13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CCCXLVII)

1. The Louvre’s Pyramid Turns 30 with an Epic Optical Illusion The world-renowned street artist JR used 2,000 pieces of paper to make the museum’s iconic glass pyramid look like it it’s rising from a quarry. Follow JR on Instagram. 2. Just nature, adapting to a hostile urban environment Banyan tree roots in Hong Kong,…

A Café Philosophique with Messy Nessy Chic

“Change your life today. Don’t gamble on the future, act now, without delay.” ― Simone de Beauvoir She was an inspiring lady that Simone de Beauvoir; the prolific French writer and philosopher who epitomised Parisian café society in the 20th century along with her circle of friends. So inspiring I thought, as I was writing the…

The Secret Language of Still Lifes

Still-lifes make delicious little voyeurs out of all of us. No matter the era to which they belong, they always give us the sense that we’re spying on a table set for a night of romance, gluttony, or a secret rendez-vous; a clandestine scene where only the finest cornucopia of treats will do, or a…

Declassified: That Time the US Military made Flying Saucers

Every once in a while, we unearth a story so out-of-this-world it deserves its own tacky sci-fi movie. Today’s story turns the clock back to 1959, when the Cold War was hot and a scientist named Jack Frost was breaking a sweat over a top-secret military project: the flying saucer. As in, an All-American UFO-level…

5 Unforgettable Paris Sleepovers in case you don’t Win that Night at the Louvre

Airbnb has done it again. Travel and lifestyle blogs are abuzz with news of the company’s latest PR stunt: the chance to win a night with the Mona Lisa at the world-famous Musée du Louvre in Paris. Only VIP super humans like the Obamas and Beyoncé & Jay Z have had the chance to take…

Let’s Talk About 1980s Parisian Pop Culture

On a steamy summer night in 1981, it wasn’t odd to find David Bowie tossing around a blow-up ball in an underground discotheque pool or Grace Jones singing “La Vie en Rose” on a Harley Davidson surrounded by Paris’ premiere drag queens at clubs like Le Palace. A big, playful energy combusted across a city…

Exploring Tommy Suharto’s Ghost Hotel

Of all the stories of crazed dictators and corrupt regimes built on nepotism, the Suharto legacy might just be the most scandalous. The youngest son to one of the most brutal leaders in recent history, Tommy Suharto’s tale fits somewhere on the same shelf as Pablo Escobar’s and Kim Jung Un’s. Playboy embezzler, convicted murderer,…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CCCXLVI)

1. Artist uses packaging materials to make ye olde garments Discover the incredible work of Suzanne Jongmans. 2. This Extraordinary Folk Art Antique French Shell Palace For Sale (Dimensions: H 45 cm x W 41 cm x D 75 cm). Asking price: €1,094.92. Found on ArtDibs. 3. The Old Decorative Signs at Jones Beach State…

10 Fashion Labels we bet Frida Kahlo Would have Loved

Where would Friday Kahlo shop if she was alive today? She’s still one of the most revolutionary and influential women in modern culture, so naturally, you might be wondering – where can you get a wardrobe like hers these days? Those colourful folksy prints, artisanal embroidery and quirky accessories are just what summer dreams are…

An Insider Peep into Tokyo’s Secretive Red Light District: Then & Now

Watanabe Katsumi was the king of treading lightly. As a drifting photographer, his lens was a stealthy observer of Tokyo’s red light district, snapping hundreds of photos of its drag queens, gangsters, prostitutes, and other fringe society members in the 1960s and 70s. Few dared enter the underbelly of the city like him and the…