Arts + Culture

Ellen McGirt|Interviews

The face, reconsidered

In 2019, artist, designer, writer, and Design Observer co-founder Jessica Helfand published Face: A Visual Odyssey, a compelling examination of the history of images of the human face—from historical mugshots to medical research images to humanoid robots, and beyond. “The face has always been a hieroglyph, at once the instrument of lucidity (we all have … Continued

Arts + Culture

Dylan Fugel|Analysis

“I’d rather be a pig”: Amid fascism and a reckless AI arms race, Ghibli anti-war opus ‘Porco Rosso’ matters now more than ever

Amid fascism and a reckless AI arms race, Ghibli anti-war opus ‘Porco Rosso’ matters now more than ever.

Arts + Culture

Nila Rezaei|Essays

“Dear mother, I made us a seat”: a tribute to the women of Iran

Iran is teaching us anew: the world is shaped by mothers and daughters. In September 2022, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa (Zhina) Amini died in a Tehran hospital following her arrest by Iran’s religious “morality” police. Amini was accused of failing to wear her headscarf in accordance with Iran’s compulsory veiling laws. Government officials claimed … Continued