Still Life: A Short Film about Tony Judt
Tony Judt, one of our leadÂing pubÂlic intelÂlecÂtuÂals, died earÂliÂer this month of ALS, a.k.a. Lou Gehrig’s DisÂease. Judt was no stranger to conÂtroÂverÂsy, and he had his critÂics. But he lived out his final years in a way that few could feel dividÂed about. He kept writÂing and pubÂlishÂing. The pace picked up instead of slowÂing down. And he stayed in the pubÂlic light, when most would have backed away from it. The video above – a short tribÂute to his life – isn’t entireÂly fun to watch. I’ll admit that. But it says someÂthing imporÂtant about how we live, endure illÂness, and die with our humanÂiÂty intact. NeedÂless to say, this makes the video evenÂtuÂalÂly 100% relÂeÂvant to you. Hence why we’re postÂing. Thanks Mike for anothÂer great clip.
PS You can find Tony Judt’s recent writÂings in The New York Review of Books here. I would also encourÂage you to read TimÂoÂthy GarÂton Ash’s intelÂlecÂtuÂal obit of Judt here.
Christopher Hitchens on Cancer, Life and Religion
ChristoÂpher Hitchens hasÂn’t turned inward since his canÂcer diagÂnoÂsis in June. Nor, as some might have anticÂiÂpatÂed, has he budged from his atheÂist views outÂlined in his 2007 bestÂseller God Is Not Great. And if you hear rumors of an evenÂtuÂal deathbed conÂverÂsion, don’t believe them. That’s the mesÂsage he passÂes along to AnderÂson CoopÂer in a new CNN interÂview (above). Also, Hitchens has just pubÂlished a new piece in VanÂiÂty Fair where he talks about his introÂducÂtion to (esophÂaÂgus) canÂcer in a way that only Hitchens can. RegardÂless of what you think about Hitchens, it’s defÂiÂniteÂly worth a read…
via DaiÂly Hitchens
Venezia
Venice, the “Queen of the AdriÂatÂic,” in HD and satÂuÂratÂed colÂor. A litÂtle thing of beauÂty. You can watch a bigÂger verÂsion of “Around Venezia,” filmed by “Icam,” on Vimeo here. It’s well worth it.
Leon Levinstein: Photography Reveals How Little We See
In the 1960s, while now-iconÂic phoÂtogÂraÂphers like Robert Frank and Diane Arbus were busy becomÂing iconÂic — applyÂing for grants, enterÂing award shows, husÂtling for high-proÂfile magÂaÂzine assignÂments — Leon LevinÂstein was blendÂing into crowds, unnoÂticed, docÂuÂmentÂing street life and the era’s hipÂsters: beach bums, downÂtown derÂriÂeres, street husÂtlers. An unsung phoÂtogÂraÂphy hero of the 20th cenÂtuÂry, LevinÂstein craftÂed and inhabÂitÂed a loneÂly, herÂmit-like world behind his lens, yet manÂaged to capÂture the richÂness of the world in front of it with remarkÂable eleÂgance and vigÂor.
In fanÂtasÂtic 1988 interÂview recentÂly feaÂtured on NPR, the lone phoÂtogÂraÂphÂer shares his creÂative ethos and his ultiÂmate approach to his art: “You gotÂta be alone and work alone. It’s a loneÂly occuÂpaÂtion, if you wanÂna call it that.”
Image © Howard GreenÂberg Gallery
Image © Howard GreenÂberg Gallery
What makes LevinÂstein a parÂticÂuÂlarÂly unlikeÂly masÂter of street phoÂtogÂraÂphy — or, perÂhaps, preÂciseÂly what makes him a masÂter — is that he nevÂer received any forÂmal trainÂing in phoÂtogÂraÂphy. Instead, he exitÂed the army, bought himÂself a used camÂera, and quiÂetÂly set to shootÂing.
“A good phoÂtoÂgraph will prove to the viewÂer how litÂtle our eyes perÂmit us to see. Most peoÂple only see what they have always seen and what they expect to see. Where a phoÂtogÂraÂphÂer, if he’s good, will see everyÂthing.”
Image © Howard GreenÂberg Gallery
Image © Howard GreenÂberg Gallery
This month, a new exhiÂbiÂtion at New York’s MetÂroÂpolÂiÂtan MuseÂum of Art pays homage to the obscure phoÂtogÂraÂphÂer. HipÂsters, HusÂtlers, and HandÂball PlayÂers: Leon LevinÂstein’s New York PhoÂtographs, 1950–1980 is as much a retÂroÂspecÂtive of LevinÂstein’s work as it is a unique time capÂsule of the era’s everyÂday culÂture-makÂers. You can view the colÂlecÂtion of phoÂtographs on the museÂum’s webÂsite and catch the exhiÂbiÂtion at the Met until OctoÂber 17.
Maria PopoÂva is the founder and ediÂtor in chief of Brain PickÂings, a curatÂed invenÂtoÂry of eclecÂtic interÂestÂingÂness and indisÂcrimÂiÂnate curiosÂiÂty. She writes for Wired UK, GOOD MagÂaÂzine, BigÂThink and HuffÂinÂgÂton Post, and spends a disÂturbÂing amount of time on TwitÂter.
We Are Here: The Pale Blue Dot
Let Carl Sagan put everyÂthing – and I mean everyÂthing – in perÂspecÂtive for you …
(And see his relatÂed book, The Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space)
Thanks Zoran for sendÂing!!
Meryl Streep Gives Graduation Speech at Barnard
Meryl Streep has been nomÂiÂnatÂed for 16 AcadÂeÂmy Awards, and won two, over her brilÂliant actÂing career. She’s one of AmerÂiÂca’s greats. But it hasÂn’t gone to her head. Above, we have Streep givÂing the gradÂuÂaÂtion speech last month at Barnard (the womÂen’s libÂerÂal arts colÂlege affilÂiÂatÂed with ColumÂbia UniÂverÂsiÂty). And what comes across is someÂone who doesÂn’t take herÂself or actÂing too seriÂousÂly. SomeÂone who still gets a litÂtle charmÂingÂly nerÂvous speakÂing in front of crowds. And someÂone who recÂogÂnizes that we globÂalÂly – and women parÂticÂuÂlarÂly – have major chalÂlenges to conÂtend with. It’s worth a watch, along with one of my favorite comÂmenceÂment speechÂes: Steve Jobs at StanÂford, 2005.
If you would like to supÂport the misÂsion of Open CulÂture, conÂsidÂer makÂing a donaÂtion to our site. It’s hard to rely 100% on ads, and your conÂtriÂbuÂtions will help us conÂtinÂue proÂvidÂing the best free culÂturÂal and eduÂcaÂtionÂal mateÂriÂals to learnÂers everyÂwhere. You can conÂtribute through PayÂPal, PatreÂon, and VenÂmo (@openculture). Thanks!
The Life You Can Save in 3 Minutes, by Peter Singer
A pracÂtiÂtionÂer of applied ethics, Peter Singer helped launch the aniÂmal rights moveÂment durÂing the 1970s, then latÂer took a conÂtroÂverÂsial stance on euthanaÂsia. These days, the PrinceÂton philosoÂpher is workÂing on less conÂtentious issues. His 2009 book is called The Life You Can Save: ActÂing Now to End World PoverÂty, and the core arguÂment gets niceÂly disÂtilled by the three minute video above. Along the way, Singer raisÂes some basic but essenÂtial quesÂtions about how much we valÂue human lives, both emoÂtionÂalÂly and ecoÂnomÂiÂcalÂly. Is it worth a pair of shoes to save the life of a child? Many would say unequivÂoÂcalÂly yes if asked the quesÂtion. But every day we make choicÂes to the conÂtrary. And that’s what Singer wants to undo. Watch the video. Read the short book. And visÂit Singer’s web site (thelifeyoucansave.com) and finalÂly find out where you can make a donaÂtion that will save a young life today.
Note: You can lisÂten to a 2009 interÂview with Singer where he talks about how small sacÂriÂfices can make big difÂferÂences, and why we should make them (DownÂload the MP3 here).
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