“The aesthetic experience is a simple beholding of the object . . . you experience a radiance. You are held in aesthetic arrest.” - Joseph Campbell
Aesthetic Arrest is our weekly dip into the Epicurean pleasures we’ve been enjoying lately. Cheers to that!
This Week’s Apéritif: Wildstar’s Pomegranate & Walnut Raki Spritzer — made with Pomegranate Juice, Albanian Walnut Raki (Cobo Raki më Arra) and Club Soda
Ryan Wildstar’s Recommendations:
Reading: When the Night Agrees to Speak to Me by Ananda Devi (translated by Kazim Ali)
Kazim Ali on “When the Night Agrees to Speak to Me” (via Poetry Daily)
Listening: Alondra by Gao Hong & Ignacio Lusardi Monteverde
Looking: The Art of Lizzy Ansingh (1875 - 1959)
Viewing: The Old Oak (currently streaming in the U.K. & coming soon to theaters in the U.S.) — directed by Ken Loach, written by Paul Laverty, starring Dave Turner & Ebla Mari
‘Our voices need to be heard’: actor Ebla Mari on Ken Loach, Syria and refugees - When actor and drama teacher Ebla Mari was treading the boards in her local theatre, she never expected to get a call from Ken Loach (via The Guardian)
Tasting: Chrissy & Dave Dine Out (Hulu & Freeform) — starring David Chang, Chrissy Teigen & Joel Kim Booster
Ryan Elston’s Recommendations:
Reading: Inquisition by Kazim Ali
Listening: Alondra by Gao Hong & Ignacio Lusardi Monteverde
Pipa Meets Flamenco Guitar (via Serenade Magazine)
If you enjoyed this album and want to hear many more examples from the global “string fusion” genre, check out Ryan Elston’s article from last year:
Looking: The Art of Alma Thomas (1891 – 1978)
Check out the current exhibition, Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. (on view until June 2, 2024!)
Later this year, the exhibit travels to Denver! Check out Composing Color: Paintings by Alma Thomas from the Smithsonian American Art Museum at the Denver Art Museum (on view from September 8, 2024 – January 12, 2025!)
Viewing: The Old Oak (currently streaming in the U.K. & coming soon to theaters in the U.S.) — directed by Ken Loach, written by Paul Laverty, starring Dave Turner & Ebla Mari
Ken Loach on his final film ‘The Old Oak’: “Every aspect of our civil society is collapsing” (via Hunger)
Tasting: Chrissy & Dave Dine Out (Hulu & Freeform) — starring David Chang, Chrissy Teigen & Joel Kim Booster
That’s it for this week! But we want the dinner party to continue! So each week we are asking a “dinner party” question for everyone joining us here at our table. Last week, we asked: “What are YOU reading, listening to, looking at, viewing and/or tasting right now?”
And we want to say thank you to everyone for your wonderful responses! We got some great recommendations that just might appear on a future podcast. That was last week . . . but we don't want this week's dinner party to end either!
So here is this week's question for the table:
This week, we talked about a fun new show, Chrissy & Dave Dine Out, which brings together celebrities, comedians, chefs, writers and their guests for a dinner party (and great conversations) at some of L.A.’s best restaurants!
So, our question for the table this week is (this one’s a classic!):
If you could invite five famous people, living or dead, to a dinner party, who would you choose?
Tell us your choices in the comments and we’ll share some of your responses on next week’s podcast!
Also, don't forget to stop by The Epicurean Vagabonds Substack on Wednesdays, to check out our revamped Mid-Week Libations! Now with audio segments featuring Ryan & Ryan!
And thank you for joining us for Season Two of Aesthetic Arrest!
Cheers to that!
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