Posts by Sophie Clearwater
One Fine Show: “Mary Cassatt, After Impressionism” at the Art Institute of Chicago
Mary Cassatt, The Child’s Bath, 1893. The Art Institute of Chicago, Robert A. Waller Fund I grew up expatriate and so have always had a soft spot for outsiders. When it comes to art history, this means enjoying the extent to which artists often reject the movements with which they are associated. Jasper Johns and…
Read MoreWhy South Korea and Ukraine Are Fighting Over Two Prisoners of War
Mending the rupture between Seoul and Kyiv If this episode were only about the two North Korean soldiers, their resettlement might have passed unnoticed. The diplomatic kerfuffle between Kyiv and Seoul is rooted in the different geopolitical narratives that each nation seeks to project, or in Seoul’s case, downplay. For Ukraine, publicizing the presence and…
Read MoreRosalind Eleazar Gives One of the Year’s Best Performances in the Acerbic and Tender ‘Misty Green’
Eleazar, best known for her role in Slow Horses, knows just how to shape this character without ever softening her. Misty is gifted, arrogant, impossible; at times, you begin to wonder if she even deserves a break. But Eleazar, giving one of the best performances of the year, tears our expectations to shreds: Who are…
Read MoreEight Books That Illuminate the Brilliance and Biases of the Nobel Prize
It remains a highly coveted accolade, announced every October, charting excellence in six categories: literature, chemistry, economics, peace, physiology/medicine and physics. Since 1901, the Nobel committees have recognized innovative scientists (like Marie Curie and Richard Feynman), peace advocates (including Nelson Mandela and Mother Teresa) and literary titans (such as Gabriel García Márquez and Alice Munro)…
Read MoreThe Cornell 7 Case Demands More Than Outrage
Too many survivors who stay silent believe they’d be fighting alone if they raise their voices. The CDC’s most recent national survey found that nearly 80 million American adults, close to 58 million women and more than 20 million men, have experienced contact sexual violence. For some people, those are just numbers. In reality, they’re…
Read MoreAI Chatbots Often Fail To Help Users In Mental-Health Crisis
“The models do a good job—regardless of the scenario—of identifying, ‘Look, this person’s talking about something harmful,’” says Patrick Oathout, Red Team & Safety Lead at Scale AI. “But they’ll respond in a very just empathetic, kind way as opposed to saying, ‘Okay, it’s time that we get you help.’” The models performed worse at…
Read MoreSteve Madden’s Best “Freaky Girl Fall” Shoes are 30% Off
Summer is over, and it’s time for a freaky girl fall! We’re leaning into unconventional and maximalist fashion choices this season, starting with shoes. Lucky for us (and you) there’s no better place to lean into the trend than Steve Madden. And they just so happen to be running a Friends & Family Sale right…
Read MoreRagnar Kjartansson Makes the Familiar Strange at Buffalo AKG Art Museum
Installation view: “Ragnar Kjartansson: Politics of the Obvious” at Buffalo AKG Art Museum. Photo: Brenda Bieger, Buffalo AK Many of the behaviors that make up our routines are, in fact, social rituals we have seen repeated around us and gradually absorbed. It begins in childhood, as we watch our parents and imitate their actions while…
Read MoreU.S. Expands Crackdown on Green Cards, Student Exchange Visas
Deputy White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Attorney General Todd Blanche, Vice President J.D. Vance, Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling, Labor Inspector General Anthony D’Esposito, and Federal Trade Commission Chair Andrew Ferguson during an announcement at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 8, 2026. —Aaron Schwartz—Bloomberg/Getty Images The Trump Administration has suspended several…
Read MoreThe New Fight to Legitimize Conversion Therapy
When I finally dropped out of conversion therapy, I walked away carrying anxiety, depression, religious trauma, and a substance abuse problem I had to fight my way out of. Today, the promise that drew me into those rooms—that I could pray the gay away—is being made in different words. One group driving this shift calls…
Read MoreWall Street’s billions are wrecking Mamdani’s excuse for tax hikes
Mayor Zohran Mamdani may rail against Wall Street capitalists, but they’re showering him with so much cash, he may no longer be able to cry poverty as an excuse for tax hikes. A report Tuesday from state Comptroller Tom DiNapoli shows New York security-industry profits for the first half of 2026 surged a stunning 51.3%,…
Read MoreNavanethem ‘Navi’ Pillay Wins the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize
In response, the ICC’s deputy prosecutor Nazhat Shameem Khan condemned the sanctions and vowed the court’s “work will continue across all our situations, our investigations, and our prosecution.” The Foreign Ministers of Canada, Denmark, Germany, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, and the U.K. have also denounced the sanctions. In a joint statement that expressed “unwavering…
Read More