· June, 2013

Stories about Arts & Culture from June, 2013

Composer's Ode to Turkish Protesters

  28 June 2013

German musician Davide Martello performed live during the protests in Istanbul's Taksim Square. This track is dedicated to the Soldiers of Light, the victims of this insane violence by the turkish government. Composed during the protests in Istanbul two weeks ago… live in the crowds on Taksim Square. That's how...

PHOTOS: Budapest's Unique Brand of Urban Art

  28 June 2013

The capital city of Hungary, already famous for its history, art and architecture, seems to be breeding its own brand of urban art these days. Photos and commentary under hashtags such as #streetart related to Budapest are popping up daily on social networks like Twitter and Instagram, in particular as the summer tourism season gets rolling.

Yemen, Beyond the Headlines

Yemen is a country rich in culture, heritage, and history, as well as extremely friendly and hospitable. But that doesn't make the news, and Yemen is often reduced to Al-Qaeda, poverty, and wars in Western media coverage. But through film, photography, blogging, and social media, some Yemenis are trying to change that.

Palestinian Assaf Wins Arab Idol Singing Contest

Palestinian Mohammed Assaf won the title of this year's Arab Idol, the Arabic version of American Idol. Because there are contestants from different Arab countries, the citizens of each country consider the win a national trophy. Assaf's win sent thousands to the streets celebrating, chanting and dancing.

Brazil: Protest Posters Turned into Song

  22 June 2013

“I turned Facebook off / to show how to be tough / There is so much stuff / that one poster is not enough”. This is the translation of the chorus of the song “Brasil em Cartaz” (Brazil in Posters), a kind of collective song and video clip made ​​from phrases on...

Uzbek Photography's ‘Orientalist Flavour’

Alex Ulko on NewEurasia.net explains where the “Orientalist flavour discernible in the works of many [Uzbek] artists” comes from. His well-informed comments about contemporary Uzbek photography are accompanied by beautiful photos (also here, here, here, here, here, and here).

Colombia: Learning from Vallenato

  19 June 2013

Amongst Colombian Twitter users, the trend of publishing phrases from Vallenato songs -under the tag #Elvallenatomeenseñó (Vallenato taught me)- has emerged, with the intention of highlighting famous lyrics immortalised in songs that reflect different life lessons.

Open Letter to Germany's Cultural Foundation

  19 June 2013

Safia Dickersbach (@ArtsSafia) challenges a new programme dedicated to foster “German-African cultural relations”: 3. The Kulturstiftung claims to support the new African initiatives in the area of contemporary and innovative art. But on the other hand: a. Africans are not allowed to apply for the funds directly. b. The African...

PHOTOS: 26 Reasons to Love Bangladesh

  18 June 2013

Jenny Gustafsson, a Swedish political scientist and independent journalist based in Beirut, thinks that Bangladesh is a great & a special place. She lists reasons why and what to love about Bangladesh.

Japan's WordPress Communities Celebrate 10 Years

  18 June 2013

WordPress communities in Japan celebrated the 10th anniversary of the open source blogging platform. Events were held in Sapporo, Kagawa, Tokyo, Chiba and Osaka. There are 40 local WordBench [ja] groups, Japan's WordPress local community directory is powered by BuddyPress. Naoko Takano blogs more about the events in Japan.

Free Bus Fare Protest Posters in Brazil

  17 June 2013

The publishing and design studio Meli-Melo decided to help out in the protests against rise in bus fares in São Paulo, offering their equipment to print out posters free of charge. An open call for page lay out was launched on Friday, 14 June [pt], on Facebook, and protesters replied quickly. Few...

Experts and Citizens Discuss ‘Free Culture’ in Quito, Ecuador

  17 June 2013

The Second International Congress on Free Culture was held in Quito, Ecuador, focusing on universal access to knowledge, artistic and cultural creation, the administration of culture, collective production, open access to scientific works, the use of alternative licenses, new teaching models, and the benefits for the people.

A Puerto Rican Musician Follows His Muse to Instagram

  16 June 2013

Fernando Samalot is, among other things, a gifted musician from Puerto Rico's independent music scene, known for his participation in the experimental group tachdé. Through his Instagram profile, Fernando began exploring his passion for photography while sharing the results -a collection of genuinely inspiring photos, filled with adventure, spirituality, and plenty of heart- with the rest of the world.

Rupert's divorce creates buzz in China

  16 June 2013

The media mogul Rupert Murdoch has filed for divorce from his Chinese-born wife Wendi Deng. Deng is his third wife and they have two daughters. The divorce has prompted a wave of speculation online that she married Americans with ulterior motives of climbing the social letter and getting richer. ChinaSmack...

René Pérez of Calle 13 Writes Song with Julian Assange

  12 June 2013

Puerto Rican hip hop star René Pérez (@Calle13Oficial) of the band Calle 13 announced today [es] through Twitter that he is with Wikileaks founder Julian Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where Assange was given refuge after being accused of a sexual crime in Sweden. Pérez will be live on...

Jamaica: Children as Artists

  11 June 2013

The National Gallery of Jamaica Blog is excited about an upcoming exhibition of children's art, which will highlight “the children’s unique responses to questions about their curiosities and the diverse urges of their developing imaginations.”

Situation of Cartoonists in the Philippines

  10 June 2013

Art professor Neil Doloricon laments the exodus of cartoonists in the Philippines: Cartoonists in the Philippines are rare breed, they are on the brink of extinction so to speak. Most of our par excellent cartoonists already migrated to other countries…They went abroad not only to earn more but because they...