“The aesthetic experience is a simple beholding of the object . . . you experience a radiance. You are held in aesthetic arrest.” - Joseph Campbell
Aesthetic Arrest: Mid-Week Libation
Wildstar’s Wednesday Libation: Japanese Cocktails at Sunset in Sarandë! (Cognac, Orgeat, Lime Juice & Bitters)
Reading: Voices of the Fallen Heroes: And Other Stories by Yukio Mishima (January 14, 1925 – November 25, 1970)
“A new selection of Yukio Mishima short stories from the 1960s—his final decade—Voices of the Fallen Heroes offers a unique glimpse into the mind of one of Japan’s greatest writers. … Available in English for the first time, and carefully selected by a team of expert translators, these captivating stories serve as the perfect introduction to Mishima's work, on the 100th anniversary of his birth.” [Source]
Listening #1: A Tribute to Marianne Faithfull (December 29, 1946 - January 30, 2025)
The R&R household was deeply saddened by the recent death of legendary British singer Marianne Faithfull, whose work we have both adored for decades. In her honor we’ve curated a playlist featuring 28 songs spanning her entire career, from 1964’s “As Tears Go By” all the way to her final studio album, 2021’s She Walks in Beauty. Titled Vagabond Ways (after her 1999 album), this playlist moves in chronological order through the hauntingly bittersweet ballads of her folk era, her dramatic reinvention in 1979’s Broken English, her sharp renditions of songs by Kurt Weill, Bob Dylan & Leonard Cohen, and a selection of personal favorites from her remarkable series of brilliant albums from the last quarter-century (including collaborations with Dave Stewart, PJ Harvey, Mark Lanegan, Nick Cave & Warren Ellis).
Listen to our curated playlist, Vagabond Ways: A Tribute to Marianne Faithfull, here:
Listening #2: Renascence by Cymande
“With their unique blend of funk, reggae, jazz, and Afro-Caribbean rhythms, the London-based band laid the foundation for generations of artists across genres, particularly hip-hop. Their tracks have been sampled by hip-hop legends like De La Soul and Wu-Tang Clan, embedding Cymande’s DNA into the very fabric of the genre. … The album is a celebration of their enduring sound and a tribute to the deep connection between Black musical heritage and hip-hop’s evolution, arriving just in time for Black History Month.” [Source]
50 Years After They Disbanded, British Funk Outfit Cymande is Back with a New Album (via NPR)
Also, check out the documentary, Getting It Back: The Story of Cymande:
Looking: Celebrating the Art & Life of Jaune Quick-to-See Smith (January 15, 1940 – January 24, 2025)
“Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, groundbreaking artist, curator, and activist, passed away on January 24th at 85. Smith’s profound works tackled themes of race, colonialism, and survival with sharp humor and poetic depth. The enrolled Salish member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Nation was a tireless, lifelong advocate for other Native artists. Smith curated pivotal exhibitions and made history as both the first Native artist to have a painting acquired by the National Gallery of Art and the first to have a retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art. The long overdue—but growing—institutional and cultural recognition of Native American artists is, in no small part, a testament to her life’s work. Her legacy of resilience and generosity will continue to inspire generations to come.” [Source]
Jaune Quick-to-See Smith at Garth Greenan Gallery / Works for Sale (via Artsy)
Remembering Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, a Native Artist Who Changed the Way We Saw America (via Vogue)
Artist Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Who Bore Witness to Native Life, Dies at 85 (via Hyperallergic)
Viewing: The Best New TV Show of 2025! Asura — written & directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Netflix)
“Palme d’Or-winning Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda’s tale of four sisters is a stunningly shot, laugh-out-loud tale that’s hugely touching. How has it gone almost unnoticed?” [Source: The Guardian]
‘Asura is the Best Netflix Drama in Years’: This Strikingly Beautiful Show Will Leave You Salivating (via The Guardian)
Asura Is Already the Best New Show of 2025: So why isn’t Netflix giving Hirokazu Kore-eda’s family drama its due? (via Slate)
Tasting: Ryan Wildstar’s Famous Greek Potatoes!
For the full recipe (as well as my recipe for Grandma Louisa’s Guacamole and my Coq au Vin) click here!
So that’s it for this week! But in the tradition of our Mid-Week Libations, we’d like to end with this week’s words of wisdom, a quotation from artist Jaune Quick-to-See Smith:
This Week’s Words of Wisdom: Jaune Quick-to-See Smith (January 15, 1940 – January 24, 2025)
Thank you for joining us for Season 3 of Aesthetic Arrest!
Cheers to that!
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