· January, 2012

Stories about Arts & Culture from January, 2012

Puerto Rico: The Art of Sound

  31 January 2012

Julieta Muñoz interviews artist Carola Cintrón Moscoso for Revista Cruce [es] on the art of sound: “There was light, but something was missing: sound!,” says Carola who works with audio in her pieces. Please check out the video in which Carola talks about her art, and herself, in an interview...

Azerbaijan: #LightYourFire Eurovision Meme

  31 January 2012

Ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Baku in May, a new Internet Meme has appeared on Twitter. With Azerbaijan known as the Land of Fire, the hashtag for the international singing contest is the same as this year's official motto, #LightYourFire.

Ukraine: The Story of Anna Boiko's Life

  30 January 2012

"She is a cheerful, talented, strong person. A person who has been through a lot, who is full of knowledge and memories," writes Olya Suprun about her 75-year-old grandmother, whose memories she is sharing on the award-winning blog called "The Story of Anna Boiko's Life." Tetyana Bohdanova reports.

US, Russia: The Flying Balalaika Brothers Bridge Cultural Gaps in Texas

  30 January 2012

Like many of their compatriots, musicians Zhenya Kolykhanov and Sergey Vaschenko emigrated from Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s and have since established themselves in Austin, Texas. Through their band, The Flying Balalaika Brothers, and a non-profit called Musical Connections, they work to bridge cultural gaps by exposing Texans to international art.

India: Jaipur Literature Fest Fashion

  29 January 2012

Jaipur Literature Festival, the largest literary festival in Asia-Pacific, has recently ended. Wearabout blog posts some pictures of festival fashion among the eclectic mix of men from all over; artists, poets, writers, intellectuals, pseudo-intellectuals, serious journalists, idlers, socialites etc.

Sri Lanka: Kala Pola (Art Mart) Sunday

  29 January 2012

The 17th annual Kala Pola (Art Mart), the biggest open air gallery for paintings in Colombo, took place on Sunday, January 29, 2012. Dee and Indi shared their experiences and posted photos.

Slovakia: Competition to Re-Design the National Gallery's Site

  27 January 2012

In response to the 25,000-euro “minimalist” website design of the Slovak National Gallery, zajtra.sk started its own competition [sk] for the website's re-design, offering 100 euro to the winner. Authors are mostly students, and they often declare how many hours – and, sometimes, minutes – they spent on their re-design.

Cuba: Playwright Passes On

  27 January 2012

Havana Times acknowledges the passing of “Cuban writer, playwright and theater director Humberto Arenal”, who passed away yesterday.

China: Kashgar’s City

  27 January 2012

Josh from Xinjiang far west China blogs about the future transformation of Kashgar city in Xinjiang. The old city's traditional mud home would be turned into modern buildings according to plan. The blogger asked: will you be still interested to visit Kashgar after the rebuilt?

Serbia: The Media War Against Angelina Jolie

  26 January 2012

Angelina Jolie was concerned about the reception of her director's debut movie, 'In the Land of Blood and Honey', in Bosnia and Serbia, and some of her fears turned out to be justified. Sasa Milosevic reports on the virtual battle that Jolie's film has caused.

Caribbean: TEDx Shows “Ideas Worth Spreading”

  25 January 2012

“Ideas worth spreading.” With this simple slogan, TED.com, which began in 1984 as an annual conference devoted to technology, entertainment and design, has infiltrated the Internet and empowered people in various countries to spark discussions in local, self-organised TED-branded events, dubbed TEDx. This sharing of ideas has found its way to the Caribbean - in 2011, five TEDx events were held: two in Jamaica, two in Trinidad and one in Puerto Rico. Here's a look back on the events that helped change the region...

Venezuela: The Essence of African Music in Videos

  25 January 2012

Venezuela’s African origins can be strongly felt in the music and culture of the country’s coastal regions. Social networking sites play an important role in helping people to become more familiar with the drum festivals. Citizen media sites, particularly YouTube, feature videos of the music and dancing performed during events such as family parties and national celebrations.

Macedonia: Analyzing Skopje 2014

  25 January 2012

Jasna Koteska published an analysis of the implications of Skopje 2014 project in the light of the concepts developed by foremost contemporary philosophers and other thinkers. Informative and readable, full of juicy details on the use of history to create a new nationalist ideology.

Latin America: Museum Releases Digital Archive of 20th-Century Art

  24 January 2012

The International Center for Arts of the Americas (ICCA) at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, has released a digital archive of 20th-century Latin American and Latino art, which, “is now available, free of charge, to the research and teaching community as well as to the public at large.” Culture...