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Flavorwire

New York

The Flavorpill Guide to This Week’s Top 10 New York Events

By Judy Berman on

For our (unconscionably high) rent money, the best thing about living in New York City is its endless supply of fun, odd, and inspired cultural events. But with so many options, it can be hard to know where to even begin planning your week. To help you make sense of it all, Flavorpill has launched a new social discovery engine where users can create and share events with friends, as well as follow Flavorpill editors’ and plugged-in local curators’ picks. Below, you’ll find the very best of what’s on offer this week, recommended by Flavorpill NYC’s very own Managing Editor, Leah Taylor. It’s just a taste of what you can find on the new Flavorpill, so if you like what you see, be sure to sign up. … Read More

Television

‘Girls’ Season 2, Episode 2 Recap: How Real Was ‘Girls’ This Week?

By Judy Berman on

Accused by some of whitewashing Brooklyn and beloved by others for depicting the harsh truth of post-college New York life for over-educated women in their 20s, Girls may well be TV’s most talked-about comedy. Considering that most of those conversations hinge on how realistic the show is or isn’t, this season we’re recapping Girls by asking three writers who should know — our interns, Chloe Pantazi, Alison Herman, and Julia Pugachevsky — how real each episode felt. Read their responses to last night’s episode, in which Girls finally confronts its race problem, and let us know what you think in the comments … Read More

Television

‘Downton Abbey’ Season 3, Episode 3: The Dowager Countess Recap

By Judy Berman on

Now in its third season, Downton Abbey is more divisive than ever. Once almost universally acclaimed, the British period drama that follows the aristocratic Crawley family and their many servants faced accusations last year of descending into soap opera-style sensationalism. Although we don’t mind a juicy soap opera here at Flavorwire — and have, in fact, been known to defend Downton Abbey against its snobbier critics — this season we hope to unite the various factions by limiting our recaps to the one character everyone can still agree to love: Violet Crawley, that feisty, elitist grandma played by the one and only Dame Maggie Smith. Each week, we’ll recount the Dowager Countess of Grantham’s adventures. They may often be tangential to the main storyline, but they’ll always be among the most important Downton moments to us. … Read More

Art

‘Strange Fruits’: Food Transformed Into Gems, Brains, and Rubik’s Cubes

By Judy Berman on

You’ll never see beets, apples, or cauliflower the same way after perusing Strange Fruits, Berlin-based artist Sarah Illenberger’s series of fruits and vegetables transformed into objects they resemble or suggest. A carrot becomes a tube of lipstick, chili peppers serve as a lighter’s flame, and a pomegranate gets a sinister makeover as a grenade — creating some creepy yet delightful visual dissonance that is sure to make the images stick with you. Click through for a selection of our favorite works from Strange Fruits, which we discovered via designboom, and visit Illenberger’s website to see the full series. … Read More

New York

John Cale Restores Nico’s Musical Legacy in All-Star Tribute

By Judy Berman on

[Ed. note: In honor of John Cale's mini-residency at BAM this week -- including an all-star tribute to Nico on Wednesday and performances of his 1973 solo album, Paris 1919 on Friday and Saturday -- Flavorwire New York has embarked upon a week-long celebration of all things Velvet Underground.]

With all the tribute albums and concerts (and art shows and dance parties, etc.) on offer these days, it’s easy forget that they can be more than just shallow attempts on the part of their organizers to cash in on a name more famous than their own. Last night at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the consistently thoughtful, uncompromising John Cale reminded me. Not only did he amass an appropriate and diverse set of musicians for Life Along the Borderline: A Tribute to Nico, but his clear-eyed and unsentimental celebration of his one-time Velvet Underground bandmate did what any worthwhile tribute should do — broadened and deepened our understanding of its subject. … Read More

Art

‘The Humorist’: Art Inspired by the Films of Woody Allen

By Judy Berman on

From Charlie Chaplin to Ingmar Bergman to Paris’ 1920s expatriate literary scene, Woody Allen is a filmmaker who wears his influences from across all media on his tweed-covered sleeve. So it’s only right that Allen, in turn, has inspired a visual art exhibition. Gallery 1988′s group show, The Humorist, pays tribute to the director, writer, actor, and comedian’s 50-year career. Through February 2nd, visitors to the gallery’s Venice location can see beautiful and clever riffs on Bananas, Zelig, Manhattan, Midnight in Paris, and more — including an awful of lot of pieces inspired by Annie Hall. Click through to see a selection of our favorite pieces, and visit Gallery 1988′s website to preview the entire show and buy prints. … Read More

New York

The Flavorpill Guide to This Week’s Top 10 New York Events

By Judy Berman on

For our (unconscionably high) rent money, the best thing about living in New York City is its endless supply of fun, odd, and inspired cultural events. But with so many options, it can be hard to know where to even begin planning your week. To help you make sense of it all, Flavorpill has launched a new social discovery engine where users can create and share events with friends, as well as follow Flavorpill editors’ and plugged-in local curators’ picks. Below, you’ll find the very best of what’s on offer this week, recommended by Flavorpill NYC’s very own Managing Editor, Leah Taylor. It’s just a taste of what you can find on the new Flavorpill, so if you like what you see, be sure to sign up. … Read More

Television

‘Girls’ Season 2 Premiere Recap: How Real Was ‘Girls’ This Week?

By Judy Berman on

Accused by some of whitewashing Brooklyn and beloved by others for depicting the harsh truth of post-college New York life for over-educated women in their 20s, Girls may well be TV’s most talked-about comedy. Considering that most of those conversations hinge on how realistic the show is or isn’t, this season we’re recapping Girls by asking three writers who should know — our interns, Alison Herman, Chloe Pantazi, and Julia Pugachevsky — how real each episode felt. Read their responses to the Season 2 premiere, in which we met Hannah’s new man, Donald Glover’s Sandy, and watch Marnie’s life go to pieces, and let us know what you think in the comments. … Read More

Television

‘Downton Abbey’ Season 3, Episode 2: The Dowager Countess Recap

By Judy Berman on

Now in its third season, Downton Abbey is more divisive than ever. Once almost universally acclaimed, the British period drama that follows the aristocratic Crawley family and their many servants faced accusations last year of descending into soap opera-style sensationalism. Although we don’t mind a juicy soap opera here at Flavorwire — and have, in fact, been known to defend Downton Abbey against its snobbier critics — this season we hope to unite the various factions by limiting our recaps to the one character everyone can still agree to love: Violet Crawley, that feisty, elitist grandma played by the one and only Dame Maggie Smith. Each week, we’ll recount the Dowager Countess of Grantham’s adventures. They may often be tangential to the main storyline, but they’ll always be among the most important Downton moments to us. … Read More

New York

Allen Ginsberg’s Hand-Annotated Photos of the Beat Generation

By Judy Berman on

Disappointed by the On the Road movie? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Luckily, NYU’s Grey Art Gallery is offering a far superior option for those in search of an inside glimpse at how the Beat Generation lived. Beginning January 15, New Yorkers can visit the gallery’s Beat Memories: The Photographs of Allen Ginsberg to peruse a selection of 110 photos taken (and often captioned by hand) by none other than Allen Ginsberg. From a shot of Jack Kerouac’s muse, Neal Cassady, and “his love of the year” snuggling under a cinema marquee advertising a Brando triple feature to a solemn photo of William S. Burroughs at the Met, the annotated images provide a personal, visual scrapbook of Ginsberg’s life in the 1950s and beyond. Click through to preview a selection of images from the show. … Read More