Stories about Arts & Culture from March, 2012
Armenia: Opinion divided on Eurovision withdrawal
Writing for Ararat Magazine, Global Voices’ Caucasus Regional Editor says that not everybody is happy about Armenia's withdrawal from this year's Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
China: Performance on Losing Weight
China Hush translates a local feature report on an artist's performance on losing weight. Beijing artist Wang Jun is to live on top of an electronic scale for a month, from 18 March to 18 April to show people the weight loss process.
Video: Short Film for Gender Equality Contest Open for Submissions
SinGENEROdeDUDAS [es] has launched their call for short films on gender equality for the 6th annual contest. Any films shorter than 20 minutes, even if they have participated and won in other contests are welcome. Details and submission guidelines on their site.
Cape Verde: Calling Out Creative Writers
Cape Verdean blogger and journalist Odair Varela has launched a creative writing competition [pt] that will last for one month. The first of four weekly challenges consists of writing about how the country will be in the year 2090 [pt]. The essays should be submitted until March 27, 2012.
Puerto Rico: An Archipelago of Indie Music
The music blog Puerto Rico Indie has launched their first video series titled Archipiélago (Archipelago). The series aims to document the local independent music scene on the island. Global Voices presents Archipiélago's three first recorded sessions with the bands Campo-Formio, Mima, and Tach.dé.
Argentina: Documentary on Indigenous People in Buenos Aires
The documentary 'Runa Kuti, Urban Natives' shows us the stories of four descendants of indigenous communities living in the city of Buenos Aires, and how they struggle with reclaiming their identity, rediscovering their culture and making a place for themselves in the city.
Russia: Madonna Responds to St. Petersburg “Gay Propaganda” Law Controversy
Singer Madonna has responded to the St. Petersburg “gay propaganda” law controversy on her Facebook page (21,226 ‘likes’, 2,372 shares, 1,422 comments so far): “[…] I will come to St. Petersburg to speak up for the gay community, to support the gay community and to give strength and inspiration to...
Spain: Are You For or Against EuroVegas?
The CEO of Las Vegas Sands, multibillionaire Sheldon Adelson, has decided to establish his next hotel-casino complex EuroVegas in Spain. If the Spanish government seems enthusiastic about this project, the Spanish people are divided on the issue.
Macedonia: Blogger Reviews “In the Land of Blood and Honey”
Vnukot joined the debate about Angelina Jolie's movie by emphasizing the technical imperfections, and was especially unnerved [mk] that “all the characters in the film speak the languages related to Bosnia, the Serbo-Croatian as it was known then, or today's Serbian, Croatian and Bosnian language. However in Angie's ‘masterpiece’ all...
New Book on the African Fashion World
Helen Jennings wrote on the editor's blog of Arise Magazine: ” New African Fashion is the first good-looking coffee table compendium of the most talented African and diaspora designers, models and street style photographers putting African style on the map today.”
Turkey: Riot Police Continue to Clash with Kurds Celebrating Newroz
Kurdish people are the largest ethnic group in Turkey. They have been subject to state-sanctioned discrimination and human rights violations. Today, in Yuksekova, which is a district in the Hakkari province of Turkey, Kurdish people were attacked for gathering to celebrate Newroz - the Kurdish new year.
China: Shanghai International Adult Products Expo
The 9th Shanghai International Adult Products Expo kicked off with pole dancers and adult movie stars from Japan on March 18, 2012. Off-beat China has posted a set of photos on the exhibition's opening.
Norway Hosts First Journalism Award for Indigenous Broadcasters
Norway is widely known for hosting the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize Awards. This month, the Scandinavian country is hosting the debut of another important yet largely unknown journalism award ceremony for the World Indigenous Television Broadcasters Network (WITBN) on March 29, 2012.
Colombia: Interactive llustrated Tour of Medellin
Take a virtual tour of Medellin, Colombia through illustrations, picture composites and images of the different locations around the city, all placed within a clickable map in Medellin Illustrated [es].
Video: Surfers, Fishermen and Radiation in Post Earthquake Japan
Journalist Lisa Katayama and filmmaker Jason Wishnow are documenting the lives of people dealing with radiation in a post-earthquake Japan. In We Are All Radioactive, they are including 50% footage made by themselves in the areas around Fukushima Power Plant, and 50% footage made by residents who were given waterproof digital cameras.
Jamaica: The Tivoli 73
Active Voice blogs about an art exhibit that references the 73 Jamaican citizens killed during the 2010 Tivoli Gardens occupation: “The 73 flags were suspended with clothespins from a simulated clothesline. You couldn’t help think…were the 73 hung out to dry by the Jamaican government?”
Peru: Controversy and Tributes on 120th Anniversary of César Vallejo's Birth
The 120th anniversary of the birth of César Vallejo on 16 March, 2012, was celebrated with recitals, lectures and new publications. Netizens also remembered the poet and his work through blogs and social networks. The day also included the hashtag #BlameVallejo after the publication of a controversial article.
Turkey: Police Attack Kurds Celebrating Newroz
Thousands of Kurds took to the streets in celebration of Newroz across Turkey today but were dispersed with water cannons and tear gas. The celebration marks the first day of Spring. Kurds in the past were not allowed to exert their Kurdish identity in public, but since the 1980s, Newroz has become a symbolic event in highlighting Kurdish culture, and identity.
A Love Letter From Israel to Iran
A message of love from Israelis to Iranians sounds stranger than fiction in these tense years where Iranian and Israeli governments threaten each other constantly. But we see examples of just this in a new Facebook campaign.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: R.I.P. “Rasum”
Abeni pays tribute to the late Gerard “Rasum” Shallow, “a colossus on the Vincentian cultural landscape.”
South Korea: Cartoonists Protest against Censorship of Online Cartoon Contents
Cartoonists rallied against the Korea Communications Standards Commission's recent decision to more tightly censor the online cartoon contents and label innocuous cartoons as x-rated. NoCut_Toon.com blog [ko] posted related photos such as well-known cartoonist Gang Pull one-person protesting in front of the Commission building.
