Arts

In July I set out to discover what exactly is the state of poetry in downtown Manhattan. NY Poetry Fest was taking place, and several interesting invitations to book launch events landed in my inbox. It appeared I was in for a total immersion. The first event that caught my attention was a book launch […]

Before there was a city, there was a crooked path. Today, we call it the Bowery—one of New York’s oldest streets and most fiercely contested strips of cultural real estate. Winding from Chatham Square to Cooper Square, it predates the city’s grid and bears the weight of centuries: from Lenape footpath to Dutch wagon trail to

Living downtown, one must be open to a steady stream of surprising new events, people, spaces, energy, vibrations, delights, and possibilities. For example, last month I learned that Washington Square Park, a block from my front door, has an official artist in residence. Also, I was introduced to a tiny room in the upper reaches

Private Life opens on the lower half of Rachel’s body, expectant. She’s clothed in only underwear, supine in dim lighting, and a male voice asks from behind, “Are you ready?” A needle appears out of thin air, confirming that she’s not about to have sex, as the film’s positioning would have you believe; she’s about

It’s a carnival of performance art. It’s wilder than any drug-induced hallucinations. It surpasses any cinematic version of Carnival in Venice you may have seen, and it live. It’s been called the “Burning Man of galas.” It is the annual Chashama Gala, brainchild of Anita Durst, beloved as the Chashama Mama, and this is its

The rolling hills and mountains of Southern California, the biosphere, the range of climates from desert to snow covered peaks roamed by mountain goats in one cable car ride the soaring mountains over the sea, the vertigo of a place prone to earthquakes, fire, floods, mudslides, a virtual sim city in real time, life on

\ Sultry haze of balmy nights. The Egypt-born, Quebec-based singer/composer/producer Nadah El Shazly has built a following in recent years with a blend of club music experimentation and Arabic tradition. She’s been a big part of the rich and exciting music coming out of the Beirut / Cairo / Istanbul triangle (Karkhana, Praed Orchestra!) as

People frequently (that is, once every few years) stop me on the street and ask me, “George” (no one really knows who I am), “should I be listening to jazz?” My first response is always, “absolutely!” Then, when they ask me why, this is what I tell them (again almost never happens, but it’s good

Film festivals love to profess their indie bona fides, regardless of how institutional (Tribeca) or industrial (Sundance) they’ve become. (The only exception: Cannes, which absolutely, unapologetically trumpets its status as a glitzy party for superstars and the uber-wealthy.) But a festival that truly embraces the DIY spirit is the New York City Independent Film Festival.

Michael Jones has worked in many different industries — as a manager for Brooklyn synthpop duo Holy Ghost!, at Vice Media in the early days of online video, in the emerging New York City 2010s tech scene at places like Cameo and Dash, and then doing brand development for a company transforming small business lending