Stories about Arts & Culture from December, 2013
Iran: Calligraphy Art
Farrah Joon tweeted about Iranian female artist,Azra Aghighi Bakhshayeshi.You can see her calligraphic oil paintings of Arabic lettering here. Calligraphy art by #Iran-ian artist Azra Aghighi Bakhshayeshi http://t.co/d2EusaVUxn pic.twitter.com/IHPosjGCXh — Farrah Joon (@Farrah_Joon) December 23, 2013
Will Pussy Riot Fight Putin's Amnesty and Remain in Prison?
The manner in which Mikhail Khodorkovsky was freed seems to differ from what awaits Pussy Riot's Tolokonnikova and Alekhina, who have signaled some unwillingness to leave prison early.
Bangladesh Breaks Human Flag, National Anthem World Records on Victory Day
27,117 volunteers stood with red and green placards to form the Bangladesh flag. More than 300,000 people sang the national anthem.
The Postcolonialist Calls for Submissions on ‘Sites of Home’
A recently launched online magazine and journal, The Postcolonialist, is calling for submissions for the upcoming edition of its academic journal. The Postcolonialist is an inter-disciplinary, multi-lingual publication featuring research, commentary, and creative production from and about postcolonial regions and perspectives. The About page of the website adds: We are an alternative and interactive avenue by which scholars, journalists, writers...
Video Appeal: What You Don't Know About The Places We're From
For our 2013 end-of-year campaign we asked members of the Global Voices family to fill you in on what their countries are really about.
Top 10 YouTube Videos of 2013 in Japan
RocketNews24 has compiled a list of the top 10 YouTube videos in Japan for the year 2013. The list includes a video uploaded by a popular Japanese idol girl group AKB48, a video of two cute kids showing off their new toys, and a video of a shocking moment of...
7 Amazing Vintage Photos of 19th-Century Japan
Take a look at what life was like in Japan some 150 years ago, thanks to a series of photos that recently entered the public domain.
Chinese Film Director Feng Xiaogang on Censorship
When asked about his dream during an interview at China's top Tsinghua University, Chinese film director Feng Xiaogang said[zh] to the students: I have realized all my dreams, if there is any, that is one day, I wish there's no film censorship in China. His words inspired thunderous applause. He...
Glimpses Into São Tomé and Príncipe's Art and Culture Biennial
[All links lead to Portuguese language pages] Giving a voice to the seventh edition of the Art & Culture Biennial of São Tomé and Principe, which started on November 28, artists, journalists and visitors have been commenting on the event that is scheduled to run until February 28, 2014. Some of the ideas behind this...
Pashto Singer Ghazala Javed's Ex-Husband Sentenced to Death for Her Murder
During her lifetime, Ghazala Javed bravely defied Taliban pressure to stop singing and spoke up against creeping Talibanization in her hometown Swat.
Ousmane Sow Becomes First Black African Member of France Academy of Fine Arts
Senegalese sculptor Ousmane Sow was admitted on December 11 into L'Académie des Beaux-Arts de Paris [Academy of Fine Arts of Paris]. Africa-top-talents.com reports: Une belle consécration pour ce sculpteur sénégalais connu pour ses séries de sculptures monumentales consacrées aux ethnies africaines (noubas, peuls, masaï, Zoulou). « Mon élection a d’autant plus de valeur à mes...
3 Initiatives Working to Make Niger a Better Place
Positive stories from Niger are a few and far between these days, thanks to economic hardship combined with threats of terrorism. Three projects are trying to change that.
Explaining the Evergrowing Tradition of “Chanté Nwèl” (Singing Christmas) in the French West Indies
Between late November and December 25, a unique tradition is taking place every year in the Francophone Caribbean islands, especially in Martinique and Guadeloupe. “Chanté Nwel” [fr] is a time when people come together to not only sing traditional Christmas songs but also share a meal as a community. Although the...
Do You Speak Nouchi? Ivorian Politicians Would Like to Know
What is Nouchi [fr]? Let's start with what it is not: it is not Creole and it is not a dialect. Nouchi is a coded language that originated in the 70's on the streets of Abidjan, the capital city of Côte d'Ivoire. It's a mix of French language and West...
Never Argue with Egyptian Graffiti
On Twitter, Omar Kamel, from Egypt, notes: You can't argue with graffiti. #Egypt pic.twitter.com/G7vNdFqfwE — Omar Kamel (@OmarKamel) December 15, 2013
The Caucasus Network: In Blogs, Russian is the Common Language
No indigenous languages dominate any of the blogging platforms in the North Caucasus. Even the forums dedicated exclusively to local issues operate in Russian.
Czechoslovakia's Architectural Heritage in Kyrgyzstan
Karina Ditkovskaya writes [ru] about a unique architectural heritage left by volunteer construction workers from Czechoslovakia in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan: In the 1920s a commune of volunteers from Czechoslovakia built a whole district of Bishkek. Now, after almost one hundred years, this area of Kyrgyzstan's capital city stands out due...
Another Rural Japanese Elementary School Disappears Due to Declining Birthrate
Every year, about 500 public schools in Japan are closing due to shortage of children as the cost of education becomes unbearable for rural communities.
100 Awesome Things From The Indian 90′s
Blogger and SEO expert Mani Karthik takes a trip down the memory lane and lists 100 things an average Indian cherished during the 1990s.
UNESCO Honors Japanese Cuisine as Intangible Cultural Heritage
The United Nations cultural agency UNESCO has officially recognized Japan's traditional cuisine “washoku” as “Intangible Cultural Heritage” among its 14 new listings. Overjoyed after reading the news, Japanese twitter user Komachi jokingly commented that her regular habit is now part of renowned heritage: 私、3日にいっぺんくらいは無形文化遺産作ってる！と言えるわけですね。 「和食」無形文化遺産に登録決定…ユネスコ（読売新聞） – Y!ニュース http://t.co/Fxvh0uoCNO — komachi (@komatchr)...
Global Voices Meetup in Porto: Journalism, Citizenship and New Media
Journalists, amateur media practitioners, citizens and organisations dedicated to independent projects of online communication will meet in Porto on 14 December 2013 at the invite of Global Voices.
