TALKING TREE in Austin
One of the treats that UK House at SXSW offered to Austin was a ‘talking tree.” Anyone passing along the hike & bike trail at the foot of Guadalupe Street…
Brazilian Art Installation at SXSW
SXSW this past week featured a pavilion touting the allure of Sao Paulo in Brazil. In addition to the good vibes, there was something for the modern art lover too,…
NEW ENGLISH-AMERICAN TEA
At UK House, set up this week for SXSW, I interviewed Jonathan Jones as he poured a tea that has never before been presented to the public. “This is the…
The Intersection of Music, Politics, and Working-Class Identity: An In-Depth Conversation with Dr. Keith Gildart
During SXSW, I had the opportunity to interview Dr. Keith Gildart, a leading authority on the UK working class and the role of music in its culture. Gildart is professor…
THE DANGER OF DREAMS
The Nobel laureate in literature, Kazuo Ishiguro, warned this month about the intersection of AI and human emotions. In an interview with The Guardian newspaper, he said “AI will become…
Lunar Mascot Contest
Image: astronaut Reid Wiseman and his mascot Despite all the high tech in space, the astronaut’s most reliable friend is a mascot. In a session on the opening day of…
2025 Texas Film Awards: Celebrating 25 Years of Texas Filmmaking Excellence
Photo: Jay Duplass and Richard Linklater For 25 years, the Texas Film Awards have honored the creative visionaries who put Texas on the cinematic map. Hosted by the Austin Film…
An African American Homage to Divine Song
It is disheartening to learn that Spectrum Theatre Company, one of Austin’s most significant and vibrant theatrical organizations, has remained a hidden gem for over twenty years. This could be…
To Celebrate a Princely Birth
Spanish speakers: some 43 million people in the United States speak Spanish, with another 384 million in Central & South America. The main reason is because of the conquest of…
Lawless Republic
What would happen if a clique of very rich people, led by an autocrat, took over a Republic? What if he awarded grand gifts of money and power to the…