Meer | English edition

Friday, February 6, 2026

Mental well-being thrives in safe, meaningful relationships, where empathy, kindness, and shared humanity strengthen emotional resilience

Self-compassion is an active practice, choosing gentleness over self-judgment to build resilience and inner strength

Crocus flowers bloom after winter, a visual reminder of how kindness, self-compassion, and patience support mental health and emotional renewal.

Connection, compassion, and shared presence play a vital role in sustaining mental health and reducing emotional isolation

When self-judgment softens into understanding, mental health improves and resilience quietly follows

How kindness improves mental health

Learning to quiet the inner critic by replacing judgment with kindness toward ourselves

The European Union Parliament in Strasbourg, France, illuminated at night beside a body of water

Economy & Politics

What are institutions, and why do they matter?

The role of institutions in creating desirable and undesirable realities

A surreal image of a man submerged underwater, symbolizing the fight for breath

The hidden circuits of speech

How metaphors encode repression, reveal unconscious truths, and guide us toward self-discovery

A moment of introspection and strength that speaks to the "pride" and "power" that comes from carrying the strength and hope of generations, even when existing feels like "a battle I never asked to fight"

Too black for you, perfect for me

My journey of self-love and resilience as a black woman in America

On the Street

Frank Waln and the Sampson Bros. performing at the Sol Collective Showcase at SXSW 2016. Photo: Catalina Maria Johnson

South by Southwest 2016

Five unforgettable moments

A scientist working in the lab develops pharmaceutical solutions

Science & Technology

Innovations in oral and IV drug delivery

The evolution of medication from traditional pills to advanced protein therapies and the future of drug administration

Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex in Essen, Germany

Architecture & Design

Revitalizing architecture: the impact of adaptive reuse

Breathing new life into historic buildings for a sustainable future

A young, sporty guy holding a towel and a water bottle, while drinking both coffee and an energy drink, highlighting a combination of hydration and energy consumption

Energy drinks consumption among adolescents in Sweden

Rising consumption rates and their impact on adolescent health

Susan Eirich holding the pups with a wide smile on her face

It was all because of seven wolf puppies

The beginning: stars must have been dancing the night they were born

Kwame Nkrumah Memorial Musoleum

Very Heart of the City

Ghana's Oxford Street

Architecture & Design

The lush interior of Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore, blending nature with modern architecture

The true value of sustainability

Its role in architecture, environmental policy, and the global challenges that threaten timely progress

A sculptor works in his art studio, surrounded by tools and unfinished pieces

Crafting: where pleasure meets purpose

The quiet transformation of craft into business, and how creativity finds balance between pleasure and profit

Art

Fortunato Depero (1892–1960) Flora Magica, Stage set reproduction (orig. 1917), 500cm x 500cm x 400cm. Painted paper, cardboard, metal, and wood. Depero designed Flora Magica in 1917 as the scenography for Igor Stravinsky’s ballet Le Chant du Rossignol (The Nightingale). A key figure in Italian Futurism, he co-wrote Futurist Reconstruction of the Universe (1915) with Giacomo Balla, embracing the movement’s dynamic vision

Flora at the Magnani-Rocca Foundation

A bold and beautiful exploration of flowers in art

Saverio Lucci, Laguna, 2025, oil on wood, 120 x 95 cm. Courtesy the artist

Saverio Lucci and the silent cartography of perception

Geographies of the Gaze

Culture

A female writer resting her head on the table beside a laptop, looking anxious and depressed

Sabotaged by the machine, the crisis of human writing

Why writers and students are being falsely accused and what it means for creativity and trust

As dusk falls over Nagasaki, Japan, the vibrant red and yellow glow of thousands of lanterns transforms the streets into a breathtaking spectacle, inviting all to experience the magic of the Lantern Festival in the city

Radiant revelry: the Nagasaki Lantern Festival

A celebration of Chinese culture illuminating Japan’s history

Economy & Politics

Protesters in scrub suits lie on the road surrounded by smoke during an anti-nuclear demonstration

After the bomb: what might replace nuclear deterrence?

Why planning for that future matters now

A woman is obscured by a cloud of e-cigarette smoke

The EU tests the limits of its power

Unelected EU leaders act as Europe’s voice, pushing national governments aside

Entertainment

An illustration of two Gokurakugai characters, with Alma’s vivid red jacket heightening his bold, mischievous presence

Anime protagonists and symbolism of the red jacket

Characterizing darkness: exploring why certain hues instantly communicate traits to viewers

Calder-Marshall with his wife, Ara. Photograph courtesy of the Calder-Marshall family

Arthur Calder-Marshall: the author Hollywood forgot

An untimely talent between literature and cinema, and the long journey back from the margins of memory

Fashion

Male and female model stands side by side in suits, embodying genderless fashion

The rise of genderless fashion

How unisex clothing is redefining the industry

A close-up photo of a woman wearing red lipstick with gray cables across her mouth

More than just makeup

Why is lipstick the real game-changer in fashion?

Feature

Suspended between light and shadow, she holds the weight of words unspoken: where friendship, longing, and restraint quietly meet

The space between us

On friendship, boundaries, and everything unsaid

The last day of light hums softly against the water, photographed by Ray Bilcliff

The boy and his dear lover

A collection of poems about love, divinity, and sacred union

Food & Wine

Close-up of ice cream cones with natural ingredients

Ice cream, the way we remember it

Less sugar, riper fruit, and the return of a thoughtful treat

The world's diplomacy isn't just happening in chambers; it's being cooked up in kitchens

Gastrodiplomacy: the secret weapon of cultural soft power

How nations are using cuisine to build international clout and expand global influence

Science & Technology

The full moon seen over Earth, photo taken by Gemini 7, 1965

Tidal locking explained

Why do we always see the same side of the Moon?

Power achieved not by matching strength, but by redefining what strength means

Asymmetric technological supremacy

When the decisive advance happens in an unshared regime

Sport

Lebron James during a Cleveland Cavaliers vs Los Angeles Lakers game on 25 November 2023

Is LeBron the GOAT?

An exploration of stats, accolades, and legacy

Pakistan National Football Team in Male during a friendly against Maldives in 12 February 2013. From right to left: Muhammad Adil, Samar Ishaq, Muhammad Ahmed, Hassan Bashir, Yasir Afridi, Naveed Ahmed, Kaleemullah Khan, 2013

The rebirth of football in Pakistan

Pakistan’s football revival is driven by youth, passion, and hope

Travel

Traveling, when approached with the intention of reaching toward one's highest nature, becomes the most potent catalyst for such transformation. Not because it “entertains” us, but because it unmakes and remakes us

The way of excellence: what true luxury travel really means

Asking "Who will I become?" instead of "Where should I go?" can recover what luxury has always meant

The rear view of Dove Cottage in Grasmere, Cumbria, UK, the former home of poet William Wordsworth and a central landmark of the Romantic literary movement

The ultimate road trip for book lovers

A journey through pages and pavement

Wellness

Takami river confluence, watercolour 16 × 12 cm, Mark Weighton 2025

The Moon, the shadow, and the work we inherit

Leo’s lunar reckoning with memory and trauma

A woman watching the sun set over the city, representing pause as a form of strength

Living intentionally through change

How adaptability, purpose, and connection can help one thrive in today’s rapidly changing world

Explore the Calendar

Worldwide Rome Edinburgh Copenhagen Cambridge Pittsburgh Antwerp Geneva Thessaloniki Zurich Leipzig Luxembourg Lisbon Hamburg Berlin Nuremberg Seoul Cambridge Honolulu Amsterdam New York Sao Paulo Munich

Signal and strata. Courtesy of Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts

Signal and strata

6 Feb — 5 Apr 2026 at the Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts in Cambridge, United States

Forrest Moses, Desert water at Abiquiu #2 (detail), ca. 1979. Courtesy of LewAllen Galleries

The artful heart

6 Feb — 23 Mar 2026 at the LewAllen Galleries in Santa Fe, United States

Joey Leung Cho Yi, A whale's accidental journey into Hong Kong Waters (memorial) 誤闖香港水域的鯨魚（紀念) (detail), 2023. Courtesy of Sin Sin Fine Art

6 Feb — 6 Mar 2026 at the Sin Sin Fine Art in Hong Kong, Hong Kong

Sara Greenberger Rafferty, Untitled construction III, 2026. Courtesy of Document Gallery

6 Feb — 23 May 2026 at the Document Gallery in Lisbon, Portugal

Gwen John, The japanese doll (detail). Courtesy of National Museum Cardiff

Gwen John: strange beauties

7 Feb — 28 Jun 2026 at the National Museum Cardiff in Cardiff, United Kingdom

Owen Mann, Celestial Poppies (detail), 2025. Courtesy of Wally Workman Gallery

7 Feb — 1 Mar 2026 at the Wally Workman Gallery in Austin, United States

Ngobeni, Tears of melody (detail), 2025. Courtesy of David Krut Arts

Untitled excursion series

7 Feb — 20 Mar 2026 at the David Krut Projects in Johannesburg, South Africa

Xevi Solà, Sun seekers (detail), 2025. Courtesy of Opera Gallery

Endless sun-days

12 Feb — 7 Mar 2026 at the Opera Gallery in New York, United States

Sahej Rahal, Distributed mind test (detail), 2024. Courtesy of Galerie Rudolfinum

Sahej Rahal: beyond the city of time

12 Feb — 10 May 2026 at the Galerie Rudolfinum in Prague, Czech Republic

François Malingrëy, Le gisant et la bagarre (detail), 2024. Courtesy of Galerie Paris-B © François Malingrëy

François Malingrëy's exhibition

12 Feb — 11 Apr 2026 at the Galerie Paris·B in Paris, France

Katherinne Fiedler, En algún lugar / Somewhere in, 2021. Courtesy of Galeria Nave

My mind is not a cage

12 Feb — 10 Apr 2026 at the Galeria Nave in Lisbon, Portugal

David Levinthal, Washington crossing the Delaware (detail), from the series History, 2013, archival pigment print, 61 x 79 inches, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Donald Standford Rosenfeld, Jr. Courtesy of H’Art Museum © 2013 David Levinthal

American myth & memory: David Levinthal photographs

13 Feb — 6 Sep 2026 at the H’Art Museum in Amsterdam, Netherlands

Mark Adams, Untitled map no. 1 (detail), 2022. Courtesy of the Schoolhouse Gallery

People, places and things

13 Feb — 12 Apr 2026 at The Schoolhouse Gallery in Provincetown, United States

Rūrāns Roberts, Profesijas (detail), 2018. Courtesy of Zuzeum Art Museum

Chestnut and the universe

13 Feb — 10 May 2026 at the Zuzeum Art Museum in Riga, Latvia

Grass Karls Gothards, Itālijas ainava ar gaisa balonu (detail), 1814. Courtesy of Zuzeum Art Museum

13 Feb — 10 May 2026 at the Zuzeum Art Museum in Riga, Latvia

Phumulani Ntuli, Giving a blind eye (detail), 2025. Courtesy of David Krut Projects

14 Feb — 31 Mar 2026 at the David Krut Projects in Johannesburg, South Africa

Various artists, Technologies of relation, exhibition view. Courtesy of MASS MoCA

Technologies of relation

21 Feb — 1 Mar 2026 at the MASS MoCA in North Adams, United States

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