Beauty’s a Bitch

Arrogance is a coverup.  A lack of self-confidence that can only detract from true beauty. Results from resentment. Of any rejection. Salomé was ruled by desire and a relentless need to avenge.

Magritte Express

René Magritte, the most influential Belgian artist of the 20th century, never explained anything.  Nor did he ever analyze. Especially his own highly thought-provocative work. It speaks for itself.

Southwest, U.S.A.

You came to give me your goodbye and left before I blinked the moon out of my eyes. I had no recourse except to sleep deeper this time. Now you’re up there, airborne, temporarily, of course...

Earth Day 2022

I have been reading a lot about love and hope this semester. Struck by the bravery of love, the resistance of hope. The power of compassion, the necessity for collective belief and action.

Day In Athens

The "Day in Athens" project became my very first as an amateur photographer.  Imagine you hop on a train with your best friend. Both have your cameras. The only goal to explore and to take pictures.

aguas verdes

The aura we are able to perceive here on a simple trip to Costa Rica is extraordinary. It strikes me as an atemporal process, a self-identification with a familiar place. My greatest learning comes when I'm abroad.

A Westside Enigma

The night, a cold wintry one in New York.  The air is biting and raw on Riverside Drive when we get back at 2:00 AM.  No doorman on duty.  The last shift ended at 11:00. We are stranded on the stoop.  

French Far Right

The far-right was a small minority on the French political spectrum. But with the creation of the National Front political party in 1972, then the National Rally in 2018, it saw its electorate increase.

Venice

I often tend to offer a series of well-developed arguments, touting Parisian pride and snobbishness. Not as to justify either, but rather to turn in as a trait of an elegantly written character.

Confronting Grief

Contemplating how to write this personal essay, I asked myself, is there a poetic way to recall how a 20-year-old died in his sleep? One sentence: “Miguel passed away,” would change our perspective.

Working Girl

Sometimes when it gets busy, I stop thinking.  I just rattle off the standard greeting to each new table. My mind already has skipped to whether or not I’ve already fired up the medium-rare ribeye.

A Price Too High

After fifteen-year-old, gold-medal-favourite Kamila Valieva tested positive for a banned substance in December, this darker side of the Russian coaching team slowly started to surface.