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A Running Record of Findings from the Internet / August 2, 2026

Enchantment and the Courage of Joy: René Magritte on the Antidote to the Banality of Pessimism

Maria Popova revisits Magritte's insistence that joy and enchantment aren't naive escapism but a deliberate, clear-eyed act of resistance against a culture that mistakes despair for depth.

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By Maria Popova · The Marginalian

René Magritte, The Lovers II (1928)
René Magritte, The Lovers II (1928)
Design

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  2. Grandmother in Latex: Archive for Space Reworks a Madrid Apartment

    Grandmother in Latex: Archive for Space Reworks a Madrid Apartment

    Yellowtrace·Jul 29

  3. Mecanoo's Natural History Museum Abu Dhabi Rises in the Midst of an Architectural Mecca

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  4. Colombian Architecture and Design Studio F05's Vision for Contemporary Tropical Modernism

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Arts & Culture

  1. The feminist possibilities of the cut image

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  2. A People's History of Puerto Rico

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  3. Nobody's born a minimalist

    Blackbird Spyplane·Jul 26

  4. Travelling surfaces – Part 2: reconstructing a Korean palace interior

    Travelling surfaces – Part 2: reconstructing a Korean palace interior

    V&A Blog·Jul 27

Sound
  1. Allien Lanes

    Allien Lanes

    Bandcamp Daily·Jul 28

  2. Fela Kuti in the Studio

    Tape Op·May 11

  3. Choose Life: The Trainspotting Soundtrack at 30

    Aquarium Drunkard·Jul 27

  4. The Freedom Songs of Bill Withers

    Wax Poetics·Feb 6

Collecting

  1. Revisit E3 like you've never seen it before

    Video Game History Foundation·Jul 22

  2. Meet the Filmmaker Behind the Cult Documentary About Shopping Cart Racing

    Jenkem Magazine·Jul 27

  3. Shogun-Town AKA Machinderville

    Plaid Stallions·Jul 25

  4. Payday! Finance and Culture in Board Games

    Payday! Finance and Culture in Board Games

    Toy Tales·Jul 28

Document
  1. Madrid Museum Puts Picasso in Dialogue With 'African Guernica'

    Madrid Museum Puts Picasso in Dialogue With 'African Guernica'

    Hyperallergic·Aug 1

  2. Soraya Ahn on Young-Il Ahn's Legacy and the David Geffen Galleries

    LACMA Unframed·Jul 20

  3. What Did We Lose When We Lost the Stars?

    The Convivial Society·Jul 19

  4. The Persian Mâr-Nâmeh or, The Book for Taking Omens from Snakes (1892)

    Public Domain Review·Jul 28

Film

  1. The 50 Essential Western Films (Part 2)

    The Honest Broker·Jul 27

  2. Weaving The Odyssey

    Filmmaker Magazine·Jul 29

  3. Out of Print is Back in Print!

    Out of Print is Back in Print!

    Talkhouse Film·Jul 27

  4. 'Midnight Run' at 38: Martin Brest's Cult-Action Comedy that Just Doesn't Seem to Get Old

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