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When Will Queer Bravery Become Part of the World War II Narrative?

When Willem Arondeus said, “Let it be known, homosexuals aren’t cowards’’, on the eve of his execution in 1943, he was speaking for himself and countless others who gave and risked their lives to end the tyranny and oppression that the LGBTQ community faced under Nazi rule. It is only in recent years that their…

Once upon a time in Detroit’s ‘Little Paris of the Midwest’

You shall go to the Ball! The Belle Époque was that party at the end of the 19th century when European influence, wealth, culture and glamour reigned supreme. All wanted to join the party, and Detroit, that French Trading post on the North American lakes, was up for it. Prosperous and progressive from its new…

The Bittersweet Story of the World’s First Motel

It’s as American as Apple Pie in all its neon-lit glory, evoking our collective cultural memory of 1950s road-tripping, film noir fugitive hideouts and the golden age of kitsch. The motel is as much a part of the American open road as the gas station and the roadside diner, an indispensable amenity to the roving motorist; the…

Electro Queens and Digital Divas who Pioneered Electronic Music

There isn’t one clear inventor of electronic music, although if you start looking, you’ll find that an overwhelming number of early pioneers who shaped its history were women. On both a technical and creative level, women have and continue to revolutionalize electronic music. As the genre developed throughout the 20th century, a hidden wave of…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. 651)

1. Cardboard studies of shops & little businesses in L.A By Ana Serrano found via Present & Correct. 2. Food styling really has come a long, long way Found on Weird Old Food. 3. The Realist Paintings of a Forgotten 19th Century Artist John Frederick Peto (21 May 1854, Philadelphia – 23 November 1907, Island…

Maud & the Cult of the Clitoris

Maud Allan– beauty of the Belle Epoque, concert pianist-turned actress, dancer and choreographer and … sex-crazed lesbian spy for German wartime conspirators? Suddenly, my morning research into an Edwardian postcard just got a lot more interesting… She was born in Maud Durrant in Canada in 1873 and moved to Germany at the age of 25 to study…

How a Mechanical Chess-Playing Turk gave Birth to the AI Debate 250 Years Ago

As we traverse the world of modern digital technology from smart phones to artificial intelligence, the game of chess still captivates and challenges people the world over. Chess, it seems, has thrived due to the advancement in connectivity. But 200 years earlier, before this electronic wizardry, there was an automated, mechanical marvel that would transfix…

Is Anyone Looking for the Lost Art of Britain’s Founding Pop Artist?

I say “Pop Art”, you say Andy Warhol … or maybe Roy Lichtenstein. Pop is often seen as a quintessentially mid-century American (and male) movement, a reaction to overconsumption and popular images encapsulated by Warhol’s soup cans. But Pop Art actually dates back to artists working in 1950s London, one of whom was the co-founder…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. 650)

1. Luna Luna, the secret art amusement park hidden away for 35 years One summer in 1987, the world’s first art amusement park appear in Hamburg Germany, featuring a ferris wheel by Basquiat, a carrousel by Keith Haring, an enchanted tree by David Hockney, a glass maze by Roy Lichtenstein and music by Phillip Glass.…

How Does the “Most Beautiful Hotel in the World” Get Demolished?

When it was completed in 1929, it was advertised as the most beautiful hotel in the world, with some 500 bedrooms, some with their own swimming pools. But the Royal Picardy was only in operation for about 20 years, was abandoned for 20 more and finally destroyed in 1968. While the space inspired creatives from…
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