Stories about Arts & Culture from October, 2016
Revellers in Costume Descend on Tokyo by the Thousands for Halloween
Halloween has been growing in popularity in Japan over previous years. In 2016, there was more money spent in Japan on Halloween than on Valentine's Day.
‘The End of the World’: A Poet’s Journey from Syria to Algiers
Syrian-Palestinian poet Dima Yousef left Yarmouk, Syria, in 2015 for Algiers. This is her story.
100 Years of Beauty in Central Asia and the Caucasus
Countries that shared a similar existence under the Kremlin's yoke found in their national wardrobes rich sources of self-expression.
Rural Women in Northern India Are Challenging Patriarchy by Removing Their Veils
"If women want to wear veil let them. If they do not want to wear veil let them. It is [as] simple as that."
From China to Indonesia to Timor Leste, Discover the Beats of Asian Hip Hop
Time to update your playlist.
Carnival Designer Apologises for Insensitivity to Trinidad's Colonial Trauma, But Was It Enough?
"Our history is complicated and troubling and painful and horrendous.... Asking that those complications be acknowledged is not censorship. It is a cry against continued erasure."
A Trinidad & Tobago Carnival Band Is Accused of Trivialising the Trauma of Slavery
"He's glamorizing a part of our colonial history where racism and socioeconomic disparity were rampant. And carnival now, with its overpriced parties and parades, continues that tradition."
A short history of Halloween in Japan
Halloween in Japan has become a creepy tour de force. But trick-or-treating has never caught on. Why?
Young Skaters in Rural South Africa Shred It Up in ‘Valley of a Thousand Hills’
Skateboarding isn't popular in South Africa, especially in black communities. As one young Zulu puts it, "We are skateboarders because we want to live a life which is good...and awesome."
Macedonia's Lake Ohrid Awaits You
Far from the frenzy of the capital, the cities of Ohrid, Struga and Bitola in southern Macedonia's offer history, culture, cuisine, biodiversity and some truly astounding landscapes.
Meet Eufrasia Vieira, the ‘Next Angelina Jolie’ From Timor-Leste
"Sometimes, I take those compliments as a joke. Angelina is so beautiful and she’s just wow. I’m just ordinary woman living a simple life."
A Japanese Artist's Highly Realistic Paper Sculptures Are Coming to the US
"My animal sculptures, made from an accumulation of newspapers, might perhaps be portraying ourselves and our lives, on many levels."
Mobs, Memes, Meanings, and Minds: Meet Porto's Medialab for Citizenship
The city of Porto, Portugal, is nearly ready for the ninth installment of “futureplaces”—a convention that combines citizen labs, performances, presentations, and debate.
From London to Kingston, British-Jamaican Artist Mike Stanley Speaks the Language of Paint
"The environment affects you. [...] This annual trip, from Jamaica to the UK, made me recognize the huge difference in the light. The way you see color changes."
Some Japanese People Really Thought Haruki Murakami Would Finally Win the Nobel Prize This Time
Every year Japanese people wait in anticipation for Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. And every year they are disappointed.
South Asians Celebrate American Singer-Songwriter Bob Dylan's Nobel Prize in Literature
"The argument for Dylan would rest squarely on the quality and influence of his work over the years, and the fact that they have now become classics of modern poetry..."
Blinded, Married, and Turned Loose in the Ring: Three Stories of Girls in Modern-Day India
Global Voices reviews a few stories covered by the Video Volunteers community's citizen journalists, showing how girls in India face and cope with various gender-related challenges.
Turkish Village Preserves “Bird Language” in a Cell-Phone World
“Our purpose is to promote bird language to our country and to the world.”
Why Is Indigenous Singer Delfín Quishpe Such a Polarizing Figure in Latin America?
"Why should I worry about what people say? Everyone has their culture."
Boy Bands, Ballet and Battles over Masculinity in Central Asia
"They shouldn't come here. We are for national traditions, wherein a man is a man, and a woman is a woman."
The Singaporean Prime Minister's ‘Simple’ Bus Breaks With India's VIP Culture
"We should learn from him and do away with this VIP culture in India."
