Category Archives: Commentary

Opinion or analysis concerning whatever’s on my mind.

Tweet Storm Testicle Taint

Posted on August 18, 2020 by JMN

Spanish leftist leader Pablo Iglesias praised U.S. television writer David Simon’s latest series “The Plot Against America” on Twitter, saying the series showed that fascism was never far away. Iglesias’s tweet provoked “a flurry of responses in praise of and … Continue reading →

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‘A Difference That Adds Up’

Posted on August 16, 2020 by JMN

In 2019, the Serpentine Sackler Gallery in London hosted the first international retrospective of Ms. Hurtado’s art, “I Live I Die I Will Be Reborn.” Reviewing it in The Guardian, Adrian Searle wrote, “Vitality, tenderness, spookiness, intimacy, gawkiness, sexiness, subtlety, … Continue reading →

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Mother Power

Posted on August 15, 2020 by JMN

The “club” of Sarah Vowell’s title is clarified in the subtitle of this article: “They’re the graduates of public universities, and they’ve stepped into the void of presidential leadership.” President Lyndon Johnson was a graduate of Southwest Texas State College … Continue reading →

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Extreme Centrality. Yeah

Posted on August 14, 2020 by JMN

Credit… Mason Trinca for The New York Times. The philosopher Isaiah Berlin once said he occupied the “extreme right-wing edge of the left-wing movement.” If that’s good enough for Isaiah Berlin, it’s good enough for me. (David Brooks, “This Is … Continue reading →

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Welcome, Bone-Breaker

Posted on August 8, 2020 by JMN

The first bearded vulture born among the crags of Spain’s Picos de Europa mountains in 75 years has left the watchful gaze of her parents and taken to the sky. The chick, named Bienvenida (Welcome), was born in March to … Continue reading →

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Boredom, Doubt and Isolation in the Arts

Posted on August 6, 2020 by JMN

The Kunsthaus Bregenz in western Austria exhibits “Unprecedented Times,” comprised mostly of works produced by artists as the virus spread and they sheltered in place this year. The only work created pre-pandemic is by the Austrian artist Markus Schinwald, who … Continue reading →

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‘Horrific Surrealism’

Posted on August 5, 2020 by JMN

Behrouz Boochani wrote his book with desperate means from imprisonment in a brutal Australian camp for migrants. A collaborator from outside who helped assemble the book terms it a work of “horrific surrealism.” Boochani’s book challenges readers to acknowledge that … Continue reading →

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Multiple Choice Denial

Posted on August 4, 2020 by JMN

Mr. Young, who did not reply to email inquiries for this article, previously told The Times that the accusations against him were “either untrue, greatly exaggerated or taken out of context.” [My bolding] This type of assertion is oddly chinky … Continue reading →

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‘Stretched by an Unholy Desire’

Posted on August 2, 2020 by JMN

“Stretched by an unholy desire to be outrageous.” More than I care to admit, my pleasure in reading art criticism can amount to quivering at a splash of brandished lingo. I also quiver to Kahn’s paintings, which remind me of … Continue reading →

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The Romance of Aerated Water

Posted on August 1, 2020 by JMN

Mr. Patel, a historian, chronicles how soda pop became fiendishly soda-popular in India; or in his finer language: “how Parsis helped shape India’s taste for soft drinks.” The Parsis, whose name means “Persians,” are descended from Persian Zoroastrians who emigrated … Continue reading →

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