Category Culture

Cindy Sherman’s Grotesque Digital Creations

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story Cindy Sherman, the grande dame of the Pictures Generation, has a new show up at Hauser & Wirth’s recently opened space in SoHo—a collection of wacky, digitally collaged character studies, which…

Vaclav Smil and the Value of Doubt

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story Not long ago, I randomly opened Vaclav Smil’s recent book “Size: How It Explains the World.” The first paragraph I read, in a chapter about good and bad design, concerned rubber…

The Women Having Babies Underground

The legal landscape for home births varies by state, leaving some moms outside the law. Credit: Jared Cummings After two years working in a labor and delivery unit as a surgical tech, Carlie Smith knew she didn’t want to give…

Marcellus Hall’s “Winter Wonders”

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story For the cover of the February 26, 2024, issue, the artist Marcellus Hall set out to celebrate the pleasures of the season—from skating and skiing to cozying up with a book.…

Jenny Slate Doesn’t Want to Gross You Out

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story “I’m embarrassed about the fluid situation,” the comedian Jenny Slate began, apologizing for her cold. We were talking on Zoom, and she was some three thousand miles away, in Los Angeles,…

TAC Bookshelf: ‘The End of Something’

State of the Union: Revisiting Ernest Hemingway’s collection of short stories titled In Our Time. Growing up, I didn’t have enough of an appreciation for short stories. I thought the thicker the book, the more knowledge within. Even more than…

Citizen Kane Rising

A former professional wrestler is modeling good neighborship and the supremacy of the local in Knox County, Tennessee. Credit: Gage Skidmore The Bible says Cain killed his brother Abel and then founded the first city. Today, WWE Hall of Fame…

All Good Sex Is Body Horror

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story The residents of the apartment complex are respectable. There are doctors, lawyers, and a surplus of those drably enigmatic persons known as “young professionals.” The building itself, the Starliner Tower, on…

The Legacy of Beatrix Potter

Save this storySave this storySave this storySave this story Rachel SymeStaff writer You’re reading the Goings On newsletter, a guide to what we’re watching, listening to, and doing this week. Sign up to receive it in your in-box. So far,…