Culture

How books are burned today

It is a worrying thought that what sits on your bookshelf today could be out of reach tomorrow. You might believe book banning to be a thing of the...

The paradox of uniformity: Who do we dress for?

Walking to chapel on a mid-winter Wednesday morning, you could almost be certain to...

Must theatre be so dire? Thoughts on the “unworthy scaffold”

If 'art est celare artem' (true art is to conceal art), then theatre is pretty poor art. You ain't fooling me into thinking that's a storm.

Fashion trends: The illusion of choice

Our fashion choices emphasise how our individual styles are limited by the available market, and what fashion magazines and brands declare as ‘in style’.

Accessorizing, not so accessory

With the rippling brims of Givenchy’s millinery and Moschino’s pearl charms, accessories took the spotlight of Fashion week 2020. Beyond their obvious practical function, belts,...

The era of digital drama

When you imagine ‘going to the theatre’, an image of you in your dressing gown, sitting on the sofa and eating popcorn probably doesn’t come to mind....

The Art of the Runway

The art of the fashion show For a long time, fashion shows were exclusive, closed-off events, yet things are changing. As shows are increasingly...

For whom the Tik Toks speak

TikTok is a language entirely based on embracing ridicule

Uniquely comforting consolation: a look at Netflix’s Tiger King

A show perfectly designed to offer release has to do that without troubling itself with the burdens of social responsibility

Genetically Modified Foods: Friend or Foe?

The EU has not approved any genetically modified (GM) fruit or vegetables as safe for human consumption and in the UK they are mainly used to...

Titian behind closed doors: the ethics of an erotic gaze.

“Anybody who loves painting loves Titian.” With these bold words and the familiar, if rather flat, echo of Einaudi’s piano, the BBC streamed, digital...

Fashion in an age of aesthetics: artwork’s place within commercial culture

The intrinsic connection between art and fashion has been so perfectly expressed by none other than the illustrious Giorgio Armani who selects his garments “as if...

Richard II, coronavirus and creativity – in conversation with Dorothy McDowell

It seems like there’s enough drama happening in the real world to justify dark theatres and empty stages. The Edinburgh Fringe has been cancelled,...

Can museums be decolonised? The restitution question

The first step of reckoning with our colonial past is recognising its remaining presence. Every aspect of modern life is informed by the spoils...

A bygone age: restaurant reviews

I revel in the hyperbolic criticisms of journalists whose only job is to become eloquently irate about slightly sub-par food.

Hands or Cutlery? Resolving an Immigrant Identity Crisis

You are not merely what you eat, but, equally, how you eat.

‘And In The End…’

‘…the love you take is equal to the love you make’: the cultural significance of the break-up of The Beatles.

Isolation style guide: How to get out of the pyjama day slump

We are spending more of the vacation indoors than we intended to… and with that comes the temptation to crawl into bed in our pyjamas and...

Album Review: Sufjan Stevens, ‘Aporia’

Isobel Falk navigates both the human and the cosmic in Sufjan Stevens' latest release.

Paris Fashion Week reviewed

The year is 2020, a change is happening. The year is 2020, a revolution is happening”, sang New-York-based singer, No Bra, during the show...

Is escapism acceptable?

We have a certain cultural responsibility

A little clueless never hurt nobody: the value of revisiting old favourites

Re-watching allows us to change and to recognise growth within ourselves

The Virtual Museum: Can technology transform the gallery space?

Curators must employ the technology of the future to breathe life into the past.

Clothes without prejudices: a world of modest fashion, baggy clothing and androgynous style

Reaching the ripe age of 21 hasn’t stopped me from looking for ways to feel young. Thinking back to dress up with mama’s clothes and sliding...

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