- Above, my favourite lockdown tweet so far. Hell, it might even my favourite tweet ever!
- It’s been a couple of weeks since I last posted an update here. Not sure why that is really. I think it might have something to do with the nice weather, and the garden… and maybe also something to do with Animal Crossing (it’s taken a few goes but I’m gradually more and more hooked… and in debt).
- Really enjoyed watching Grayson Perry’s Art Club on Channel 4 last night. Who knew that you could give someone funny, talented and interesting a camera and let him film himself creating things and talking to his (adorable, and equally talented wife) and other people about art, that it would produce amazing television. We’re going to have to rethink the whole commissioning process after this.
- A friend sent me this Twitter thread about the history of the legendary Bradley’s Spanish Bar on Hanway Street. A great dive bar that has an incedible story. Go have a read and then donate if you can to keep the place open (£25k raised so far!).
- Lockdown cooking tip: Over in the New Yorker Bill Buford (ex Granta editor) talks about Mastering the Art of Making a French Omelette.
- And talking of food: the essay My Restaurant Was My Life for 20 Years. Does the World Need It Anymore? from the NY Times was probably the best thing I read this week, especially this bit:
“And God, the brunch, the brunch. The phone hauled out for every single pancake and every single Bloody Mary to be photographed and Instagrammed. That guy who strolls in and won’t remove his sunglasses as he holds up two fingers at my hostess without saying a word: He wants a table for two. The purebred lap dogs now passed off as service animals to calm the anxieties that might arise from eating eggs Benedict on a Sunday afternoon. I want the girl who called the first day of our mandated shut down to call back, in however many months when restaurants are allowed to reopen, so I can tell her with delight and sincerity: No. We are not open for brunch. There is no more brunch.”
- Elsewhere Larry David, is Master of His Quarantine (again from the NY Times). Warning: Contains controversial Woody Allen opinion.
- Going back to art: David Shrigley shares his latest commission (for a champagne house inredibly!) and artistic motto: “If you put the hours in then the work makes itself”
- One of my favourite artists, Geoff McFetridge created this lovely visual essay for the NY Times, called The Pandemic Has Turned Los Angeles Into a Walking City.
- And Jamie Harmon’s “Quarantine Portrait” series is a fantastic example of creating something beautiful out of a shitty situation.
- We just finished the latest series of Beter Call Saul and just wanted to share this article which appreciated Rhea Sheehorn’s performance as Kim Wexler. Best character on TV by a long shot in my opinion.
- And to end this week: Here’s my personal Spotify playlist of my favourite tracks (new and old) from the past few months: