Your Mid-Week Art Break: Lois van Baarle

I'm loving Lois van Baarle's work this week. She has this wonderful sense of capturing a moment in time, an instance of a character. There's a density and a real narrative to her backgrounds and her designs too, I mean, check out the above! Look at those tiles! Her hair. It's pretty awesome.

Friday Finds

Yes yes yes. Yes yes yes. Yes. That is all.

(No it's not - this is supremely powerful and a beautiful and strong representation of women's body rights and rights to control in modern day. Yes yes yes.)

- On a similar note, Sarah Darmody wrote a great article over on The Vine asking why are we so embarrassed about breasts?

- The inaugural Stella Prize longlist has been announced! I can feel my to-read list growing as we speak.


- Thanks to FlavorWire, you can diagnose your romantic issues with your favourite book couple! (This is hilarious)

- Chuck Wendig tells you how to read like a writer. He also tells you how to push past the bullshit and write that goddamn novel.

- Anna Sui's FW 2013 collection is glorious. 

Your Mid-Week Art Break: Yudi Chen

Yudi Chen has done some pretty amazing genderbent fairytales. There's not a one here that I'm not half in love with. The Little Mermaid one (posted above) has a pretty special spot in my heart right now though. Have a look at the whole collection over on tumblr.

Toronto Life Behind the Scenes: the National Ballet of Canada rehearses for Giselle

I've always had a real soft spot for ballet films, from Center Stage to Black Swan. It's a dialogue and visual narrative that really appeals for me. That said, I've never actually been to a ballet, which I feel is a pretty gross lapse in my life experiences - something I am hoping to amend this year! All that aside, these behind the scenes photos of the Canadian production of Giselle are stunning. The ethereal atmosphere lends both to the production itself and to the narrative of ballet as a medium. It is really, really lovely. You can view the full set here.

Covering The Bell Jar

The internet sort of exploded last week with the release of the anniversary edition of Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar. In an interesting choice, Faber, who publishes the book, opted for what can only be described as a pretty fucking garish cover - one that really doesn't match the content. The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath's first and last novel, focuses on a woman in sixties America who grows increasingly disillusioned and dislocated from society and follows her spiral into depression. It's a beautiful study of character and femininity in an era that had very strong constraints on both. The protagonist, Ester, is both a mirror for what Plath herself felt, and really, one of the most compelling female characters ever written.


I have Strong Feelings on book covers generally. A cover should never just be about selling a book, but about encompassing and enhancing a written narrative. It's why a great cover is, well, so great and it's also why a bad one can undermine a great story. There's been a lot of conversation of late as to the difference in selling a female author and a male one, particularly in literature, as there is a reluctance to sell female authored books to the masses, regardless of the content. In particular, women who write domestic stories are seen to be writing 'chick lit' (Barbara Kingsolver, Jodi Picoult) whilst men who write domestic stories are high lit (Jonathan Franzen, Jeffrey Eugenides). It's a really interesting juxtaposition, and one that demonstrates the high levels of sexism still prevalent in the literary world. Lionel Shriver, author of We Need to Talk About Kevin wrote a pretty brilliant article on the issue back in 2010 and I'd encourage everyone to check it out.

Back to the issue at hand though, The Guardian UK blog has a pretty good sum-up of the new The Bell Jar cover and why it is so disconcerting - noting also though that Faber is brave to include a woman on the cover, given that so few publishers are willing to do that these days (the gentlemen clearly is not familiar with the Aussie genre rural romance). His case is pretty on-point, but the thing is, it's not even just that the cover condescends and belittles the subject matter and literary significance of the novel, it's a bad cover. From the violent red  to the strange woman who, from what little we see of her face, looks like she's smelling something especially bad, it's ugly, does nothing to sell the work and totally misrepresents the content. It's a shame too, as The Bell Jar has had some brilliant covers historically that could have been adapted or used better as inspiration for this new edition.

All that said I'm a strong believer in combating shittiness with humour, which is what makes the wide, parody response so great. In other words, check those out and feel better.

Friday Finds

- This post on the power of digital film over on the Emerging Writers Festival blog is pretty amazing and a really interesting take on both marketing work in a digital age and the power of storytelling from the original storyteller. Awesome stuff.

- And in other awesome, geeky news, Bill Gates' Q&A on Reddit was one of the best things I've read all week.

- Calivintage's recap for ModCloth of Lauren Moffatt's Fall 2013 is pretty amazing. Also, those clothes!

- Lore looks this side of gorgeous too.  

- Katrina Navarro's designs of superhero-inspired fashions are wooonderful. I am in love with the Green Arrow coat dress!

- These lit valentines cards are slaying me too.

Your Mid-Week Art Break: Amelie Fontaine

French illustrator Amélie Fontaine designs some monstrously cool posters and book covers. You should check her out.

Tweed Ride Moscow

The photos that have emerged from the Tween Run bicycle ride in Moscow are speaking to my twee heart. People went all out, decked in clothes from the thirties and forties and basically cycled around looking dapper as all hell. The photographer, Cyril Kolobyanin, did an amazing job capturing the event too. A+ style, everybody. A+. View the full set over here.

Friday Finds

- Joel Naoum from Momentum Books has written a really interesting post on the future of editing.

- Flavourwire has also compiled a pretty wonderful post on great literary characters inspired by real famous people. I basically want to read all of these. 

- This Indian wedding photography is stunning, full of vibrant colours and intricate detail. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

- Pat Grant (author/illustrator of the super awesome Blue which you should purchase immediately) has a really interesting post over on the Going Down Swinging blog about design processes in producing a movie poster.

- These beautiful long exposure photos of sleeping couples.

- And to take you out for the weekend, Dad's are the Original Hipsters!

In Other News

I just got my Townsville Groovin' the Moo tickets. Alpine! The Kooks! Frightened Rabbit! Tegan and Sara! Life is good right now.

Your Mid-Week Art Break: Becca Stadtlander

Becca Stadtlander sure knows how to bring the whimsy. Her delicate illustrative style looks like it belongs in the pages of picture books, fables or fairy tales. It's pretty lovely stuff. 

Friday Finds

- The Millions has a great post on 10 Books to Read Now That Girls is back. I feel like these arise almost as frequently as the episodes do, but I can't really fault it when it throws a spotlight on some awesome lady writers. Plus, this list is particularly good (Sheila Heti! Jane Austen! Nora Ephron!)

- There's also a great interview with Melina Marchetta on writing female heroines over at the Wear the Old Coat blog. Marchetta is pretty iconic amongst Australian writers and has written some pretty great women characters. It's interesting to hear her take on that and the processes she uses in creating them.

- Prada unveils Great Gatsby costumes. Be still my beating heart, etc.

- 10 Literary Board Games for Book Nerds! I would give my right leg for the Pride & Prejudice one. Also The Shining one. Because what.

- New Star Wars film has a female protagonist? (!!!!!!!!!)

- And on an entirely different note, some photography. This wedding is a dreeeam. Really, really gorgeous. And Lauren Maccabee's photos bring some dark whimsy to a wonderful level.