Link Loves: Volume VIII

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In this week’s Link Loves, we talk International Women’s Day, the aftermath of six months’ travelling overseas, and a mix of history, philosophy, and maths. Yep, I’m a mixed bag with a ton of weird interests.

Empowered women empower women. But we also tend to forget certain women, because women are not a homogenous group and face unique backgrounds and circumstances. Here’s a call to inclusivity.

And here’s a bit on Harriet Hosmer, an inspiration to any female artist.

And of course, a bit more photography inspo by some incredible female photographers and their female subjects.

I already wrote about the Melbourne Immigration Museum last week, but one of the other exhibitions I saw was Love, which you can see a couple of extracts of in this frankie piece.

Over the past six months, I’ve been travelling non-stop. So when I got back to Melbourne and had nothing to do but meet friends and run a bit of social media, I was at a bit of a loss as to what to do with my time. But it’s good to have time and space to think and, incredibly, be bored. It gives us time to reset, as this article explains so well.

This Brain Pickings article also draws on the Sontag’s call to an aesthetic of silence. And with particular sharpness in relation to the world of social media, she says, “The art of our time is noisy with appeals for silence. A coquettish, even cheerful nihilism. One recognizes the imperative of silence, but goes on speaking anyway. Discovering that one has nothing to say, one seeks a way to say that.”

There’re myriad reasons why I don’t drink, and it was certainly and interesting talking point when I was in Europe, but this happens to be a good summary of the various reactions I get when I say I don’t.

My time away from home also meant leaving some of my many responsibilities behind, or at least taking a short break from them. It meant I had more space to be myself, to think, to breathe, and to be present. It’s a luxury I’m grateful for, but it’s also something I want to put into practice more when I’m at home. Hence, this year my mantra is ‘be still and know’. Although I don’t agree with the entirety of this article, it makes some valid points that I think demonstrate the necessity of understanding burnout (and it’s a good reminder as a new university year begins.

I adore the Covent Garden/West End/Soho/Seven Dials area of London, mostly because my fav musical of all time is My Fair Lady. It was a dream come true, and absolutely surreal, so much so that I bought an antique etching of the old Covent Garden Theatre while I was in London. Of course, when I saw this appear on my Twitter feed, I immediately opened it, and fell into a debate that will probably never end. But it makes you realise that no art is in an abyss of its own, and that how we view any art is always through the lens of what we know in that moment. (For the record, I have always loved the ambiguity of the ending, and never thought Eliza and Higgins marry.)

The “us vs them” dichotomy is an age-old social construct that has undergone many a refresh in various guises. It certainly feels more pointed right now. This is a fascinating dive into it.

And a little closer to home, there’s almost nothing in Australia’s history that I care about more than some honesty about it, of which there is almost none. So, although this may be difficult to stomach, it’s something we’ve all got to face up to.

Then read this reflection in the NYT on Ta-Nehisi Coates’ article on The Case for Reparations which I linked a couple of weeks ago, if that hadn’t converted you already.

Here’s something a little different: the fact that probability is not all that simple.

And to wrap it all up, here’s a little Women in Jazz playlist for you!

That will definitely last you the week, and in the meantime, I have a LOT of uni work to do -nat 🥀♥️