by Alice Fournier “In a secular age,” writes Ceridwen Dovey in a The NewYorker article, “I suspect that reading fiction is one of the few remaining paths to transcendence.” The article, published in the newspaper’s section ‘Cultural Comments’ and titled, “Can Reading Make You Happier?” had me wondering this exact same question. I don’t remember…
When Painters Flip: Art, but Make It Weird
By Alice Fournier It’s that time of year again, when everything-pumpkin is on the menu. Pumpkin soup (yuck), pumpkin candies (moderately passable), pumpkin seeds… and of course pumpkin carving (definitely passable)! Halloween season means that I inevitably double-check with myself and map out the things that scare me – reasonable and unreasonable. In fact,…
Useful Procrastination #Taketwo: Youtube and Its Wonders
By Alice Fournier You know when you really feel like doing nothing at all, but at the same time you’re too stressed to be able to enjoy doing nothing? Let’s procrastinate effectively together, shall we? I’m doing that just now writing this article, in fact. I’m a master of procrastination, but I do so in…
South-West France: A Cave Lover’s Guide
By Alice Fournier I’m fortunate enough to live both in the French South-East, in Provence, with all the sun it has to offer, and in the South-West, near Bordeaux, with its rain and beautiful prehistoric caves. This is for all of my non-claustrophobic peeps who do not mind dark, damp and cold places. In exchange…
Fashion and the Fine Arts in the 20th Century
by Alice Fournier “The best of fashion is worthy of the name art”, said Norman Norell, a famous American designer in an interview with The Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1967. And yet, art and fashion have always had a paradoxical relationship. According to Norell, one is constantly shifting and adapting to trends, the other…
Productive Procrastinating: Period Dramas
By Alice Fournier There is nothing quite like procrastination: we all love it, we all hate it, but why not hate it a bit less by making it useful? And better yet, by turning our brains into a semi-on/semi-off mode whilst watching other people’s very complicated lives. History nerds, here comes your period dramas list,…
Parietal Art or an Incursion in a Prehistoric … « Museum »?
By Alice Fournier The cave of Lascaux, in Dordogne, France, is probably the pinnacle of parietal art. Discovered in 1940 by Marcel Ravidat, Lascaux is now closed off to the public to help preserve the many artworks visible on its walls. What is the reason for this you might ask? CO2 emissions. Due to its fame and…
Feminism, Femininity, and Francization: the #BalanceTonPorc Controversy
by Jedidja van Boven When world-famous tennis player Serena Williams was forbidden to wear her black ‘catsuit’, designed to prevent blood clots after her pregnancy, to the French Open in 2019, online comments were quick to defend Williams against tennis federation president Bernard Giudicelli, who argued that “one must respect the game”. Some people were…