August 31, 2011

Joan Didion dixit


There certainly is what doctors call a “migraine personality,” and that personality tends to be ambitious, inward, intolerant of error, rather rigidly organized, perfectionist. “You don’t look like a migraine personality,” a doctor once said to me. “Your hair’s messy. But I suppose you’re a compulsive housekeeper.” Actually my house is kept even more negligently than my hair, but the doctor was right nonetheless: perfectionism can also take the form of spending most of a week writing and rewriting and not writing a single paragraph.


In Bed

August 26, 2011

Monterrey 53

Yesterday, a group of criminals attacked a casino in my hometown, Monterrey: they burned it up with petrol and molotov bombs short before 4pm. 

53 people were killed, ten more were injured.


Monterrey is definitely not the luckiest place on Earth, Mexico neither.

This country is a chaos, the absence of a State is notorious. We definitely need international help to stop this, since the Government, Police and Army is deeply corrupted.

We have to stop this now.

August 25, 2011

Hair: Jeanne d'Arc, Evey Hammond

 La passion de Jeanne d'Arc (1928)

V for Vendetta (2006)

This sosias was first seen by Damien.

August 18, 2011

Músicas de viaje






I used to travel to visit my girlfriend. Picnic just published two stories about music and traveling with or to visit the girlfriend.
 

The piece is called Músicas de viaje, and you can read it in Spanish.


(To) Cover: show, imply


I am still impressed by a powerful magazine cover from Granta for their issue on "Sex", last year.


I was looking forward to find a site with the best covers, when today ZEITmagazin discovered Coverjunkie, a great blog on the best covers. I am impressed and I love it!

Not only that: I also felt very happy because the cover of Picnic is among them. And thanks to Piu I wrote two short pieces for this issue.

The cover is to the magazine, what the eyes are to the soul. Their reflection.

And Granta's cover is definitely a masterpiece: it does not show, like Courbet did in 1866, but implies.

 


August 17, 2011

Seward Johnson's "Promenade"

Foto by Dave Aragona


My favorite painting is Paris, temps de pluie by Caillebotte. I just learned that Seward Johnson did a bronze sculpture in 1999 based on that painting. How incredible is that!

August 16, 2011

Los vándalos gourmet


Letras Libres me publica la historia de cómo los vándalos del Reino Unido irrumpieron en el restaurante de Jamie Oliver y en The Ledbury, un restaurante con dos estrellas Michelin.

¡Provecho!


August 13, 2011

Life in Coyoacán

Is great.

It is in fact considered Top 5 in North America! Believe it or not!

I have the sensation of being in a small neigborhood. I started knowing the people I meet everyday: there is an old man in front of my garage, and a couple of young guys in front of my main door, they all make a living out of helping people park their cars and taking care of them; José Antonio Romero is a nice, skinny old man selling the most fantastic fruit; I go to the market and started meeting the people who work there. Two former students of mine have their law office in front of my place, I could improve my Italian or dancing skills walking a few steps.

My place was built up at the end of the 17th Century or perhaps beginning of the 18th Century, while this very room where I sleep belongs to the 19th Century. It is said that this house once belonged to Agustín de Iturbide.

I have orange trees (still small, but full of fruits!) to make my orange juice in the morning... A three-meter high bouvainvillea sticks to the walls of my terrace.

I feel cozy here, despite I still have no chairs, no table, no nothing except for the bed and internet.

Peau à peau...

50 years of the Berlin Wall

50 years ago, 'they' closed Berlin and built up the Wall.

Nobody thought: Where are going to play the children. Did they?

Foto: Thomas Hoepker

What a shame!

What have we learned from this?

Potsdamer Platz

Bernauer Strasse



Are they "thinking" nowadays in North Korea, South USA, Gaza...?

August 12, 2011

Emily Dickinson meets photography


Emily Dickinson wrote this pretty poem:

Water, is taught by thirst.
Land —by the Oceans passed.
Transport —by throe—
Peace —by its battles told—
Love, by Memorial Mold—
Birds, by the Snow.


Michael Jang: Beauty is taught by ugliness.

 Garry Winogrand: Help by necessity.

 Garry Winogrand: Charity by poverty.

Garry Winogrand: Color by whiteness.

Yuhualixqui



Look at this beauty!

Yuhualixqui is the name of this small volcano, south of Mexico City. It is barely known, except for the people living around it.

Some 25 years ago, it was 40 meters taller, but the exploitation of a commercial company has systematically destroyed it.


August 11, 2011

Kiss the Bishop


One evening, Borges was invited to some dinner with conspicuous and boring people. He was rather shy and preferred to stay at home with his Mom and Beppo, the cat. But there he was that evening, trying to do small talk with a boring woman, a "big fan" of his literature, bla bla bla, the usual bullshit.

Borges excused himself telling her that he had to "greet the Bishop". She understood, and he in fact went to the restrooms to take a leak. I am not sure if this was a typical saying of him, or if he used it only that time.

In any case, the misfortune was on his side. A bit later, he met the same woman again. And she was excited again of meeting Borges again: "Did you meet the Bishop?", she asked him quite glad. "Yes". "Did you remember that you have to kiss the Bishop? Not the usual handshaking"...

Borges smiled prickly, turned around and left her wondering what had she done wrong.



Rogelio Cuéllar, Borges taking a pee (1973)

August 10, 2011

"Poses", by Yolanda Domínguez

A clip ("living") which criticizes the fashion world and the use and misuse of women. Nice, interesting try, but the goal is somehow not completely achieved, I think.


August 9, 2011

Mona Lisa smile!


This series of tourists photographing Mona Lisa's smile is my first contribution to Tóxico Cultura Blog, by TED-fellow Gabriella Gómez-Mont (many thanx!).


Enjoy!


August 8, 2011

Eating

 
José Martí wrote about Americans: "Such people eat quantity, we quality".

The biggest pleasure you can have in Mexico is the food. It is so tasty and different, better than anywhere else, including France (including a five star hotel I stayed in in Deauville, hélas!).

Here, my newest discovery: tacos de jícama.



August 4, 2011

Coincidences!


I am sitting in my office in Coyoacán, as I have been doing the last weeks, my favorite radiostation worldwide is on: MotorFM and I am listening to the music, paying attention to what is going on in Berlin, turning it off everytime the phone rings, somebody comes in or I need to concentrate deeper.

A few minutes ago, I was ready to turn off my computer and go home. When the voice mentions a name, which sounds very familiar to me. I freeze!

I listen to the voice of this girl, but it is not her... I wait and wait, the interview is about some exhibition in Berlin, a small group of artists is present in the studio. I google the name of the other guy talking, and yes, the show is about to start tomorrow, and her name is also there.

Then the voice with her trademark accent flows from the loudspeakers direct to my ears and into my brain, and I just cannot believe it. Of all people, this voice which was recorded a few hours ago and is being sent from the opposite side of the globe.

She mentions her favorite song, some David Bowie hit, which is drilling my whole being as I am writing this very words.

What a coincidence! I just cannot believe it.

The song is over, and I am gone now.

Sometimes, internet really s/fucks!

Image: JP

Music from Alaska

"Portugal. The Man" is my new favorite band. These guys come from Alaska and just released two weeks ago a great album. Stay tuned!




August 3, 2011

Way too fat

The bell rang and I open the front door of my building in Coyoacán. It was not the guy about to install the internet, but a small, good looking girl, with bright green eyes and a cute orange blazer. She was visiting my neighbour, who is a designer and works for succesful actresses and models.

No idea who she was, and now by chance I bumped into a picture of her: Ivanna Rodríguez, model of San Pedro, my small town.

Ivanna lost the Miss Mexico crown to Cynthia de la Vega, another girl from our town. Cynthia has been on the news this week, since her crown has taken off, allegedly because she is "way too fat".

Judge it by yourself:



I am not acquainted with the internal politics of this issue, and I really don't care.

My concern is about the wild pressure put upon girls. We -- men -- want to be able to grasp something when we take a girl by her waist. 

In Germany, the largest fashion magazine, Brigitte, stopped depicting slim models to benefit "normal" women.

I like models, a lot actually, but this argument ("way too fat") is just stupid. Or a lie. Please behave!


Something positive

Campus Party, Valencia


I am aware that I have been very negative the last weeks, since I came back to Mexico. The cultural shock after so many years in Berlin is immense. I do not belong either to Mexico, nor to Germany, that's the paradox.

But not everything is terrible here: the food is perfect, I tried new fruits and have met interesting people, love the plants and the easy way of the people.

A few days ago, I visited Campus Party (saw the prettiest girl I have seen in this city, so far, a hostess) and met Salles, a young designer whose blog I started following 1.5 years ago (it is just 2 years old). He has one million readers! A really interesting guy who will shape the minds of younger generations.

Last week, I bought a mattress by phone. The person was extremely polite and efficient. I had to talk to him a few times, and everything was perfect, the service was incredible, there was not a problem thanks to him. I sent today an email to the company congratulating him, and they responded quite fast and very happy. How important it is to give positive feedback...

Cheers!
Nudos narrativos, by Salles
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