Stories about Arts & Culture from September, 2011
Philippines: The President's Zero Love Life
The bachelor Philippines President Noynoy Aquino's comparison of his love life to a soft drink in a five-day state visit to China not only drew laughter but also criticism online. Activists also used the metaphor to condemn the 'zero' performance of the government on human rights and social spending.
Peru: ‘Mistura’ Gastronomic Festival Kicks Off
Peruvians are very proud of their cuisine. When living abroad, they often say the thing they miss the most is the food. From September 9-18, the country will celebrate Peruvian cuisine at 'Mistura', a successful gastronomic festival which marks its fourth edition this year.
Azerbaijan: Caspian Dreaming…
Aaron in Azerbaijan posts a well-produced music video by two of his fellow Peace Corps Volunteers in the country, singing under the name of the Caspian Dreamers, ahead of next year's Eurovision Song Contest to be held in the capital, Baku. The blog says that while Azerbaijan faces some serious...
Russia, Italy: Andrei Tarkovsky's Polaroids
Jana writes [sr] about Instant Light, a collection of 60 Polaroid photographs by film director Andrei Tarkovsky, and posts some sample photos from the book.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: “Dumb ‘Ha-Ha’ References” to War in Books and Movies
Amila Bosnae writes about being disturbed by the casual mentions of the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina “in random books or movies”: “But the book simply goes on, like I didn’t just get shocked right back into the ugly world where that exact war shaped my life.”
Czech Republic: Milan Kundera and Privacy Issues
At OpenDemocracy.net, James Warner writes about Milan Kundera's work and the issues of privacy in the age of totalitarianism and now, in the age of new technologies and the internet.
Guatemala: Voting Out Cultural Intolerance
Sakis González shares a video [es] of Guatemalan artists speaking out against “cultural intolerance” after the municipality of Guatemala City rejected the reopening of the cultural center ‘Rock’ol Vuh’. Sakis points out that citizens will have the power to choose their leaders this Sunday, September 11, during the general election.
Colombia: Strengthening Ties Between ‘Chiva’ Bus Owners Through Social Media
Carlos Múnera quotes [es] a reader's comment calling owners and drivers of ‘chiva’ buses to use the Internet to communicate, share ideas and inform each other about policies that could affect their work. The reader indicates that he is currently creating a Facebook group for fans of these buses.
Peru: The State of Quechua on the Internet
Quechua, one of the original languages of Peru, is on the Internet in various forms: from Google and Wikipedia in Quechua to blogs and citizen initiatives looking to maintain and encourage the presence of this language through the web.
Israel: Stop Motion Inside Stop Motion
Eran Amir produced a stop motion video showing 500 people around Israel holding up more than 1500 developed pictures. You'll have to see it twice, once to focus on the story told through the black and white pictures the people hold, and the other to enjoy watching the people and...
North Korea’s Character Set has Unique Characters Reserved for Kim Jong Il
Martyn Williams from North Korea Tech blog posted an interesting article on North Korea's official character set. According to the author, the set includes unique characters reserved for Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il and special symbols for their ruling Worker's Party.
Africa, Latin America: A Portfolio on Black Minorities in South America
Afrique In Visu interviews French photographer Philippe Guionie about his latest photo essay “Les Afros oubliés de la Cordillière” [fr] (The forgotten Africans of the Andes). Guionie traveled to Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Chile to portray black minorities in South America.
China: Sex, Censorship and the Rise of ‘People's Porn’
Katrien Jacobs, author of new book 'People's Pornography: Sex and Surveillance on the Chinese Internet', discusses the emergence of an online erotic culture in China that openly describes individuals' personal sexual activities - in other words, amateur Internet pornography.
Puerto Rico: Miguel Zenón and his “Alma adentro”
Journalist Mariana Reyes Angleró interviews Puerto Rican saxophonist and musician Miguel Zenón about his most recent album “Alma adentro.”
Puerto Rico: Campo-Formio is Back
The music blog Puerto Rico Indie [es] presents the latest from the alternative local post-punk band Campo-Formio.
Puerto Rico: Santurce is Art
The collective of independent artists Santurce es Ley [es] celebrates the third edition of their festival this Saturday September 10 dedicated to promoting the arts in the community of Santurce, in San Juan.
Puerto Rico: A Puerto Rican in Berlin
Mariángel González from the digital magazine El punto es [es] interviewed the Puerto Rican jewelry designer Lucía Nieves, who lives in Berlin, Germany. You can see her beautiful collection “Snou” here.
Video: Nyan Cat Costa Rican style
A Costa Rican version of the Nyan cat has hit the social networks. In this new incarnation, a cat with a tamale body wearing a folkloric hat leaves behind a Costa Rican flag trail while jumping over an overcast city inhabited by miniskirt wearing overweight women. The description on the...
Trinidad & Tobago: True Freedom
Attillah Springer blogs about this year's (post-riot) Notting Hill Carnival and compares the experience with Trinidad and Tobago's current State of Emergency: “The State, whether British or ‘Trinbagonian,’ cannot control the desire for freedom. With fear or guns or cameras. The desire for freedom will win out ultimately.”
Guinea-Bissau: Unique Footage from 1969-74
Pierre Fargeas, a former aircraft technician from France, shared a unique film footage of daily life in Guinea Bissau from 1969-74 on Youtube.
Mexico: Hero Reports, Mapping Acts of Kindness
Heroreports is a non-profit project dedicated to crowdsourcing and mapping reports of citizen courage and positive social behavior. It started in Ciudad Juárez, México as an initiative of the MIT Center for Civic Media. Ernesto Priego reports.
