharmacological producers, provided for by regulations of the Penal Code, the Civil Code and the Administrative Procedure Code of a given country which has registered that substance, a country where a harm has been done or a country a harmed athlete comes from. A similar responsibility is going to rest with hospitals and surgeons who will decide for an operation connected with genetic engineering doping as well as with those hospitals and doctors who will make, for example, unfortunate blood transfusion [9,11]. The abovementioned cases are going to be connected with the same legal consequences as in the case of a defective plastic surgery.

The existing anti-doping institutions, such as the World AntiDoping Agency, the American Anti-Doping Agency as well as other anti-doping commissions and the connected ultramodern laboratories, are going to change their professional profile radically. They will not prosecute athletes who use doping anymore. They will hunt down unfair producers and distributors as well as other bidders of various forms of doping, because they will examine content of doping substances placed on the market and, if it is possible, issue permissions for selling and distributing them. They will also examine, certainly more thoroughly, athletes themselves that is, their organisms in order to find possibly harmful elements and aspects of applied doping. Legal and financial penalization will, first of all, concern unfair producers and other bidders of doping dangerous for health. Financial penalization will especially take the form of compensations paid athletes whose health has been put at risk. Hence potential wrongdoers will be hunted not only by public and transnational institutions examining content of offered doping substances, but also by athletes themselves and their employers, because they will be interested in the highest possible quality of offers and services from the field of doping and if necessary in the highest possible restitution more than anyone else.

Such a solution can lead not only to optimal eradication of harmful effects of doping, but also to a further progress in sporting results and to making sports spectacles more attractive and profitable. It requires introduction of proper legal regulations, what sooner or later will indubitably be made. Initiation of such changes will result in avalanche (concerning all possible legal subjects) and universal legalization of doping. Doping is the future of sport and the presented text is also a form of encouragement for its development, controlling its quality and supporting pro-doping attitudes. Nowadays doping can be divided into the following forms:

a) When it is incompetently prepared, badly chosen and incorrectly applied, it is irreparably harmful for the organism;

b) When it is correctly chosen, prepared and applied, it stimulates the human organism without causing its present or future dysfunctions for challenges connected with breaking new records.

An example of the second is situation is provided by doping used by a remarkable cyclist Luis Armstrong, who led his ailing organism exhausted by fighting cancer to the greatest successes in history of contemporary cycling without any further damage to health. It refers also to covert doping in the form of antiasthmatic drugs which was successfully tested during at least two last winter Olympic Games in 2010 and 2014 and in the winter season 2016/2017 it was overdosed by Norwegian female and male ski runners (over dosed that is, unlawfully applied).

Verner Moller points out that the most common argument against doping substances are their supposed anti-health qualities, whereas as he writes sugars, salts, vitamins or minerals which are included in them have a positive effect on the human organism [15]. It obviously undermines legitimacy of an orthodoxy negative (mythical) attitude to doping. It has also turned out that (the abovementioned) supposed doping or covert doping based on anti-asthmatic drugs does not have a negative effect on the human organism too (similarly as doping substances used by Luis Armstrong). V Moller emphasized also that the final definition deciding what is doping and what is not doping has not been formulated yet. According to my opinion, such a definition will never take its final shape. He points also out that institution which have been founded for this purpose cannot conduct a coherent, consistent, logical campaign and provide it with a suitable justification.

Nota bene, doping has the same meaning, assumption and aim as sports coaching that is, using abilities or reserves included in the human organism to the maximal degree. It can contribute to sporting successes in another way than excessive increase in training load. Considerations on harmfulness of forbidden doping in the context of intense and devastating training and sporting exploitation of young organisms of athletes practicing competitive, record oriented, spectacular or Olympic sport have an undercurrent of false altruism and hypocritical care [16].

a) By 1914 realization of the Olympic idea had consumed a great part of Pierre de Coubertin's huge fortune. The First Word War, unfortunate investments and stock manipulations brought the baron to financial ruin, radical lowering of living standards and a resulting necessity of giving up social work in the International Olympic Committee. Many years later, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of its activity, there was organized fundraising for "Pierre de Coubertin’s Fund". Fifty thousand Swiss Francs were collected that way and used for supporting his family. In spite of that, Coubertin's material situation was very difficult. It was the reason why he contributed for 14.000 Deutsche Marks to issuing a recommendation concerning publishing of the official IOC's bulletin in Berlin and placing the Olympic Institute there. Unfortunately from the historical viewpoint he permanently coupled universal values of Olympism with the then Nazi ideology. It also exposed his duplicity and moral hypocrisy He refused athletes the right for remuneration for sporting activity, but he made use of his achievements connected with sport and the Olympic legend to obtain marks for him. At the end of his life striving for guaranteeing his wife's and daughter's livelihood he, among others, applied for getting a chair in the University in Lausanne (sic! In spite of the fact that he was only a bachelor) and for a position of an administrative director of the Suez Company [17] in spite of the fact that he was a "professional" aristocrat.

b) For example, volleyball players and their care providers are aware of health hazards connected with competitive sport and, in spite of that, they continue their careers. Dr. Robert Smigielskia traumatologist and an othopedist, the director of the medical mission of the Polish Olympic Committee during several Olympic Games maintains, talking about volleyball players from Olympic teams, that "Achilles tendons and ankles are most at risk, then a knee-joint with a quadriceps, a spine, and shoulders. 99.9% of the present basketball stars are going to come to a doctor with their injuries" [18]. He also laments that the most famous athletes are maximally exploited in a way which is too destructive for their organisms and he doubt whether it is profitable "to be a star for money they earn. It is after all too low prices for impaired Achilles tendons, knees and spine after the end of the career". He points out that he has "several patients who are in danger that they will have to use a prosthetic knee or who barely get up from a chair and wonder if it was worth it"

c) Avery Brundage obstinately and consequently following Baron Pierre de Coubertin's example defended the idea of amateurism in the Olympic movement. He was the man who divided athletes, it seemed that finally, into amateur athletes (pure and noble in their intentions, focusing on the non- financial essence of sport) and into professional athletes "gladiators" in pursuit of "dough", treating noble, autotelic sports competition in an instrumental way unworthy of an Olympic athlete: as a means of growing wealthy. The latter were treated by him according to his assumptions as second- class athletes. He forbade them participation in the Olympic Games. A famous event connected with that issue preclusion of an outstanding Austrian Alpine skier Karl Schranz, who without any sanctions had taken part in other most important competitions for amateurs and professionals, from the winter Olympic Games in Sapporo in 1972 had a spectacular and soulless, inhuman and non-humanistic character [19].

d) In the times of the Cold War, before the carnival of Solidarity started in Poland and the Berlin Wall was demolished in 1989, competitive, record oriented, spectacular sport had been treated in socialist countries as a form of amateur sport [20]. Athletes from those countries did not get monthly remunerations for practicing sport. They were paid for fictitious full-time jobs in the army, the militia, the mining or the steelmaking industry and in many other production plants. They got there their wages and they dealt only with sport. In the formal sense they were amateurs, who after a supposed day-long work came to practice and (in supposed days off) went to sports camps as well as to competitions. In fact they did nothing but practiced sport on the highest national, European and world level. During the Olympic games, world championships or European championships they vanquished athletes from Western countries that is, real amateurs from Western countries, who, unlike their counterparts from socialist states, really worked and earned a living in non-sport companies and only after day-long drudgery, really tired, started their hard training. They were basically the only athletes meeting requirements of amateurism demanded by various sports organizations until and in the times of Avery Brundage. The abovementioned forms of competition did not allow for participation of professional athletes from Western countries, who like, for example, boxers, hockey players or basketball players achieved a much higher level that their colleagues real amateurs.

Hypocrisy concerning relations amateur - professional was in a given case universal and especially unjust for professionals from Western countries. They were those who were not admitted to international and global amateur competitions including the Olympic games unlike covert professionals (in fact, real professionals) from socialist countries. Authorities of the International Olympic Committee were, of course, aware of that real hypocrisy and of resulting social injustice. It means that they favoured totalitarianism, an anti-democratic socialist system and enslavement of supposed amateurs coming from there. However, it suited them to maintain that solely amateurs come from socialist countries to take part in the games. They supported and continued Coubertin's idea of amateurism, but they did it in an Orwellian context in the form of pseudoamateurism. It was utilized by totalitarian governments of socialist states, which sent professionals in the strict sense of the word to sporting events and paid them for practicing sport as if they were amateurs that is, a pittance; almost nothing in comparison with remunerations of Western professional. Exploitation was in that case absurdly ruthless and soulless (for example as Jerzy Kulej told Polish boxers got 20 USD per person for winning a gold medal during the Olympic games in Tokyo in 1964).It was a downright extreme display of ravenous hunger for surplus value, a proof of the peak voracity of the government of one of socialist countries.

A statement by Artur Pasko is worth adding. He wrote that at the beginning of the 1970s "Polish athletes won competitions of the highest repute, during the Olympic games, world championships and European championships. They achieved a high level in various sports. Officially they were amateurs, but in fact their status was disputable. In the West they were called "state amateurs" that is, the state provided them a livelihood. Officially they worked in production plants; in fact they dealt only with sport. On the example of the sport which was the most popular in the country football we see that their financial status, if compared with that of their counterparts from Western countries, was low. An excellent player of "Gornik" Zabrze, Jan Banas, recalls that for a victory over Manchester City in the final of the Cup Winners Cup Polish players were promised 300 dollars per persons and Englishmen were to get 12 thousand pounds then".

Nota bene, when in 1973 I was taking part in at wo-week student tour to England during which we were visiting London (for example, the British Museum for several days) and its surroundings (for example, the royal Windsor Castle, Stratford on Avon including William Shakespeare's house and the Oxford University) and in 1975 (when I took part in a month-and-a-half international student work camp in a Guinness hop farm) one British pound equalled 5 USD. A prize for winning the cup was extremely high then. After having paid each British footballer 60 thousand dollars (that is, 12 thousand pounds) about a million USD in total the authorities of the British club still had a multiple of that sum at their disposal. Polish authorities simply robbed their athletes. They paid those 300 instead of 60 thousand USD per person!!! (p. 256). It is just a good example reliably illustrating moral superiority of socialism over capitalism. Moreover, it is worth pointing out that when it was proposed to sign contracts with athletes, who would include regulation of duties of each party in a form close to the Western model of professionalism, they were described as "a synonym of exploitation of man" [21].

The main aim of such a type of activity as it is pointed out in the main text certainly is not cultivation of any autotelic values, but a variously conceived sporting success. Physical and mental capacities, multi perceptively understood health is in the discussed form of sport only instrumental values. Moral, religious, political, ideological convictions can at most play an additional and secondary role, but only on condition that they have turned out to be useful for the course of competition and realization of its main aim. Legalization of doping is going to make it possible to avoid such situations like in Norwegian crosscountry skiing, where there is present covert pharmacological doping officially sanctioned by international sports unions, antidoping institutions and supported by legislation and Norwegian authorities [22].

Moreover, it is a fact and such a situation will probably last for a long time (maybe forever) that there is a deficit, lack of full knowledge about properties of doping. It refers to its differentiated, positive and negative, influence on a human individual. The latter manifests itself when homemade doping is badly prepared: hastily, without proper laboratory facilities and without adequate testing (what often happens nowadays). It is also more and more often noticed that doping can influence beneficially on human health or in a way which in the end turns out not to be significant if we compare it with harmfulness of super-intense training and increased exploitative fights, matches, races and other forms of competition during a sport season. They cause and fix mental, social and physical destruction of an athlete. They permanently devastate his organism changing it too often in a wreck. I strongly disagree with a ban on doping and especially with justifying it by referring to moral arguments. The issues of using doping according to my opinion should be settled clearly and unequivocally solely by legal norms being in force in particular communities and, in the second place, by regulations of particular sports organization and rules of particular sports. Transparency of legal regulations is indispensable and necessary, because what is not forbidden is permitted.

If doping (or covert doping) is openly banned by law, then it is possible without any controversies of relativistic character to proclaim that an athlete using covert doping or forbidden doping breaks the law and should be subjected to suitable legal procedures, regardless the content of sports directives, regulations and rules. If doping is forbidden only by principles referring to a particular sport, a kind and extent of punishment can be determined by a proper commission of an interested sports club, union, organization or federation. That type of sanctions has also legal character regarding the fact that activity in the field of a definite discipline of competitive sport, record oriented sport, professional sport, spectacular sport, Olympic sport, top level sport, elite sport or marketable sport (and of the connected rules of procedure) must be institutionalized and accepted by a proper court register on the basis of the Administrative Procedure Code which is in force in a given country. Hence, in a sense, we have to do with:

a) Indirect penalization resulting from rules of a definite sports organization, sanctioned by law being in force in a given country that is, by administrative law;

b) A direct sanctions that is, punishment resulting, first of all, from regulations of the penal code like, for example, in Italy or the United States of America. Athletes using doping and persons connected with those operations are treated as criminals on the strength of the penal law.

A possible moral sanction has no significance in that case, because:

a) It is secondary and ancillary in its relation to legal provisions,

b) It results from assumptions of normative ethics, whose character is pluralistic, relativistic, changeable, and fluent [3,14] as well as discretionary (that is, ambiguous), what undermines and neutralizes possible purposefulness and efficiency of its influence (compare the above argument with the content of all parts of a joint publication Sport in the Global Society edited by AJ Schneider [23], and especially with a statement by C Tambourine [24].

There has also appeared an interesting, albeit surprising, conception putting in doubt a necessity of regulating sports activity by law and of using connected penalizations such. It refers to the above mentioned Claudio Tambourine, who points out (and even "believes") that various forms of social activity including sport "have a life of their own and often develop in ways we cannot always judge, at least on first sight, as desirable" [25]. However, I am not of an opinion that Tamburini's rudimentary statement deserves any application especially in the fields of competitive sport, record oriented sport, professional sport, spectacular sport and Olympic sport. National and international sports institutions and various connected athletic competitions should be founded and organized on the basis of the existing legislation.

For more Open Access Journals in Juniper Publishers please click on: https://juniperpublishers.com

For more articles in Journal of Physical Fitness, Medicine & Treatment in Sports

please click on: https://juniperpublishers.com/jpfmts/index.php

For more Open Access Journals please click on: https://juniperpublishers.com

Event Management

[newsbfsculptureprize-blog]

BFSP #02 WINNER MARGUERITE HUMEAU AT THE NEW MUSEUM IN NEW YORK

The New Museum presents the first US solo museum exhibition by Marguerite Humeau (b. 1986, Cholet, France), debuting a new installation of sculpture and sound.

Marguerite Humeau, Birth Canal (Installation View), via Adelaide Pacton for Art Observed

“Birth Canal,” the first US solo museum exhibition by Marguerite Humeau (b. 1986, Cholet, France), debuts a new body of sculpture within an installation of light, sound, and scent. Humeau’s work centers on the origins of humankind and related histories of language, love, spirituality, and war. She prefaces each project with a period of intense investigation in which she engages diverse authorities on her chosen subject, including historians, anthropologists, paleontologists, zoologists, explorers, linguists, and engineers. Through her interdisciplinary, speculative inquiry, Humeau enriches her own thinking as an artist and researcher, and refashions historical quests in ways that reflect the technological age in which we live.

For “Birth Canal,” Humeau studies the origins of Venus figurines, prehistoric female goddess statuettes found throughout the world. Her research expands on the idea that early modern humans may have ingested animal brains for their psychoactive effects: in this theory, Venus figurines functioned as recipes, marking out an anatomical guide for shamans and those seeking spiritual ecstasy through altered consciousness. In her installation, Humeau envisions a scene from 150,000 years ago, when Mitochondrial Eve, the most recent matrilineal ancestor common to all humans, is estimated to have lived. Ten digitally rendered sculptures, meticulously realized in cast bronze or carved stone, beckon the viewer into a dark space that smells faintly sweet and mineral-like, its odor inspired by bodily liquids associated with birth. Formally ambiguous, the sculptures resemble both brains and Venus figures, and represent shamanic women of different ages. Seen and heard in an ominous state of polyphonic trance—part convocation, part choral lament—they prophesy the future extinction of their offspring, humankind. With allusions to animism, totemism, and spiritual travel, Humeau’s installation creates a forum for these imagined voices and premonitions, underscoring the brevity of human existence relative to cosmic and geologic time.

Following its debut at the New Museum, Humeau’s exhibition will travel to Kunstverein Hamburg in February 2019, and Museion, Bolzano in September 2019.

The exhibition is curated by Natalie Bell, Associate Curator.

Marguerite Humeau (b. 1986, Cholet, France) lives and works in London. Recent solo exhibitions include Tate Britain (2017); Museum Haus Konstruktiv, Zurich (2017); Schinkel Pavillon, Berlin (2017); Les Abattoirs Musée FRAC Occitanie, Toulouse (2017); Nottingham Contemporary, Nottingham, UK (2016); and Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2016). Her work has been included in group exhibitions at the Hayward Gallery, London (2018); Haus der Kunst, Munich (2018); High Line, New York (2017); Kunsthal Charlottenborg, Copenhagen (2017); Manifesta 11, Zurich (2016), Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary, Vienna (2015); the Museum of Modern Art, New York (2014); and elsewhere. Humeau received the Zurich Art Prize in 2017 and the Battaglia Foundry Sculpture Prize in 2018.

SPONSOR

Lead support for this exhibition is provided by the International Leadership Council of the New Museum.

Artist commissions at the New Museum are generously supported by the Neeson / Edlis Artist Commissions Fund.

This exhibition is made possible with support provided by the Toby Devan Lewis Emerging Artists Exhibitions Fund.

Additional support is provided by the Cultural Services of the French Embassy.

We are grateful to the Artemis Council of the New Museum.

Thanks to CLEARING, New York/Brussels and Fonderia Artistica Battaglia, Milan.

LINKS 

extract from:

https://www.newmuseum.org/exhibitions/view/marguerite-humeau

http://artobserved.com/2018/09/new-york-marguerite-humeau-birth-canal-at-the-new-museum-through-january-6th-2019/

[youngbloodinitiative]

Announcing “Wake Up & Smell the Tear Gas”

Wake up and smell the tear gas!

After a few months of postponement, here we are, our latest project “Wake Up and Smell the Tear Gas!” exploring, reflecting what art could do in this moment of turmoil online, offline, in the UK, Germany, Finland, anywhere you want to join us in this ongoing research on what we could contribute to our society with our skills and passion in the creative arts. 

Started in November last year, we have had regular discussions with our artists in different places in the world on this subject of art and activism. 

Over the next few months, we will present a public programme to engage with artists and the public in different places to join us in this continual journey with talks, regular online discussions, workshops, exhibitions and performances. Beginning with talks, exchanges and workshops in Tampere, Finland in mid-August, exhibitions, residencies in London, UK in mid-September, we will have different events online and offline for you to participate and view activism in different angles! You can join our regular discussions, host your own talks/ events/ performances/ workshops physically or online through our channels! More details will be announced soon.

The concept

Once again people from all over the world are pouring into the streets to demand better and more dignified ways of living. As we stand at the crossroads once more, we have to ask about the role of art and its power to help social causes and bring about change.

The question is broad and more complicated than it seems to be. It is not only about questioning the power of art, but about exploring how art can change things on a social level. Or in short, it is an exploration of the relationship between art and activism, from its more open and clamorous forms to its more subtle and indistinctive ways.  

Art as activism is not a new idea, artists and cultural workers have for long taken upon themselves to use artistic expression as a way to bring awareness and effect change. There have been great works of art addressing important issues: social & racial inequality, domestic and international injustice, discrimination, economic imbalance, etc. The level of success varies widely, while many artists have given shape and visibility to previously hidden problems and their underlying structures, some have had success that is usually confined to the art circle, where their work is admired and respected but without a lasting impact in the world as large.

For this project, we are exploring what the role of art is in changing social attitudes and structures, and what you can add to this moment as an artist. Our title ‘Wake Up and Smell the Tear Gas’ refers to a necessary moment of reflection where we can be honest about our previous attempts to change things and the ways in which we can try again. We are asking for honesty and compassion, an awareness of what is happening around the world right now and our responsibility as artists to keep on trying to alleviate the struggles of other human beings. Thus we are not asking for grand plans to change society but rather for new propositions and experimental ideas and how an artist can be an agent in the real world, or simply questioning, exploring and challenging the notion and general perception of art and activism, what they mean.

Programme Overview

Inspired, rather than restricted, by the Covid-19 situation around the world, “Wake Up & Smell the Tear Gas” will take a different direction and shape to our previous projects. While there are uncertainties around the looming of second waves, YBI reflects on our role as a cultural organisation and our social responsibility. We believe it is not ideal to create occasions for big crowds regardless of when the second wave would arrive. We see this as an opportunity to turn inwards and focus on artist development, foster a stronger artist community despite the physical distances among us. Besides, many of us have started developing a habit of connecting with each other digitally since the lockdown. Rather than creating a communication barrier with those close to us, we are using this opportunity and new habit to shorten the distances among artists in different countries and continents. Creating occasions for exchanges, discussions, collaborations with those who are usually too far away for us to work with. This inspires a new format that is open, flexible that allows broad participation in different corners of the world.

How it works

Connecting The UK, Finland, Germany and the virtual world, “Wake Up and Smell the Tear Gas” will present an extensive public programme intended to foster exchanges, discussions and explorations among international artist communities, engage and encourage the public to reflect on their roles in this turbulent time through residencies, workshops and performances in Pispala, Finland; space take-over, residencies, performances and talks in London, the UK; music performances in Berlin, Germany; talks and ongoing discussions online from mid-August for a duration of 6 months.

How you can participate anywhere you are:

- Join our ongoing discussions on art and activism

- Host a performance/ talk event (physical and/ or online)

- Curate an exhibition (physical and/or online)

- Make a workshop ------------------------

This project is curated by Candy Choi and Jimena Mendizábal del Moral, in collaboration with Hirvitalo Centre for Contemporary Art in Pispala.  The poster is designed by Gareth A Hopkins

[torixus]

How Reading Positively Affects Your Brain, Mood, and Relationships

  If you love reading, then you'll know how incredible it is to get lost in a work of fiction. Once you're in the zone, it's as if you're transported into a dreamlike state where you can touch, taste, and feel the surroundings and characters that are being described. You can breeze through a good book, unaware even that you're reading words or turning page after page. A good story can affect you and stay with you, long after you've closed the cover. I had just finished reading Calypso by David Sedaris when I realized that the book hadn't just helped me pass some time during lockdown, but it had brought me joy, laughter, and a sense of calm amongst the storm of this new normal.

Does reading bring more than a little escapism? Is it, in fact, a mindfulness tool for those who find meditation too frustrating for a mind that's forever wandering? I called on five experts to reveal exactly what is happening to our brains, mood, mental health, and more when we read a good book.

What Reading Does to Our Brains

Reading plays such a crucial part in learning when we are young—surely, those benefits don't go away once we're older? According to the University of Rochester, our brains are fully formed by age 25, but can reading as adults help keep our brains fit and healthy? In a word, yes. "The benefits of reading on our cognition are well-documented and are associated with increased cognitive function, working memory and higher-order thinking such as creative problem-solving," says learning expert and founder of tassomai.com, Murray Morrison. "Put simply, the sustained, gentle effort of building images in your head as you read keeps your brain fitter than more passive forms of entertainment, like film or TV."

And where a film is often over in 90 minutes, a novel may take days or weeks to complete. "his exercises the memory and gives us time to unconsciously speculate on the directions the plot may take, stimulating the imagination," Morrison explains.

Put simply, the sustained, gentle effort of building images in your head as you read keeps your brain fitter than more passive forms of entertainment, like film or TV.

In fact, reading goes beyond just stimulating your imagination. Natalia Ramsden, the founder of brain optimization clinic SOFOS Associates in London, explains that "when we read certain things, the part of our brain that is activated is the same part as if we were doing those things. Fiction acts as a sort of simulator and this has numerous implications for the way we ‘exercise’ parts of the brain, form new synapses, and strengthen existing ones." This helps to explain why a sad story can leave us feeling emotionally fraught, whereas a thriller could have us on the edge of our seat.

Reading is something that is worth factoring into your daily routine, just as you would brushing your teeth or doing yoga. "Reading is an activity which can keep the brain young—with every page turned or chapter devoured, the brain is working to decipher, store and retain more information," notes Dr. Emer MacSweeney, consultant neuroradiologist at Re:Cognition Health. "Reading provides mental exercise, which is very important in helping to protect the brain against cognitive decline in diseases such as Alzheimer’s. [It] heightens brain function and can help parts of the brain connect. Your brain is a learning machine and it needs to keep learning to optimize performance and improve your memory and thinking ability."

"Reading is more neurobiologically challenging than other methods of gathering information, such as speech or listening," adds MacSweeney. "It helps the brain process information more effectively both verbally and visually."

Not only is reading a good exercise for your brain, but it also helps help you relax and the act of it reduces stress in your body and mind, which can lead to improved mental and physical health. MacSweeney says that reading before bed is a good idea to help you unwind and prepare your body for sleep—just be mindful of reading good old fashioned hard copies instead of e-books, since the light from them can prevent your brain from entering relaxation mode.

 7 Ways Lack of Sleep Can Seriously Mess With Your Life (and Health)

What Reading Does to Our Mood and Mental Health

"As an avid reader, I am surely biased when I say there is nothing more delicious, indulgent, or satisfying than becoming lost in a good book," says Ramsden. "Page after page, soaking up spectacular writing bringing to life worlds unknown and characters misunderstood...much more is happening for us than sheer entertainment." She explains that getting lost in a good book provides a form of escapism for many and in doing that, the act of losing yourself in a book can help to lower cortisol levels—the primary stress hormone that can wreaks havoc on our bodies when spiked.

Morrison agrees, saying that reading must be celebrated for its positive mental health impact. "Where so much of our free time is spent at the mercy of dopamine-inducing technology products and cliff-hanger reality TV, the opportunity to sit quietly, comfortably, and lose oneself in a book is a valuable mental balm," he says. "Our brains are simply exhausted by 2020s life. Developing the habit of reading—and reading well—can not only be enlightening, transporting, and inspiring, but can genuinely make our lives happier, more balanced, and more worth living."

It's during times of crisis that reading can be the quiet support we all need. Dr. Maite Ferrin, Consultant Psychiatrist at Re:Cognition Health makes the point that "in crisis, we all need some reassurance and something to hold on to—this is for our personal mental well-being."

Ferrin suggests that now is a good time to take a walk down memory lane. "Reading books from childhood serves as a reminder that things will get back to “normal” or the way we used to like them," he says.

What Reading Does for Relationships

Reading may be a solitary hobby, but it's one that can reap rewards when it comes to our relationships. "Reading fiction develops us emotionally," says Ramsden. "According to Keith Oatley at the University of Toronto, reading makes us think and feel in different ways. As we bond with the fictional characters, we are learning to better understand people both on the pages and off."

She references a team of researches led by Chun-Ting Hsu at the Free University of Berlin, who coined the term "fiction feeling hypothesis," describing how narratives with emotional content actually encourage readers to feel empathy, "activating a special neural network located in the anterior insula and mid-cingulate cortex regions of the brain."

Reading makes us think and feel in different ways. As we bond with the fictional characters, we are learning to better understand people both on the pages and off.

What Different Genres and Types of Books Do to the Brain

Getting lost in a book can have a powerful effect on us. "Reading can be a virtual experience for the brain, so the genre of books we choose to read can have a serious impact on our mood and emotions, giving different virtual experiences," says Dr. Dimitrios Paschos, consultant psychiatrist at Re:Cognition Health. "A book can evoke various emotions, such as happiness, relief, anger, and sadness." 

Below, Paschos reveals how different genres and types of books can affect us—plus, we share some of our favorite book recommendations for each genre.

Thrillers

"Reading thrillers adds excitement and can help us step away from our own problems, making us realize that there are people in worse situations than ourselves."

Already hooked, right?

Literary Classics

"Literary books stimulate different parts of our brain and give them an intense workout."

Happy Stories

"Happy books can be highly beneficial to mood and can be a good distraction when you're struggling with the complexities of life, giving hope and assurance that a 'happy ever after' can exist."

"Reading nostalgic books, such as those we read and enjoyed as young adults or teens can take us back to a happier period of our life. Because the book has already been read, there is an element of comfort, safety, and reassurance; you are familiar with the characters, the contents, and, of course, the ending, so uncertainty is eliminated. 

For people struggling emotionally throughout this pandemic, reading books about nostalgia can be highly beneficial (and the smell of an old book is just wonderful!)"

Biographies and Autobiographies

"This genre can be hugely beneficial to the intellect as well as emotions. They are history lessons as told through the lives of extraordinary people, teaching us life lessons—the highs, lows, and failures. They can give us validation of our own successes and challenges, strength to face our failures, and the confidence to make self-improvements."

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[jamesdegraves-blog]

Empowerment Articles.

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Susinum was a particular much-loved, and also the reasonable nature presents that in old opportunities, some form of uniformity and standard was anticipated. Undoubtedly, the Outbreak instantly faded away as soon as his term spread (though some recommend since draft beer was actually boiled in the developing method, this would certainly possess been actually more secure in comparison to water, which had actually previously spread the disease.) When Saint Arnold passed away in 640, the citizens of his hometown lugged his physical body coming from Remiremont to Metz for reburial in their congregation. The old all-natural theorist, Pliny the Elderly, files blossomy fragrances such as iris, brutal nuts and lilies in his Nature as being used in abundance. Throughout various cultures in old times, the body and also having sex was both marvelled at and motivated. Pliny the Senior citizen illustrated an Egyptian perfume that kept its own scent after 8 years, and also the early Greek naturalist, Dioscorides, acknowledged that Egyptian fragrance was far beyond that brought in through other civilisations. Immediately the majority of all of them are actually underpriced but as soon as the word ventures out that silver is about to produce a rally, the situaltion is heading to modify. The old Egyptians placed crowns as well as blooms at the entryway to burial places of relatived, much like the way in which our company enhance cemetery tombs. Apply this approach at least 4 - 5 opportunities each day as this will certainly be very valuable for you to cope with the nearsightedness problem. The terrific elegance of the book from Esther is that she advances off a horrified young adult to a world political figure in a series of thoroughly performed techniques. Baseding on most old theorists, this character kind was actually looked at to be the ultimate masculine model - a guy sturdy as well as positive, but likewise reasonable as well as prudent.

[stormyrecords-blog]

new arrivals 7-28-17

we have a restock on all your favorite soaps!!! saponify herbal infused soaps are back in the scents of 4 THIEVES, BAY RUM, PATCHOULI, ORANGE PATCHOULI, NAG CHAMPA, BERGAMOT GRAPEFRUIT, and more!! new shape, same weight - easier to hold in your hands!!  holy cows do they smell great!! . items in stock friday - july 28th 2017 PORTER RICKSAnguilla Electrica2LP on   TRESOR  $27.99Double LP version. First full-length in seventeen years from the Chain Reaction/Force Inc. legends. Ever since their initial singles were released in the mid-1990s and became international calling cards for the Chain Reaction label, the Porter Ricks duo of Thomas Köner and Andy Mellwig have represented that crucible point in which techno music leaked into new social environments and became the background music for cutting-edge cultural critique. Their submerged "scuba" sound, presented in dark tone colors and reverberating to infinity, is now instantly identifiable as one of the "soundmarks" of Berlin club culture. Just as importantly, it is still a palpable aftershock of a pre-millenial genre explosion that saw deep dub, shimmering post-rock, abstract hip-hop, and art-damaged noise all drinking from the same well of inspiration. For proof of Porter Ricks's enduring legacy, look no further than the fact that "dub techno" is now a stylistic movement that has expanded far beyond the confines of Berlin and the Basic Channel/Chain Reaction label alliance (where Mellwig's mastering skills also played a starring role). Lurid traces of Porter Ricks's aesthetic can now be found in the work of producers like Andy Stott and Miles Whittaker, showing the potential for the duo's unique "aquatic" techniques to be applied to a variety of different musical contexts. Their new LP on Tresor, Anguilla Electrica, may be their first full-length release in seventeen full years, but it radiates with confidence and with a clarity and intensity rarely seen in a world so over-saturated with communications noise. It's made clear at once that it's a continuation of a sonic ideal rather than a tribute to what has already been achieved: the duo is not idly sitting back while their newer acolytes do their talking for them. This new LP is well worth the wait and is a life-affirming one in an uncertain and perilous time, drowning out daily anxieties like a rush of incoming surf -- yet it is far more invigorating than relaxing. True to the Porter Ricks's tradition, it will be just as exciting hearing this music as it will be to experience what new cultural mutations it leaves in its wake. TELAIO MAGNETICOLive 75   LP  $27.99Black Sweat Records present an expanded reissue of Telaio Magnetico's Live 75, including unreleased tracks from the super group's only tour in 1975. Telaio Magnetico was composed of Franco Battiato, Lino Capra Vaccina, Juri Camisasca, Mino Di Martino, Roberto Mazza, and Terra Di Benedetto. In the mid '70s, the Italian underground scene seemed to mature an existential priority of yearning toward a new psychological universe, with a firm idea to colonize an uncharted space of a necessary and infinite path of spiritual redemption. In this context, the short experience of Telaio Magnetico was born from the confluence of the Battiato's experimental efforts, in works such as Sulle Corde Di Aries (1973), Clic (1974), and M.elle Le "Gladiator" (1975), and the Albergo Intergalattico Spaziale's new esoteric electronics. A mosaic of metamorphic sounds and frequencies of unfamiliar constellations, the music of Telaio is an imaginary trimurti of "energy-cosmos-mind". Synths and Lowrey organs draw sidereal labyrinths and landscapes, scanned to infinity by a harmonic percussions arsenal. Whispering and radical improved vocals are lost as delusional fugues in centrifugal vortices and, at the same time, seem to offer a compendium of religious chants which evoke Tibetan choruses, Indian pujas or the Gregorian tradition. Reemerging sometimes as Sufi cadences and relaxations, or pastoral-tribal elements on which the chamber carpet of oboe blows like Arabs, Egyptians, or Moroccans pifferos. That traced is not only a galactic river, but also a Mediterranean circumnavigation: a unique creative moment that, in addition to the references with the German kosmische music and British space-rock, seems to be perfumed by the influence of Gurdjieffian mystic and even had roots in the minimalist drones of Terry Riley and La Monte Young, also drawing parallels to the contemporary research of authors such as Alvin Curran and the following explorations of Futuro Antico. Pharoah Sanders: Izipho Zam  LP $26.99Everland Jazz present a reissue of Pharoah Sanders's Izipho Zam (My Gifts), originally released in 1973. "Popular and increasingly in demand, Izipho Zam (My Gifts) falls into the 'rare' category among record collectors and is a gift to fans of master Pharoah Sanders. This demand is partially galvanized by the fact that 'Prince Of Peace' has become an inspirational mine to hip hop artists and is much loved by samplers. Izipho Zam is Pharoah Sander's third album, initially recorded in January 1969, it was originally released on the Strata-East label in 1973. On Izipho Zam, Sanders and his band take you on a journey into another world providing an amazing experience! Passionate, intense and free, Sanders saxophone especially, is exquisite, pouring out its soul telling a story of its own. Hailed by peers as the best tenor saxophonist in the world, Pharoah Sanders is a legend in jazz music. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of free jazz and is the mentor of jazz giant, saxophonist Robert Stewart. Born in 1940 into a musical family as Farell Sanders in Arkansas, he first played the clarinet before switching to tenor saxophone in high school. After high school, he moved to California to study music and art. In 1961, Sanders moved to New York where he often played gigs with a number of free jazz dignitaries including Billy Higgins, Sun Ra and Don Cherry. His name 'Pharoah' was given to him by Sun Ra, who was his bandleader then. It was during one of these gigs that he met John Coltrane who became his mentor. While playing with Coltrane, Sanders inevitably rose to prominence due to his very distinctive tenor saxophone sound." --Rachel Kinoti Licensed by Strata-East Recordings. CENTURIONS, THEBullwinkle Part II: Surfers' Pajama Party Recorded Live On The U.C.L.A. CampusLP  $26.99Go! Bop! present a reissue of The Centurions's Surfers' Pajama Party Recorded Live On The U.C.L.A. Campus, originally released in 1963. Few acts have a cult reputation such as The Centurians, or The Centurions as they were originally called. In 1967, they changed their name to The Centurians for legal reasons. The main point of interest though is this set of killer tunes. Original pressings fetch prices of $200, and due to their appearance in Pulp Fiction (1994), this band has gained a cult following of younger people who have kept their legacy alive, even bringing them to reunite for a second career. The Centurians are definitely a Californian band. But they seem to come from the darker, windier, and dirtier part of the beach, where only overly tattooed bikers get their willing victims laid and the rough sea craves for the lives of daring surf maniacs. The music is surf rock'n'roll, but it's different to most of the fluffy good time party bands. The bass guitar plays a mean line with all the tunes to give 'em a bent-out-of-shape spine, at which the beats of the drum, the desperately howling saxophone, and the gloomy twangy guitar, get tightened with rusty wire. The performance presented here is excellent. The musicians belong to the best of their genre. The atmosphere is just utterly mysterious, dark, and dusty, and the steaming hot melodies and the fuzzed-out bass and saxophone lines will have you grasping for air. The most popular tracks here are the ones that appeared on Pulp Fiction, "Bullwinkle Pt. II" and "Comanche", which is a famous tune from back in the day (the Pulp Fiction OST features a ravaging version by The Revels). The whole record has this desperate expression, a hunger for life, and a love young fellows from the darker side of town had back then, and still have. A long overdue proper reissue of a long-lost classic. Includes six bonus tracks. VASprigs Of Time: 78s From The EMI Archive 2LP  $26.992017 repress. Originally released in 2008. This is the third in Honest Jon's series of albums exploring the earliest 78s held in the EMI Hayes Archive. Honest Jon's spent two years delving through more than 150,000 78 records in the temperature-controlled steel vaults of EMI's Archive in Hayes, Middlesex. An eccentric survey of the Hayes shelves, Sprigs Of Time is a thirty track compilation featuring material recorded between 1903 and 1957, everywhere from England (Percy Grainger's recording of the title song, sung by Joseph Taylor in 1908) to Japan (the bewilderingly beautiful "Seigaiha", by the Japanese Imperial Palace Band, five years earlier). Organ rolls from Georgia run alongside Tamils impersonating motorized transport, and rumba from Beirut; '40s fado sits next to the songs of Bengali beggars. As with the other Hayes releases, all tracks have been restored at Abbey Road and are beautifully presented here with extensive contemporary photographs. There are recognizable names (Joseph Taylor, the incomparable Fairuz, Mighty Sparrow and an uncredited Rubén González, singing lead vocals on "Rumba Negra") and extraordinary oddities (Vengopal Chari's rather unfunny "Laughing" and the peculiarly affecting hand bells of "Gas All Clear"). Taken out of the library and put back on the turntable, every track here is remarkable; every one worth the saving. Also features: G.U. Hsu, Gamelan Gong, Rizeli Kemenceci Sadik, Ochieng Wa Odinga, Sacasas, Jean Mpia, Jonuzi Me Shoket, Fernando Vilches & Ramon Montoya, Cliff Edwards, Benodini Dassi, Imperial Palace Band, Mr. Ero, Fatma Ben Meddah, Noubar Bey & Party, Ben Simmons, Cantonese Opera, Sam Mayo, Fernando Farinha, Gopal Chunder Singh Roy, Fatma El Chameya Sudaneya, Surat Band (Mr. Razak's), Si Said Ben Ahmed, Malijo & Party, Sexteto Habanero, and A.R.P.. Comes in a deluxe gatefold sleeve with two booklets of photos and notes. DMX KREWStrange Directions 2LP  $29.99Since releasing his last album on Hypercolour in February 2016, You Exist (HYPE 005LP), DMX Krew has not for one moment rested on laurels, releasing two further LPs on the Ekster and Abstract Form labels, as well as EPs and singles for Central Processing Unit, Shipwrec, Revoke, and more. Continuing to remain faithful to the roots of electro, IDM, and the deeper shades of techno, and without compromise, DMX Krew cranks out emotive and brain scrambling electronica at a mighty rate, and never disappoints. Strange Directions is album number 21 from DMX Krew, and lands once more on Hypercolour, the British label that continues to make heady waves in the music scene with genre shifting releases from the likes of Matthew Herbert, Luke Vibert, Gary Gritness, The Cyclist, Outboxx, and A Sagittariun since the release of You Exist. You'll know what kind of ride you are in for from the first few bars of album opener "Snowy Blue"; hypnotizing bass and spatial keys float over dusty micro breaks, produced with an infectious aesthetic that continues over the long player's fifty-five minute tenure. Experimental and expansive joints such as "Odd Chill" and "Strange Directions" sit comfortably alongside funkier techno jams such as "Thin Hype" and "Zero Sum", whilst the melancholic synth sensibilities of tracks like "Hip Hopeless" and "Axial Mode Beat" catches DMX Krew in fine form. Another fine set of highly polished and visionary electronic goodies from one of the scene's most dedicated and consistent players. Comes in a full picture, reverse board jacket; Includes download code. BEACH BULLIES, THEWe Rule The Universe  LP  $22.99LP version. "From 1975 -1979, things were going well for James A. Smith, musically speaking. He was writing prolifically, getting encouragement from his contemporaries -- namely, his friend Robyn Hitchcock of The Soft Boys -- and his band, The Containers, had recorded some promising demos and were playing regular live gigs. But, by January of 1980, The Containers disbanded suddenly, and James was on his own. 'Sod it!' he thought, and, rather than waste time lamenting the situation, he plotted a new course as a solo artist. Armed only with his guitar, a drum machine and his flatmate's girlfriend, Jill Fricker, to sing backup vocals, James forged ahead with his new project: The Beach Bullies. The Beach Bullies somehow manage to sound simultaneously classic and exceptionally ahead of their time. Fans of kindred spirits from the same era, such as The Television Personalities, Young Marble Giants, and yes, The Soft Boys, will find much to admire in The Beach Bullies. On the other hand, their alternating vocals, stripped-down aesthetic and minimal arrangements will also appeal to fans of artists who would emerge much later, such as The Vaselines, The Pastels, Shop Assistants and Small Factory. In their brief time together, The Beach Bullies recorded one full-length LP, We Rule The Universe, on Musclebound Records in 1980, along with a series of demos, and some rough mixes intended for a follow-up release that never came to fruition. These comprehensive additional recordings are all available as digital downloads with purchase of this LP. Original copies of the LP sell for more than $40 on the second-hand market, and the bonus tracks have never been released previously. The LP insert also includes previously unreleased photos of James and Jill from the time of the recordings, along with witty liner notes from James himself, giving the full scoop on how this unique record came to be in the first place. Available again for the first time since 1981 on vinyl." THOMAS, PATThe Elephant Clock of Al Jazari LP  $26.99Recorded live at OTO in May 2015, The Elephant Clock Of Al Jazari comprises four typically genre-defying and sonically dexterous pieces from one of the UK's best pianists. Pat Thomas began playing piano at the age of eight. He studied classical music and reggae was an early interest. Thomas was inspired to take up jazz after seeing legendary pianist Oscar Peterson on television. By 1979, Thomas was performing seriously as an improviser. In 1980, he became a member of Oxford-based group Ghosts with Pete McPhail and Matt Lewis. He has worked with Mike Cooper, Jimmy Carl Black, Thurston Moore, Mats Gustafsson, Evan Parker, Alan Silva, John Zorn, and more. Pat Thomas received the Paul Hamlyn Foundation Award for Composers in 2014. Mastered by Giuseppe Ielasi. Edition of 500. In Thomas's own words: "The title for this album, was inspired by the incredible automatic water clock invented by Badi' al-Zaman ibn al-Razzaz al-Jazari. Al Jazari refers to the fact he was born in Al Jazira which lies between the Tigris and the Euphrates in what is now Northern Iraq. Badi al Zaman means prodigy of the age. He is known by historians of technology as the father of modern robotics. The Elephant Clock at seven meters high is a testament to his engineering genius, it utilizes Greek water raising technology, combined with an Indian elephant, Egyptian phoenix, Arabian figures, Persian carpet and Chinese Dragons celebrating the diversity of cultures in the world. This and other marvels of engineering can be found in his Book of the Knowledge of Ingenious Mechanical Devices translated by Donald Hill (Pakistan Hijra Council). Over 50 devices are mentioned. Amongst them the first analog computer, his remarkable Castle Clock, however, the debt the world owes this Muslim genius is found in his remarkable water raising devices, particularly water raising device number '4' where for the first time a crank connecting rod system is used. The crank is considered to be the most important single mechanical device after the wheel, by 1206 this is found fully developed in Jazari`s machines predating Francesco di Giorgio Martini by three centuries. 'For Al Haytham' is dedicated to the great polymath genius who wrote the great book on vision, the first person to give us a true understanding of how we see. 'Lubb' is an Arabic word meaning innermost consciousness whilst to conclude proceedings 'Done' is loosely based on a well-known standard." ARAGORNNight Is Burning  LP  $29.99There are few bands who can claim to have built their reputation on one single, but such is the situation for Aragorn, formed in Chesire in 1978. They were one of the first acts to sign to Neat Records as the new wave of British heavy metal erupted. But fate conspired to ensure that they only ever released one single, the killer Black Ice/Noonday (1981), which has definitely become something of a cult 45 among aficionados of the genre. Here it is, along with 12 tracks taken from a then unreleased album from 1982-83. A must for anyone into obscure, '70s styled hard-rock, and early metal. RIYL: New wave of British heavy metal, Angel Witch, Motörhead, Witchfynde, Black Sabbath. Remastered sound; Insert with liner notes and photos. LOMBARD, CLAUDEChante LP  $29.99LP version. Sommor Records present the first reissue of Claude Lombard's Chante, originally released in 1969. Presented in the original French edition gatefold artwork. Produced by Roland Kluger (Chakachas, Free Pop Electronic Concept), arranged by Willy Albymoor and recorded at the legendary Madeleine Studios in Brussels. Insert with liner notes by pop connoisseur Don Sicalíptico. RIYL: Stereolab, Broadcast, White Noise, Delia Derbyshire, Astrud Gilberto, Roger Webb Sound. "If you know the 1968 Eurovision song, or the TV kids cartoons tunes which Claude Lombard sang, it will be hard to believe what's happening there... Beautiful pop songs sung in French by this Belgian maverick (who worked with Luciano Berio) swirling upon wonderful '60s abstract-expressionism orchestrations: chimes and ondes Martenots among lovely dream basslines and organ drifting, with a dreamy use of echoes, reverbs and sometimes electronics. There are incredibly beautiful songs here, and probably one of the unique examples of French songs with really gorgeous, untypical sound work, closer to some UK and US proto-psychedelic orchestration in pop world. It was by the time a complete commercial flop... A shame of course considering the quality of compositions offered here by Claude Lombard herself, who have no shame to feel if one compares the elegance of her work to an inspired and electronic version of Michel Legrand... Any serious fan of Broadcast or Stereolab will fall in love forever with this true secret gem, to say the least... And no need to mention the kaleidoscopic design of the cover, mesmerizing and perfectly illustrating the content. Masterpiece here? Hell yes! And you can forget about the cartoon tunes of your lazy childhood..." --Emmanuel Holterbach STONE, CARLElectronic Music From The Seventies And Eighties 3LP  $45.99"This 3LP set contains a selection of seven early works by American composer Carl Stone, all previously unpublished except for 'Shing Kee,' which appeared on the 1992 New Albion CD release, Mom's. Notorious, formerly elusive recordings like 'Sukothai,' 'Shibucho,' and 'Dong Il Jang' exemplify how Stone masterfully guided his art through the transition period when New Music exited the loft scene of the 1970s for a stab at commercial presence in the 1980s, satisfying both impulses by fusing his compositional ambition with systems of live performance that were simultaneously pop savvy, commercial suicide, and technologically and aesthetically forward thinking. His live performance practice, documented here in a carefully restored archival recording of 'Kuk Il Kwan' at The Kitchen in 1981, has merged seamlessly with today's computer-driven methods. The earliest works of this collection, 'LIM' and 'Chao Praya,' realized on the Buchla 200, date to the early 1970s while Stone was a student of James Tenney and Morton Subotnick at CalArts, a rare glimpse of Stone working with purely electronic source material. Liner notes by Carl Stone, Jonathan Gold, Richard Gehr, and Marc Weidenbaum accompany on a gatefold sleeve. Download card is included with a digital-only bonus track, 'Unthaitled' from 1978. Mastered and cut by Rashad Becker. 'Of the serious composers to come out of 1980s California, Carl Stone is the one who has always performed in nightclubs as well as concert halls, for spiky-haired punks as well as the Ph.D-and-ponytail set -- his brand of electro-acoustic bricolage was probably better known among jazz musicians than it was to the blue-haired Monday Evening Concerts crowd.' --Jonathan Gold, from the liner notes." TUNES AT NOONevery thursday at 12 noon in dearborn city hall park at the corner of michigan ave and schaeferone hour of free music - bring your lunch and enjoy some fun in the sun!! 8/3 Libby DeCamp"Libby DeCamp makes dusty folk and American Roots-inspired music with a lyrical edge and a classic three-piece energy, delivered with a haunting vocal closeness that reaches listeners of all kinds. Sweetly soulful "Broken Folk." 8/10 Michael Malis TrioMichael Malis is a pianist and composer based in Detroit, MI. Malis bridges the gap between original composed, complex material and the spontaneity of improvisation. His trio (piano, bass, drums),   featured on his latest album, has toured in the United States and Canada, and in September 2016, they performed at the Detroit International Jazz Festival. 8/17 Viands "Viands is a spontaneous collaboration between two auteurs of Detroit's underground music scene: Joel Peterson and David Shettler. The music they create is a deep, reflective and fearless alternate-reality keyboard meditation that draws on the pair's broad musical vision to explore new vistas.