Category Archives: verticalism

Yantra from Ahmedabad

By KDSMurray | Published: 25 April 2011

Yantras are square charms whose power is based on words and diagrams. The above yantra was obtained from a market in Ahmedabad, India and contains the principles of India geomancy on which much architecture is based. Vastu Shastra gives particular meaning to the cardinal points. In the Vastu Purusha Mandala, the earth is represented by [...]

Also posted in Asia, India | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

And if I ever lose my north and south…

By KDSMurray | Published: 26 February 2010

Moonshadow is considered one of Cat Stevens greatest songs and his personal favourite of that period. It imagines the loss of body parts as a form of liberation. One curious verse talks about the loss of teeth: And if I ever lose my mouth All my teeth, north and south Yes, if I ever lose [...]

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Why ‘Up in the Air’ should be grounded

By KDSMurray | Published: 16 January 2010

New critique or old myth? You could be forgiven for thinking that the recently released Up in the Air heralds a new wave of American films that reflect the real social realities of America exposed by the Global Financial Crisis. ‘ target=_blank>Rolling Stone claims that ‘Up in the Air is a defining movie for these [...]

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Vertiginous Africa

By KDSMurray | Published: 20 December 2009

Tourist images of the African continent are dominated by scenes of safari adventures. While these entail their own colonial associations – Africa as nature rather than culture – there is a more phenomenological dimension to the African experience for westerners. This suggests a continent that we look down to. Virgin Airlines have just released their [...]

Also posted in Africa, Australia | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Verticalism and its underbelly

By KDSMurray | Published: 26 February 2009

How is it that the North seems to sit above the South? Does this support a world that gives superior value to what originates from the North, as opposed to the problems in the lowly South? How might this vertical orientation be contested? This paper was presented at the International Conference on Hegemony, Counter Hegemony [...]

Also posted in Argentina, article, Chile | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment