A Somali-American Artist Speaks Out
Minnesota art orgs take a stand against ICE, Senate rescues arts funding, and what exactly is the "2016 trend"?
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Computers can’t surprise
As AI’s endless clichés continue to encroach on human art, the true uniqueness of our creativity is becoming ever clearer - by Richard Beard Read on Aeon
Bent incentives
Who is Nicole Bennet and why does she keep calling me? A few times a day, a voice pretending to be someone named Nicole rings my cell, and in a petulant, entitled voice, insists she’s calling me about a loan that I never applied for. I’ve never interacted, I block each number,
Discover the World’s First Earthquake Detector, Invented in China 2,000 Years Ago
The Renaissance did not, strictly speaking, occur in China. Yet it seems that the Middle Kingdom did have its Renaissance men, so to speak, and in much earlier times at that. We find one such illustrious figure in the Han dynasty of the first and second centuries: a statesman
The Top 5 Longreads of the Week
In this edition: gambling’s grip, a story of plumes and poachers, bemoaning American tourists in Rome, a magical history tour, and a fake poultry flinger.
Congress Funds Institute for American Indian Arts
The Senate confirmed appropriations for the college and several other embattled cultural institutions following Trump's threats to defund them.
Art Movements: New Leaders Everywhere
Plus, Amy Sherald signs with the Creative Artists Agency and the Whitney Museum’s head-scratching “cosmic look” at its 2026 Biennial artists.
A Spell Against Fear: Tracy K. Smith on Poetry and The Art of Productive Impatience
“What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?” asked the Proust Questionnaire. “Living in fear,” answered David Bowie. The most menacing word of the three is the smallest, for fear really is something we live inside, not with — a cage, a tomb, a small dark room that comes
The Best Films of 2025
David Ehrlich is back with my favorite end-of-year celebration of film; here’s his look back at the best films of 2025 ( YouTube ). See the full list at Letterboxd . I’ve only seen five of these so it’s difficult to comment on the list as a whole, but I feel like Sinners should
Required Reading
Rose B. Simpson at SFMOMA, historical writers with day jobs, anti-surveillance clothing, the nostalgia of 2016, a day in the life of an art conservator, and more.
Nicola L.’s Soft Power
The late artist’s playful “functional sculptures” nod to second-wave feminism, but make a broader statement about resistance through collaboration.
Dr. Gladys West, Mathematician Whose Work Made GPS Possible, Dies at 95....
Dr. Gladys West, Mathematician Whose Work Made GPS Possible, Dies at 95 . “Her painstaking calculations and programming helped transform raw satellite data into precise geodetic models, enabling reliable satellite-based navigation.”
On Being a Somali Artist in Minnesota
Violence has a way of turning familiar places into guarded ground. And yet, I ask not what has been taken, but what we will continue to build from what remains.
A View From the Easel
“I use palo santo in my space before working to honor my ancestors.”
Request for Proposals: Operator for the Harlem African Burial Ground Cultural Education Center
Learn about this opportunity to develop a cultural education center at the historic East Harlem site during informational sessions in January and February.
Mestra is a forthcoming short story from Madeline Miller (Circe, The Song...
Mestra is a forthcoming short story from Madeline Miller ( Circe , The Song of Achilles ); it’s “a powerful reimagining of Ovid’s Pygmalion”. Miller is also working on a novel about Persephone .
Minnesota Art Spaces to Close in Solidarity With Anti-ICE Strike
The Walker Art Center and the Minneapolis Institute of Art are among the hundreds of businesses shuttering on January 23 in protest of the ICE killing of Renee Macklin Good.
Minneapolis Art Spaces to Close in Solidarity With Anti-ICE Strike
The Walker Art Center and the Minneapolis Institute of Art are among the hundreds of businesses shuttering on January 23 in protest of the ICE killing of Renee Macklin Good.
Will Dad and I Ever See Texas the Same Way?
"A noted Texas historian and his adult child get behind the wheel to see if they can finally view their home state the same way."
Pilot Captures Amazing Aurora Photos During Flight
This week, the Earth was hit with one of the strongest geomagnetic storms in recent years, which made for some gobsmacking displays of the northern lights, even as far south as California. Cruising in a 787 at 37,000 feet on his route from Calgary to London (UK), airline pilot
Otherworldly Landscapes and Bolivian Culture Merge in River Claure’s Mystical Photos
The Bolivian artist's work is imbued with a sense of nostalgia—a longing for connections to "the mystical, the epic, and the sacred," he says. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little
From director Rian Johnson, a collection of some of the screenplays of...
From director Rian Johnson, a collection of some of the screenplays of his movies & TV shows , including Wake Up Dead Man, Knives Out, Glass Onion, Looper, and the Poker Face pilot. “Print them, share them, act them out with your friends.”
Now That I Am Old Enough to Enroll in Medicare, I Am...
Now That I Am Old Enough to Enroll in Medicare, I Am Against Socialized Medicine . “Don’t you know that it makes my benefits less special when everyone can receive them?”
‘Cat’ Is a Purr-fect Celebration of Felines in Art Throughout the Centuries
The new book, forthcoming from Phaidon, surveys felines in art throughout the millennia. Do stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member today and support independent arts publishing for as little as $7 per month. The article ‘Cat’ Is a Purr-fect
The Most Important Thing to Remember About Your Mother
"It is not easy to give closeness and freedom, safety plus danger."
What Is the Scale of the Resistance in Minnesota?
A must-read thread from Margaret Killjoy ( Skywriter thread ) on what’s going on in Minnesota. I came to Minneapolis to report on what’s going on, and one of the main questions I showed up with is “just what is the scale of the resistance?” After all, we’re all used to the
More ways to help: Stand With Minnesota. How you can tell this...
More ways to help: Stand With Minnesota . How you can tell this is a local MN thing: “We are now just two ladies running this thing as volunteers, so please be patient.”
You can help: a listing of mutual aid organizations to support in...
You can help: a listing of mutual aid organizations to support in Minnesota .
Ryan Coogler’s Sinners sets record for most Oscar nominations: 16! Includes best...
Ryan Coogler’s Sinners sets record for most Oscar nominations: 16! Includes best picture, best director, best screenplay, and best actor (for Michael B. Jordan). Well-deserved…Sinners was the best film I saw in 2025.