Arts & Culture

What does it mean to say that the pop-punk princess has returned? By CORALIE LOON — arts@theaggie.org It’s the year 2002: Mount Nyiragongo Volcano erupts, a new type of black hole is discovered and — clearly most important of all — Avril Lavigne’s debut single “Complicated” hits the streets along with its accompanying album, “Let […]

Netflix neglects to fulfill its promises of improved inclusivity efforts with the live-action cast of “Avatar: The Last Airbender” By SUN YIE — arts@theaggie.org    Nickelodeon’s “Avatar: The Last Airbender” (AtLA) is an acclaimed and beloved show that became popular in part due to its incorporation of multiculturalism. The show is centered around a team […]

The Arts Desk’s weekly picks for television, movies, books and music By JACOB ANDERSON — arts@theaggie.org   Movie: “Sexy Beast” dir. Jonathan Glazer (2000) Jonathan Glazer’s debut feature was a far cry from the film he is most known for nowadays, 2013’s “Under the Skin,” which was a vexing, unpleasant and partially improvised film notorious […]

The Manetti Shrem Museum’s new installation challenges dominant power structures through video art By SIERRA JIMENEZ — arts@theaggie.org “Why here, why now? Why Davis, why this moment?”  These are questions that Susie Kantor, the curator of the Manetti Shrem exhibition “From Moment to Movement,” asked herself in the summer of 2021 when considering what the […]

Discussions about the game’s brutal difficulty may be misleading By JACOB ANDERSON — arts@theaggie.org As “Elden Ring” whips gamers into a frenzy, topping sales charts and likely raising the risk of carpal tunnel for millions across the globe, discussions about the uncommon difficulty of it and its predecessors have once again returned. Since difficulty options […]

The film demonstrates the difficulties puberty presents within a teen’s journey of self-discovery By SUN YIE — arts@theaggie.org    This article contains spoilers about the film “Turning Red.”   Pixar’s new film, “Turning Red,” follows 13 year old Chinese-Canadian Mei as she learns to navigate her world with the help of her friends and her […]

Live music, talks, campus events and more to check out in Davis this April By CLARA FISCHER — arts@theaggie.org   “Sankofa” (Veterans Memorial Theatre, 7 p.m. on April 1, 2 and 9 and 2 p.m. on April 3 and 10) Sandy Lynn Holman, equity specialist, educator counselor, activist and founder and director of the Culture […]

Whether you’re a poet, musician or just an observer, these local spots welcome performers By CORALIE LOON — arts@theaggie.org    For lovers of self-expression, open mics can be a sought after opportunity to share words, art, music and more in a low-commitment and casual setting. The best part is that it’s open to everyone, no […]

The Arts Desks’ weekly picks for movies, books, music and television shows  By SIERRA JIMENEZ — arts@theaggie.org Book: “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” (1954) by J. R. R. Tolkien  We’ve all seen the film series “Lord of the Rings”, or at least have heard of the popular line, “You shall […]

Remakes can make old films new and superhero movies can be good By ANGIE CUMMINGS — arts@theaggie.org Like many, I went into “The Batman” for the primary purpose of seeing the unlikely pairing of Edward Cullen and Zoe Kravitz fight people in all-black outfits. Much to my surprise, I came out of the theater with […]

The Arboretum’s sculptures also make a case for the value of public art By CORALIE LOON —- arts@theaggie.org Last winter quarter, students in ART 151 (Intermediate Sculpture), led by instructor Robin Hill, were told to create public sculptures answering the question: What do you care about? For a few weeks, the Arboretum became an outdoor […]

Coffeehouses have been important spaces for promoting social equality, but still have work to do in being truly inclusive    By SUN YIE — arts@theaggie.org    Starbucks, Peet’s and Philz are a few names that students have grown to know and love in their fixations with coffee, perhaps to a degree where they can not […]