Arts Columns
In summer I shed something / Something is Understood
Watch over my remains, will you, as I step from my reeling body, as I prepare to land, eyes open
Building Harvard College: The Carpenter Center
One space on campus — resting between the dignified bricks of the “classic” Harvard buildings — is the Carpenter Center.
‘Balancing Output with Input’: Margaret Rogerson on Writing Fantasy, Taking Breaks, and Balancing Inspiration and Hard Work
What does writing fantasy novels look like? What is the journey and the daily routine of an author who creates these fantastical universes?
Outside the Dollhouse / Proof of life
In the cooling air your face cracks open like a ceramic dish; you are insane, hungry, harmful,
Dawn M. Spears on Public Art and Amplifying Indigenous Artistic Traditions in the Northeast
Spears and her husband also grew an acre of this corn on the land they used for the Narragansett Food Sovereignty Initiative. They saw the corn’s ability to bring together their community.
The Spirit of the United States in Washington D.C.’s Art Scene
I get chills recalling the sheer power of art that I felt in this room at the National Portrait Gallery, as if the genius loci of Washington, D.C. was standing next to me like a ghost.
Side Parts in Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror
By side part, I refer to the iconic hairstyles in the film that simultaneously defy all sense of historical logic and firmly anchor “Nosferatu” as a product of the early 1920s.
The Art of the Outside: Sonia S. Ralston on ‘Ghost Trees’
In an augmented reality exhibit called “Ghost Trees,” Sonia S. Ralston, an alum of the Harvard Graduate School of Design designed 3-D digital models of five Arboretum trees.
In Photos: A Typical Sunday Bell-Ringing
This photo essay illuminates the appearance of the bells up close, giving a glimpse of what goes on in the bell tower during a typical Sunday ringing.
Witching Out in Salem
Every October, the quaint city of Salem — only an hour outside of Boston by car or train — is transformed into a premier location for Halloween haunts
I Could Literally Be in Italy Right Now
But the Harvard ecosystem walks a fine line between fully immersing us in our studies and entirely overwhelming us to the point of giving up. This is precisely the reason I found myself studying abroad in Florence last semester.
Ringing the Lowell Bells: The ‘Great, Unfinalizable Symphony’
For this column, I will be living and breathing bells — anything to try to bridge that 128-step gap between the platform of the bell tower and the world below.
The Art of the Outside: Lorraine E. Bubar as an Artist-in-Residence at Acadia National Park
Even for people who aren’t professional artists, Acadia provides an escape from the hustle and bustle of daily life, providing the space to slow down to create and share art.
Autumn in Cambridge
The fall season in Cambridge has the potential to be just as transformative for its inhabitants as it is for its trees.
Outbound to the Magellanic Cloud: Ligia Bouton’s ‘Temporary Monument to Henrietta Swan Leavitt’ at Kendall/MIT
What is on display in the temporary tunnel is not just a collection of stars studied by an astronomer, but sight and wonder made material.
A Messy Masterpiece: Why ‘Bridgerton’ Works
“Bridgerton” costuming is replete with lavish masterpieces that practically overflow with anachronisms.
‘There Is No Right Routine’: Zoulfa Katouh on Inspiration, Deadlines, and Navigating Growth
Writing a story changes for everybody. Routines differ by how writers set deadlines and goals, and how they structure their pieces — whether they outline or not. For Katouh, understanding what works best for her work was a large part of her journey as an author.
It is All Half Lights* / Before Memorial Day
The androgynous mind sleeps, it is halting/halted, faulting/faulted —
Virtually Famous: Music Journalism in A Social Media World
With social media playing a larger role in determining the music we listen to — and music streaming platforms increasingly resembling social media with features such as followers and likes — artists have claimed greater control over how their music and narratives are communicated to the public
Weaver’s Way / In Blue
And the ceilings are high, voices echo from two rooms over among arches and paneling. Dark water. A river, green and lapping in a distant country in which I’ve never stepped foot —
Close-Listening: Diving Deep into a Song’s Lyrics
Misheard lyrics can be a golden moment of serendipity. Despite their falsehood, these alternative listenings of a song can open up compelling new interpretations and personal connections to the music.
The Seven Sisters Cliffs and Coastguard Cottages from “Atonement”
England, the site of numerous popular film locations, holds one of the most striking settings in cinema: the Seven Sisters, a stretch of sprawling cliffs in East Sussex.