The disconnect between religion and culture

Μαγιάσης Σταύρος – Stavros Magiasis [1921-1976] Λίνδος, 1944

It is no longer possible to contrast a «secular» West with a «religious» East, writes Olivier Roy. Secularization and the de-culturation of religion are taking place in both East and West. The difference is the political forms that the de-culturated religions take.

Olivier Roy

Calligraphy across cultures

Across the world different cultures have combined handwriting and art to create aesthetic works of text. These differing traditions across communities and timespans are fascinating to compare.

50 greatest symphonies

Engraving of Ludwig Van Beethoven (1770-1827) after painting by J. C. Stieler. Photograph: Time Life Pictures/Time & Life Pictures/Getty Image

 

Tom Service’s survey of the 50 symphonies that changed classical music

The best albums of 2016: the full list

 

Our countdown of Guardian music’s favourite albums of the year is complete, topped by a jaw-dropping work of passion and originality

Wednesday 30 November 2016

Mario Vargas Llosa’s ‘Notes on the Death of Culture’

 

The Girl Who Loved Books painting by Ken Hamilton

By JOSHUA COHENAUG. 17, 2015

14 World Famous Domes / 10 Most Remarkable Opera Houses in the World

Αγιά Σοφιά

 

14 World Famous Domes

Last updated on September 19, 2014 in Culture | 4 comments

A dome is a hemispherical structure usually forming a ceiling or roof. Dome structures made of various materials have been used throughout history by several different civilizations. In the ancient Near East domes were made as tombs of solid mounds. The Inuit in the Arctic created their igloos from blocks of compacted snow, generally in the form of a dome.

Joan of Arc: striking the right note for a silent film classic

Film director Carl Theodor Dreyer never settled on a score to accompany his 1928 silent masterpiece The Passion of Joan of Arc. Will the Orlando Consort’s a cappella version – using medieval songs composed in the saint’s lifetime – prove a more fitting soundtrack?

The Minoans of Crete

 

(Jarrett A. Lobell)

The well-preserved remains of the ancient Minoan town of Gournia in eastern Crete still stand after more than 3,500 years.

More than 100 years after it was first discovered, the town of Gournia is once again redefining the island’s past

By JARRETT A. LOBELL

Monday, April 06, 2015

In search of eutopia

Monte Rosse on the Sea, Max Pechstein – 1913

Eurozine Review

Index on Censorship discerns shades of McCarthyism in global threat to academic freedom; New Eastern Europe speaks to Ukrainian historian Andriy Portnov about Europe’s reinvention; Krytyka assesses the chances of success in negotiations between Kyiv and the Donbass; Letras Libres speaks to Tzvetan Todorov; in Multitudes, Antonio Negri and Raúl Sánchez Cedillo respond to the rise of Podemos; A2 dips into Kenyan, Franco-Senegalese and Afropean literature; NLO considers untameable words and animals; in Syn og Segn, Shabana Rehman Gaarder rejects the notion that animals are created for humans; and Vikerkaar watches The Wire.

All history is the history of migration

Moris Farhi

Migration and exile have characterised the world since the beginning of time. And for most of that time, the ambivalent presence of The Other has aroused extremes of sentiment within the host community.

Speed and gravity

Wolf Kahn (USA b. 1927), Green and Black (2002)

Anders Paulin

Sandra Bullock and a resurrection of the institution

Today, knowledge, aesthetics and politics are produced and consumed in cultural shopping malls in as generic forms as possible, writes Swedish theatre director Anders Paulin. High time, therefore, to rethink and reclaim the institution as a necessary mediator between society and its citizens.

10 Most Remarkable Opera Houses in the World / 14 Best Museums in the World

10 Most Remarkable Opera Houses in the World

Last updated on April 10, 2014 in Culture | No comments

When it comes to architectural treasures, an opera house is often a city’s most prized gem. The best opera houses weren’t just built to showcase leading tenors, baritones and sopranos but to demonstrate the world that the city had achieved a high level of culture, power and wealth. In addition to providing a highly memorable theatrical experience, opera houses offer an exciting opportunity for travelers to view structures designed by some of history’s most respected architects. Whether attending a performance of a favorite opera or touring the theater, the world’s best opera houses remain popular travel attractions.