Social media consumes us all. Connecting feels easier than ever, with everyone being accessible at the tap of a button. However, its effects on consumers are undeniable; it commodifies social interaction, rewires our brains and ultimately disconnects its users from their loved ones. In an age of ai-dominated, algorithmic content, the concept of effortless interaction… Continue reading Social media — an artificial connection to the world
Cinematographers and film lovers alike seem to have developed a gothic appetite. Guillermo del Toro’s new adaptation of Mary Shelley’s iconic novel, Frankenstein, gained quite a lot of friction online and has been acclaimed by audiences and critics alike. The movie seems to be a part of a wider cinematographical tendency which leans towards the… Continue reading The return of the Gothic — a negotiation of humanity
“Art is free, shameless, irresponsible: the movement is intense, almost feverish; it resembles, it seems to me, a snakeskin full of ants… filled with meddlesome life” (Bergman, The Snakeskin). Travelling to an island in the Swedish archipelago from Stockholm Central Station requires a train and two buses. Or a train, a ferry and a bus.… Continue reading I want to go on like this — Sommaren med Monika by Ingmar Bergman
After World War I, Yugoslav artists and intellectuals pursued a clear cultural objective — to assert their place within European modernity as equals, not as latecomers. Their response was neither imitation of the existing European art nor quiet assimilation. Instead, they entered the cultural arena with the conviction that they already belonged there. Through publishing,… Continue reading The Yugoslav avant-garde legacy in European contemporary art
As early as the 14th Century, a woman exhibiting signs of sexual confidence, prosperity or self-expression was deemed inherently evil. An excerpt from 1486’s Malleus Maleficarum — perhaps the most notorious “witch hunter’s manual” — reads: “All witchcraft comes from carnal lust, which is in women insatiable… What else is a woman but a foe… Continue reading She’s a witch — influential women, mysticism and reversing misogynistic narratives in music
The alluring title of Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique serves as a successful façade for the book’s rather morose themes. 15 years following her graduation from the all-female Smith College, Friedan constructed a questionnaire for her classmates — now all wives and mothers, but once equally academics. Despite the domestic reverie that had been portrayed… Continue reading What would Betty Friedan make of the 21st-century tradwife?
Since I’m fairly new to Berlin, I start each month by browsing through the holy trinity — The Berliner, Visit Berlin Blog and Berlin.de (the official website of Berlin), looking for events, festivals and exhibitions that I may wish to attend. Given that the month of February is largely defined by Valentine’s Day, this month’s… Continue reading Gallery Looks — exhibition at the Gemäldegalerie
It’s never been easier to watch movies. Fire up your streaming service of choice, navigate through pages of straight-to-Netflix slop and enjoy the show. Yet, prior to the mid-2010s, streaming content was a novelty; further back than that, the concept of unlimited access to media at home was a sci-fi dream. Indeed, commercial VHS players… Continue reading In search of lost film — Proust’s nostalgia and the all-access economy
The future of clubbing in the UK is under serious threat, as new data reveals an alarming rate of nightclub closures. According to recent figures from the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA), 2024 has already seen an average of five nightclubs closing each week—67 venues in just the first four months. This marks a dramatic… Continue reading UK nightclubs facing extinction — the fight to save cubbing culture
With the rapid advancement of various large language models (LLMs), the most known software being ChatGPT, we are now witnessing a virtual assistant that can help write emails, draft business plans and even offer life advice within its boundaries. The boundaries are what seem to be forgotten. It’s safe to say that with the growing… Continue reading AI psychosis — the danger of artificial optimism
