Sunday Best Vol. 01 | No. 03

Sunday Best is a brand new feature here at TIG that we plan on making a recurring one. Each Sunday, we will bring you a cross-section of interesting articles, links, ideas, music, culture, and anything else we think might be interesting or entertaining⏤the perfect supplement to your Sunday and one we hope you will add to your routine.

On our radar this week: A New York Times article lists 52 places to visit in 2023 for those searching for culture, adventure and beauty. Some of the destination highlights include:

Morioka, Japan

Auckland, New Zealand

Nîmes, France

Ha Giang, Vietnam

Istanbul, Turkey

Number one on the NYT list is London. If you are planning to visit London, we suggest the excellent YouTube series London Districts or Joolz Guides. These guides will give you a taste of this sprawling, diverse city rich in history, and provide you with interesting off-the-beaten areas of the city to visit.

Take fashion inspiration from Irish director Martin McDonaugh’s dark tragicomedy  The Banshees of Inisherin. The beautifully shot film is set on a remote fictitious island in the west of  Ireland in 1923 and chronicles the sudden disintegration of a longterm friendship between the two main characters, expertly played by actors Brendan Gleeson and Colin Farrell, who previously starred in McDonaugh’s debut feature, In Bruges. Costume designer Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh beautifully recreated authentic clothing based on photos of fishermen and farmers from the era. Although the film is set 100 years ago, the luxurious Aran knitwear doesn’t look out of place today, proving quality never really goes out of fashion.

Further Reading:
The Sweaters of Inisherin
The Banshees of Inisherin is filled with beautiful Colin Farrell sweaters
The Banshees of Inisherin’ Is the Next Great Knitwear Film

GET THE LOOK:

FACT: The film was shot on the island of Inishmore, the largest of the Aran Islands.

For more, check out a TIG favourite Podcast, The David McWilliams Podcast. This episode comes directly from Aran and discusses how remote areas are using technology to keep traditional crafts like knitting alive and competitive.

More Inspiration

We are excited to be reading the new book The Creative Act: A Way of Being by prolific music producer Rick Ruben, who has worked with some of the most successful and creative artists in the recording industry. Earlier this week we listened to the Broken Record podcast with Rick Rubin and Malcolm Gladwell in conversation, regarding the book and Rubin’s thoughts on creativity. The interview discusses what the book explores, and I thought that there were some interesting points, particularly in the way that Rick Rubin views creativity as an external process governed by outside influences rather than an internal one. He sights mimicry as a legitimate part of the creative process and it reminded me of another book, Steal Like An Artist by Austin Kleon, which made similar points on creativity.

Further reading:  Creativity, According to Rick Rubin

Be sure to check out the TIG series The Likes and Influences for further creative inspiration.

Legendary Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto returns with his first solo studio album since 2017s async. The new album is simply titled 12 and each track gently drifts with fragile piano melodies and haunting synth sounds bleeding into one another. Sakamoto has had well-documented health struggles and many believe that the album is a meditation on mortality. Sadly, another influential Japanese musician, Yukihiro Takahashi, passed away last week, aged 70. Takahashi co-founded the Yellow Magic Orchestra along with Ryuichi Sakamoto and Haruomi Hosono.

Listen to the album on your favourite streaming service here.