When the Dutch explorers first encountered New York, they missed Manhattan by a matter of yards, landing instead on a hickory-, oak- and chestnut tree-laden offshore island. Soon enough, the local Lenape Indians ceded its 172 acres to the new settlers—marking the official start of the State of New York. And then the British took over, turning this little island into home base...
Art & Style
Bill Cosby Exposed by the Media – but It Was Women Who Brought Him Down
So much has happened in three and a half years: several abusive men have been exposed, the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements have gone international, millions have marched, and now an actual conviction for a man who appeared impervious to justice – a man protected by producers, high-profile friends, and fans. So much has happened it...
Christie’s to Auction Daniel Craig’s Aston Martin
On 20 April an Aston Martin 2014 Centenary Edition Vanquish, numbered 007 and belonging to actor Daniel Craig, will be offered in The Exceptional Sale at Christie’s in New York. All proceeds will benefit The Opportunity Network, a non-profit organization that provides young people with pathways to career development. The limited-edition car was further customised by Craig in partnership with...
Langston Hughes’ Hidden Influence on MLK
For years, Martin Luther King Jr. and poet Langston Hughes maintained a friendship, exchanging letters and favors and even traveling to Nigeria together in 1960. In 1956, King recited Hughes’ poem “Mother to Son” from the pulpit to honor his wife Coretta, who was celebrating her first Mother’s Day. That same year, Hughes wrote a...
How 21 Artists Graffitied One Man’s Property, Made It Famous, Sued Him When He Knocked It Down and Won $6.7m
It’s an extraordinary tale with a whiff of Banksy about it, although surprisingly, he was not involved. In a landmark ruling, 21 New York street artists have sued and won US$6.7m in damages from the owner of a building who destroyed their graffiti when he had the building demolished. Following a three-week trial in November,...
Mavis Staples Confronts America’s Schism With A Hopeful Response
If All I Was Was Black unveils Mavis Staples’ sixteenth studio album and third collaboration with Wilco frontman, Jeff Tweedy as producer. It features twelve tracks, some of which are covered below for their ability to cement a convincing narrative, these are in fact fraught times but hope is not lost when we have solidarity...
Architecture in 2018: Look to the Streets, Not the Sky
A decade after the global economic collapse, urban development is booming. This is good news for architects. Indeed, 2018 promises to be a favorable year for the profession: A spectacular array of sleek museums, posh hotels and some of the world’s tallest towers are slated for completion. But income inequality is on the rise in...
The Secret to Creativity – According to Science
Whether you get mesmerised by Vincent van Gogh’s painting The Starry Night or Albert Einstein’s theories about spacetime, you’ll probably agree that both pieces of work are products of mindblowing creativity. Imagination is what propels us forward as a species – it expands our worlds and brings us new ideas, inventions and discoveries. But why...
Italy, Fall of 2010
In September 2010, we commissioned Italian photographer Giacomo Cosua for a series on Fall in Milan, Rome, and Venice.
Exploring New York’s Subway Art
My home subway station is Kings Highway on the Brighton line, in southern Brooklyn, and served by the B and Q trains. The station has three entrances and typically when I enter or exit, I rush in or out. Sometimes I slow down and look at something on the station walls. I am quite familiar...