Author

Roy-Are Coucheron Stene

The shadow of European terrorism in popular culture
A hand grenade rolls across the floor of a pharmacy in Paris on 15 September 1974. What follows is an inferno of shattered glass,…
From Oslo's arcades to the muzzles of power
When the fountain sculpture Pomona was erected at Skillebekk in Oslo in October 1877, it triggered an immediate and vehement emotional immune response in…
The voice from Kherson: Why artificial intelligence makes Svitlana Tarabarova the defining pop poet of our time
Svitlana Tarabarova (Wikimedia Commons) In 1909, the revolutionary postmaster Adam Egede-Nissen stood in a church in Vardø with a christening bundle in his arms.…
The Two Christinas — and so much more
Alexandre Cabanel (1823–1889). Oil on canvas, 153 × 90 cm, Gripsholm Castle, Sweden. Portrait of Christina Nilsson (1843–1921) in the role of Ophelia in…
A cat man's confession
Perhaps the dog is man’s best friend. It is an established truth, repeated so often that it has become an axiom. But for me,…
Myths and facts about the Vikings: From spectacle to the bedrock of civilisation
A peculiar and emotionally charged tug-of-war over our own history is unfolding in the public sphere. On one side stands a modern entertainment industry…
Opera and ballet: The extreme sports nobody calls sport
It is time to call a spade a spade: classical ballet and opera are not merely forms of culture. They are extreme sports at…