Learning to love… the hard way | 122 Years of Erich Fromm | Art of Saudade

March 23, 1900: a boy is born into an Orthodox Jewish family in Frankfurt, Germany. 22 years later and a few years before the Nazi ideology started to rise in Germany, he completed his Ph.D. with a dissertation named “On Jewish Law”. If your teachers are Alfred Weber (brother of the famous sociologist Max Weber), the philosophers Karl Jaspers and Heinrich Rickert, there’s no doubt … Continue reading Learning to love… the hard way | 122 Years of Erich Fromm | Art of Saudade

From the Balkans to Western Europe: two almost forgotten gnostic movements | Art of Saudade

Exploring medieval secrets mood activated? Nearly ten centuries ago, in the Byzantine Empire, there was a gnostic movement called Bogomilism that owed its name to the spiritual leader Bogomil (from the Slavic word ‘Bog’ which stands for God and ‘mil’ which means dear). You got it! The Bogomils were dear to God, perhaps too dear to fit into the shadowy medieval times. As you can … Continue reading From the Balkans to Western Europe: two almost forgotten gnostic movements | Art of Saudade

From a Ukrainian Refugee to a Brazilian Writer: Clarice Lispector | Art of Saudade

1920. The Jewish-Ukrainian family Lispector welcomed their third baby, a healthy baby girl that they decided to name Chaya, the Hebrew word for ‘Life’. Little did they know that this little girl was going to become one of the greatest writers on the other side of the world. 1922. Clarice is a little more than a year old when their parents decide to leave. Where? … Continue reading From a Ukrainian Refugee to a Brazilian Writer: Clarice Lispector | Art of Saudade

Love In The Time Of Corona: 95 Years Of Gabriel García Márquez | Art of Saudade

Today, a Latin American lady sang La Cucaracha in a tramway full of zombies. Faces behind the screens, some of them laughing behind their masks, couldn’t care less if some middle-aged homeless woman decided to break the monotony.  La cucaracha, la cucaracha, ya no puede caminar… Honestly, she made my day. Not only did she make my day, but she also reminded me of the … Continue reading Love In The Time Of Corona: 95 Years Of Gabriel García Márquez | Art of Saudade

Reinventing The World Through Visual Poetry With Guillaume Apollinaire | Art of Saudade

Looking for a safe place in a world ravaged by wars, the Polish teenager Wilhelm Albert Włodzimierz Apolinary de Wąż-Kostrowicki (you get a cookie if you pronounce it right) was roaming around Europe until he finally settled in Paris in the early 20th century. Little did he know that more misery was yet to come. The charming French capital was the cradle of art back … Continue reading Reinventing The World Through Visual Poetry With Guillaume Apollinaire | Art of Saudade

Why Storytelling Matters | Toni Morrison’s Lesson on Writing | Art of Saudade

Today we celebrate the birth of a legend, a superwoman, a fighter and a Nobel laureate. Did you know that Toni Morrison wrote her first novel, getting up every morning at 4 am to write, while raising two children on her own?  She described her first work, The Bluest Eye, as “history, sociology, folklore, nightmare and music”, depicting the dark side of humanity through the … Continue reading Why Storytelling Matters | Toni Morrison’s Lesson on Writing | Art of Saudade

The Birth of a Legend: Robert Nesta Marley

Bob Marley was born on this day in 1945. What a wonderful occasion to spend your Sunday binge listening to Bob’s greatest albums!  They say reggae music is special because it follows the rhythm of a human heartbeat. As Bob Marley said, when music hits you, you feel no pain. I discovered Bob when I was a kid, and I can only thank my parents … Continue reading The Birth of a Legend: Robert Nesta Marley

Not all heroes wear capes, some wear glasses – Rosa Parks | Art of Saudade

American activist Rosa Parks was born on this day in 1913. December 1, 1955, Montgomery, Alabama – a quiet, 42-year-old woman was arrested for refusing to surrender her seat to a man on a bus. The reason? She was African-American and the man was “white”. Yes, I also can’t believe this happened less than 70 years ago. This event led to the United States Supreme … Continue reading Not all heroes wear capes, some wear glasses – Rosa Parks | Art of Saudade

Carcassonne – A Medieval Tale | Art of Saudade

When we read history, we usually perceive the historical events as something that happened a long time ago which doesn’t concern us. We rarely empathize with the people who went through difficult times, forgetting that it was the destiny of our ancestors and neglecting their real stories. Moreover, we tend to forget that history repeats itself, sometimes in different forms, but it never ceases to … Continue reading Carcassonne – A Medieval Tale | Art of Saudade