Hutong, the gridlike alleyway neighborhoods most prominent in China’s capital, are an interesting part of Beijing life. It’s here you’ll find the city at its most raw: a mix of residential homes and small community eateries and shops, people going about their day without a care for passerby and visitors. Its here, too, you’ll find… Read More Capturing the Hutong | Liu Cong’s “Wandering”
Deep in the backstreets of Guangzhou, through twisting and turning neighborhood lanes a taxi can hardly fit through, there’s an old factory building. But within its light tan walls, everything is repurposed. The arts have taken over a place once sworn to industry. Through a small entrance, and through a twisting maze-like gallery — literally called… Read More Book & Fun | A Haven for Art Books in Guangzhou
Beijing’s underground music scene is often associated exclusively with rock — a simple Google search can attest to that. But the city’s musical portfolio has more to it than meets the eye. There are gentler, more electric sounds making waves in China’s capital, aided along by a distinct DIY cassette label. nugget records comes from… Read More nugget records | Lo-fi in Beijing via Cassette
Crisp autumn air greets me as I disembark from a subway station a bit of a ways South of the city center. Days like this are the best time to be out and about. Its when the leaves turn to red and the sun, content with the encroaching firey landscape it has wrought with its… Read More Spine of Beijing | Traversing the City’s Central Axis
I wasn’t very impressed when I first touched a Negroni to my lips. The mix, in equal parts, of Campari, vermouth and gin made me wince. Not able to finish the drink, I think I may have poured it down the drain. “I can’t drink bitter stuff” I must’ve thought to myself. I didn’t know… Read More A Drink in Three Parts | The Negroni Nears its 101st Birthday
The world is in the hands of a pandemic. A novel coronavirus, now known as SARS-CoV-2, which causes the disease COVID-19, originated in December in China. The disease, which began as a regional epidemic has since spread further, changing life as we know it. Hit hardest by lockdown and stay-at-home orders designed to contain the… Read More Getting Through Crisis One Order at a Time | An Interview with Phoenix Restaurateur Chris Bianco
The sight of a giant scarlet “70”, screaming for attention outside the reserved Chinese Deco facade of the museum, signaled to me what could be expected inside. It seemed not even the world of art was safe from this monumental celebration. The 2019 anniversary of the Founding of the People’s Republic of China, as the… Read More A Deeper Shade of Red | Chinese Art from the Interwar Period
I love an exhibition or a show that can really make me think. While all art is bound to make you think in some shape or form, more often than not the pieces come to this generic, disappointing conclusion that belies the shallowness and, quite possibly, lack of thought the artist put into their work.… Read More La dépense | An Exploration of Unnecessary Consumption
Gentle hues and shadows forming twisted figures of individuals juxtaposed with the violence and diversity of nature. Waves and sunsets and mountains and sudden rain. All in a space complimenting the works, with patterns drawing to mind Zen gardens on the ground, more mountains and figures on the wall; all combining to reveal the floating… Read More A Journey to the Floating World | Ukiyo-e in Shanghai
Shanghai’s growing and constantly shifting cocktail scene is welcoming a new addition to its ranks, all the way from Japan. From the team behind Tokyo’s Bar Trench, comes Ars & Delecto, a Japanese-style cocktail bar that might sound strikingly similar to a few other Japanese bars in the city, yet offers much more than expected.… Read More Taste of the Wild Side @ Ars & Delecto
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