Look Inside

Bella Postcards: a new series of micro blogs, a (very) random ‘best of the web’ in under 250 words.

Zak Bronson on ‘salvage punk’ a sort of hyper-thrift: “it charts the transition from salvage as a noun (something akin to garbage) to salvage as a verb (meaning to repurpose) … a way of picking through the rubbish in order to recreate the world anew…shattering our slack-jawed complacency in the face of ecological disaster, economic disparity, and collective struggle and inviting us to participate in a new radical political activism.” See also Degrowth, a vocabulary for a new era.

Information Wars
Signage and culture wars emerge in different forms with Google announcing 13 new languages (including Gaelic) to Google Translate – and activists in London producing “subvertisements,” political messages designed to look like sanctioned advertising denouncing Israel’s apartheid policies against Palestinians. You can download high quality versions here.

Poetry & Books
This from Benedict Anderson on the relationship between Imagined Communities and The Break Up of Britain. This from Adrian Shaughnessy, Scratching the Surface a collection of essays and journalism focusing mainly on graphic design. This from Chekov’s Autobiography: “In 1891 I made a tour in Europe, where I drank excellent wine and ate oysters. In 1892 I took part in an orgy in the company of V. A. Tihonov at a name-day party. I began writing in 1879.” & the Glasgow Review of Books has new poetry by Bruno Diaz. Which we like.