Category Archives: Quotations

Things people said.

Hopeful Road Map

Posted on August 10, 2018 by JMN

“But a hopeful road map to humanism’s recovery might include variations on those older themes. First, a return of serious academic interest in the possible (I would say likely) truth of religious claims. Second, a regained sense of history as … Continue reading →

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Poetaster

Posted on August 4, 2018 by JMN

More joy courtesy of Blake Gopnik, “In His Films, Brancusi Takes Flight,” NYTimes. Given all the chestnuts in this show, the challenge is to see if we can still find a way to be astonished by them, as we were … Continue reading →

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“Toot Toot Tutu Toodle-oo.”

Posted on August 2, 2018 by JMN

New words encountered! Courtesy of Roberta Smith, “Painting: An (Incomplete) Survey of the State of the Art,” NYTimes. “gamin” — Ms. Hearne was a gamin performance artist turned art dealer with an audacious eye… [I knew this word from French … Continue reading →

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Sigh… but I’d love to be surprised.

Posted on August 1, 2018 by JMN

If he’s proven to have not told the whole truth about the fact that campaigns look for dirt, and if someone offers it, you listen to them, nobody’s going to be surprised. There are some things in politics that you … Continue reading →

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Onward and Upward with the Language

Posted on August 1, 2018 by JMN

I learned a new word today: “derp,” meaning “foolishness or stupidity.” Here’s the context: So that’s why I’m a crypto skeptic. Could I be wrong? Of course. But if you want to argue that I’m wrong, please answer the question, … Continue reading →

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On Mistranslation

Posted on July 29, 2018 by JMN

When Jerome, the patron saint of translators, rendered the Bible into Latin, he introduced a pun that created one of the most potent symbols of Christian iconography, turning the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (“malus”) into the … Continue reading →

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The Road of Paint: Zadie Smith, “Henry Taylor’s Promiscuous Painting,” New Yorker, July 30, 2018 issue

Posted on July 26, 2018 by JMN

[Henry Taylor’s paintings are transfixing for me. I’m infinity shy of his league as a painter, but I was touched by the “road of chaos… road of paint” phrase that Zadie Smith uses to name the path that Taylor has … Continue reading →

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Jonathan Gold

Posted on July 23, 2018 by JMN

“I’m not a cultural anthropologist,” he once said. “I write about taco stands and fancy French restaurants to try to get people less afraid of their neighbors and to live in their entire city instead of sticking to their one … Continue reading →

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Seduction by Menu

Posted on July 18, 2018 by JMN

“The menu should read like a poem,” Ms. de Boer said. “You should seduce the diner. People don’t know they want to eat deep-fried mackerel with aioli, so you’ve got to tell a story and get them on your wavelength.” … Continue reading →

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Make Someone Smile

Posted on July 18, 2018 by JMN

“Graffiti is one of the few tools you have if you have almost nothing,” the street artist Banksy wrote in 2001. “And even if you don’t come up with a picture to cure world poverty, you can make someone smile … Continue reading →

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