Too Many Ideas Syndrome” (TMIS) is supposedly a real phenomenon and the subject of many discussions online. (Credit: Pixabay) When I was 13, my mum bought me an amazing thesaurus...
Chaekgeori, the Scholar’s Accoutrements. Late 18th to early 19th-century Korea, The Leeum, Samsung Museum of Art, Seoul, South Korea. Some time ago, while searching for Korean art history I...
For more than a year now, I have been regularly watching an unusually prolific Indian YouTuber named Ranveer Allahbadia (@BeerBiceps) and enjoying his conversations with guests who may be...
Recently, I resolved to add “Decluttering” to my daily task list, meaning that every single day I discard something I do not need or organise better something I do need....
When I think of African art in the broadest sense, I immediately imagine masks—belonging to old communities living upon scorched earth or in dense jungles, masks used in rituals...
“Alchemy” is a term I first discovered as a teenager via the bestselling novel The Alchemist (1988) by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho. The book itself, a mystical fable about...
In my September 2020 article on how artists could circumvent the elitism of the art world, I highlighted the importance of networking (without hard-selling), that is, introducing yourself to...
If you’ve taken a business class in school or college, chances are you have given some thought to why people consume (any product or service), how they behave...
Black paint gave me a hard time. I struggled to use it in a way that made sense. Found its lack of nuance disturbing. I am not referring to dark...
Over the past few years, Los Angeles-based painter and sculptor Cleon Peterson (born 1973) has emerged as a very recognisable figure in the visual arts scene, thanks to his repetitive—and...
American painter Amy Sherald (born 1973) has been a prominent name in the art world news recently—thanks especially to her portrait First Lady Michelle Obama (2018) that hangs in the...
What is a brand? In the simplest sense, the identity (verbal and visual presentation) of an individual or organisation that sets it apart from others. In this article, I try...
The word “Rococo” immediately conjures for me 18th-century France and highly ornate architecture. Gilded, flowery design. Cream walls, pastel blue ceilings, trompe-l’œil scenes. Elaborate costumes. Marie Antoinette and her cakes....
I have come across countless stories of very successful people—from actors to athletes—who’ve said they struggle with mental health issues. And I have wondered why it is so easy for...
The word “prehistoric” is very popular but when it comes to art made before the advent of settled life and writing systems, I try not to use it. Many believe...
One of my favourite contemporary thinkers is the American author Robert Greene (born 1959)—who has produced the bestsellers The 48 Laws of Power (1998), The Art of Seduction (2001), The...
Who are you, and what are you doing here? You, there in the mirror, there in the lens of your phone: What do you see? asks Lawrence Farago in the...
A particular topic that has remained very clearly in my mind since my MA days is Aristotle’s Four Causes. Change, motion, contingency, the coming into being of phenomena (and the...