Think | Why we Love Tiny Stuff

Tiny things are cute, aren’t they? We don’t know why they make us squeal with delight, but they do.

Better yet, though, is the idea of being tiny ourselves. Which of us hasn’t, at some point, longed to eat at a table made from a cotton reel, or curl up in a matchbox bed? Our books, films and dreams are filled with characters that are either already diminutive in size or become tiny, from Alice to Tom Thumb and many more. Let’s crouch down very low, speak very quietly, and meet a few of them…

Mrs Pepperpot

Mrs Pepperpot is a charming Norwegian creation. She lives with her husband, Mr Pepperpot (obvs) in a country cottage and her dark secret is that occasionally she shrinks to the size of a Pepperpot and goes on adventures. We loved it for the gorgeous detail of the pickles Pepperpot gets into when her world suddenly becomes huge and pigeons become the size of T-Rexes.  Also, if you thought ‘Pepperpot’ was hard to say, just be glad you aren’t reading it in the original Norwegian in which she is called ‘Teskjekjerringa’ (Mrs Teaspoon). 

Stuart Little

Stuart Little (nominative determinism in action right there) is the main protagonist from the 1945 novel of the same name by EB White (most famous for Charlotte’s Web). Stuart is born to an ordinary couple living in New York and is completely ordinary himself… other than being 5cm tall and looking like a mouse. Round of applause for EB White for having the brass neck to style out a human couple simply giving birth to a mouse and it drawing no comment. Our favourite thing about Stuart Little though, was probably his motorised toy car that he zipped around the United States in. That’s what we’d do if we were mice. 

The Kids from Honey, I Shrunk the Kids

Some siblings and their neighbours’ kids are shrunk to a quarter of an inch apiece when they accidentally set off their inventor father’s ray gun shrinking machine. Once shrunk only the dog can hear them and they battle to let their father (Rick Moranis) know what has befallen them. Includes many iconic moments - you are not a child of the 1980s if you haven’t checked your spoonful of Cheerios for tiny children before conveying it to your mouth. 

The Borrowers

Perhaps the most famous of shrinkers. Which of us can honestly say they didn’t fall in love with the teeny tiny lifestyle of Homily, Pod and Arietty, under the floorboards, borrowing everyday domestic items from the ‘human beans’ to make themselves furniture, tools and more. You’ll never discard an empty matchbox thoughtlessly again.

Ant Man

Mild-mannered scientist Hank Pym develops a technology that enables him to shrink to the size of an ant. But unlike other shrinkers he can also communicate with and control the ants, using them as his private army. An excellent superpower we all wish we had come the middle of summer when no pot of jam left unattended is safe…

The Incredible Shrinking Woman

In this 1981 film parody of The Incredible Shrinking Man, suburban housewife Pat Kramer is exposed to an experimental perfume made by her husband’s company. This is why we never let our husbands choose perfume for us. She has to move into a doll’s house and is then kidnapped by a group of scientists who plan to experiment on her in order to shrink everyone in the world. We reckon Pat herself might have preferred the more peaceful shrinking life of Mrs Pepperpot, but it’s an exciting watch.

Kay Harker

The main protagonist from John Masefield’s The Box of Delights is able to ‘go swift’ and fly and ‘go small’ and shrink. Sometimes he even does both at the same time, in order to rescue the country’s clergy in time for Christmas. Best shrinking moment? Escaping down a river in a tiny model boat.

The Lilliputians 

It’s during Gulliver’s first voyage that he is shipwrecked on the island of Lilliput, where the inhabitants are less than six inches tall and also rather small in mind, seeming to care about insignificant things enormously. They once had a disagreement, we learn, with the inhabitants of a neighbouring island about whether to break an egg at ‘the small end’ or ‘the big end’, which gave rise to six rebellions. Gulliver helps the Lilliputians but eventually falls from favour after urinating on a fire to put it out for them. There’s no helping some Lilliputians, is there?

The Whos

Perhaps the tiniest of the all the tiny people in our rundown, the Whos are the creation of Dr Seuss. They live in Whoville, a city which exists within a speck of dust, which is eventually placed on a clover flower by Horton the Elephant. They are warm, welcoming furry beings, with dog-shaped noses and twelve toes each. The Whos made their debut in Horton Hears A Who but are best known for their part in teaching the Grinch the true meaning of the festive season in How The Grinch Stole Christmas…
“Every Who down in Who-ville, the tall and the small,
Was singing! Without any presents at all!
He HADN'T stopped Christmas from coming!IT CAME!
Somehow or other, it came just the same!”

Terry Pratchett’s Carpet People

“In the beginning there was nothing but endless flatness,” we are told. “Then came the carpet.” The carpet is now inhabited by many different tribes and peoples and this is the story of their adventures. A wonderful, escapist read for anyone who spent hours as a child laying on the carpet contemplating the crumbs, the dust and anything else that might be inhabiting the wool pile. 

If you love all things tiny, don’t miss our feature on why love miniatures. It’s called ‘Tiny Happy People’ and it starts on page 66 of our July issue, in shops now. Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

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Why collecting is self caring

Thought yoga and meditation were the way to happiness, health and enlightenment? You might find your collection of Cornishware or coins is just as effective

Collecting often gets a bad name psychologically, with many believing that people collect in order to fill a hole that is missing in their lives, perhaps things they weren’t able to have as a child, or were unable to afford previously. There’s also a school of thought that collecting is something built deep within us, as a way of displaying to potential mates all our many and glorious possessions. And don’t ask Freud about his theory on collecting, unless you have a strong stomach. 

But psychologists now believe that there may be many positive benefits to collecting. And we’ve collected a few of them here:

Collecting can make you happy
Hunting for something and finding it, whether it’s a rare stamp, part of a coffee set, or a teddy bear, gives us a sense of joy. And having something new and beautiful in our homes is always a pleasure. We tend to collect things we love so having those things around us increases our happiness. 

Collecting can create community
Whether you’re attending conferences and collectors’ fairs in person or simply talking to others online about your collection, a collection can give you a link to others with the same passion and perhaps even create new friendships. It also gives us a sense of belonging to something bigger than ourselves.

Collecting can reduce anxiety
Spending time absorbed in any activity, such as arranging your collection or searching out new finds is a stress reducer. It allows you to escape from everyday life and focus completely on something else. 

Collecting allows us to be childlike
Children tend to be more natural collectors than adults, and peak ‘collector’ age is about 10. It’s something we tend to do more when we have lots of time on our hands, so children, people who have retired and, let’s face it, quite a lot of us in lockdown, are bigger collectors, and it’s lovely to rediscover that pleasure and pride we took in collections as children; like stepping back to a simpler time. 

Collecting improves our knowledge and brain function
As well as the obvious increase in knowledge about your subject area, being a collector helps with memory function and brain power, as you stretch your grey cells, remembering facts, dates and where you put that Penny Black...

You can meet more collectors in this month’s My Place pages which feature some beautiful collections from Instagram. such as the one by Nicky Guymer @somedaystuidio.co.uk pictured above.

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British Summer Time: a brief history

When you put your clocks forward this Sunday spare a thought for the man who began it all

Talk of adopting different times in summer has been discussed since ancient times and Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding father’s of the United States even mooted the idea of everyone getting up a bit earlier in summer. Franklin is often credited with being the inventor of daylight saving but in fact, the chap we really have to thank is one William Willett of Chislehurst, Kent.

Willett was out riding his horse early one summer’s morning in Petts Wood, he noticed how many blinds were still down and began mulling the idea of daylight saving.

In 1907 he published a pamphlet called ‘The Waste of Daylight’, in which Willett proposed that all clocks should be moved forward by 20 minutes at 2am each Sunday in April and then back by 20 minutes at 2am each Sunday in September. It’s not a bad idea, and does negate the loss of a large chunk of sleep on ‘move the clocks’ day in Spring. Though we’d be quite sad to lose our extra hour in bed come October, it must be said.

Progress was slower than a watched clock, however, and by the time Willett’s plan was gaining the required support, World War I was on the horizon.

So eventually, it was not until 1916 that the Summer Time Act was passed, introducing British Summer Time as being GMT plus one hour and Dublin Mean Time plus one hour.

Sadly, and rather ironically, this came too late for William Willett who died in early 1915. If only he could have turned the hands of the clocks back just a little more.

Since 2002 the Act has specified the last Sunday in March as the beginning of British Summer Time. We’ll miss the hour in bed but like Willett, we’ll be glad of the extra light evenings. We might even take our horses for a little trot around the village in the semi-light dawn to celebrate.

In our March issue, our regular ‘Analogue’ feature is about a horologist and her love of clocks and watches. The issue is on sale now.

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Small acts of kindness

We’re marking National Random Acts of Kindness Day today. We all need to look out for each other. Here are a few little things that can make somebody’s day.

• Phone someone for a chat

• Remember birthdays and don’t just text, send a card

• Leave a note, even when you’ve not much to say

• Set an extra place at the table for someone on their own

• Give a homegrown bag of veg or posy of flowers...

• ...or simply offer your time and a slice of cake

What would you add? Tell us at over on Facebook or Twitter or in the comments below.

This blog was first published in June 2017 but we’ve shared it again for National Random Acts of Kindness Day.

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How to embrace change

Change happens to us all, it’s how we deal with it that matters

• Set reasonable expectations and you’ll be better able to manage change and cope with disappointment.
• Instead of resisting, allow change to unfold and try to understand what’s transforming and why.
• Notice the change in nature and how it can be a wonderful thing.
• Learn to live with uncertainty. It’s necessary sometimes, if you want to move forward.
• Remember that when you accept and learn from change, you inevitably grow stronger. 

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Wellbeing | The power of negative thinking

Worries and doubts have their up-sides. They could even help you feel happier…

Negative thoughts – worries, doubts and irritations – are like weeds. Despite our best efforts to think positive, look on the bright side, or be grateful for what we have, they still spring up. But what if the reason they are so persistent is that they serve a purpose and are even sometimes useful? According to an increasing number of experts, it’s time we stopped demonising negativity. It could help you feel happier.

Turn to page 78 of September’s The Simple Things for more on the power of negative thinking, including how to harness its power plus a fear-setting exercise.

The TED talk below explores the hard choices - what we most fear doing, asking, saying - and how they are very often exactly what we need to do. How can we overcome self-paralysis and take action? Tim Ferriss encourages us to fully envision and write down our fears in detail, in a simple but powerful exercise he calls "fear-setting." Learn more about how this practice can help you thrive in high-stress environments and separate what you can control from what you cannot.

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Think: Two mindful exercises to remind yourself what's truly important

Why is it that we are so hard on ourselves - and other women? In their new book – WE: A Manifesto for Women Everywhere (Thorsons) – Gillian Anderson and Jennifer Nadel explore how we can transform criticism into compassion. Turn to page 38 of May's The Simple Things for more from Gillian and Jennifer, or try these two mindful exercises:

BEING IMPERFECTLY PERFECT
If we don’t embrace our so-called imperfections then how can we expect anyone else to?

• If you feel yourself becoming afraid that you’re not measuring up to contemporary notions of what women are expected to be, remind yourself that they are unrealistic so instead of trying harder, do the opposite.
• If you’re ashamed of your singing voice, sing out loud. If you worry about your weight, wear something tight. If you wear foundation because you fear your skin tone is too uneven, try not wearing it at all.
• Do whatever it takes to remind yourself and those around you that you are real. You’re not a cut-out from a magazine, so don’t erase those parts of yourself that don’t fit the image. Show the world that you are perfect just the way you are.

GAINING PERSPECTIVE
This exercise will connect you to that which really gives your life meaning.

1 Have your journal ready and then centre yourself by taking five deep breaths in and five slightly longer breaths out. Close your eyes and imagine you are a much older version of yourself, coming to the end of your life. Look back at your time and ask this older you what has really mattered. What are you glad to have experienced, and what do you care about most?

2 Open your eyes and write down what the older you has to say. Stay in this future state with your wiser self until you feel she has given you all you need to know.

3 Now close your eyes again and allow yourself to time travel back to today. Centre yourself in the present. Take a look at what you wrote down and think about how you spend your time now.

How much of your energy is focused on the things on your list? How many of the items on your list have to do with looks, achievements and material possessions? How many are about relationships and love? If you keep this list in mind you’ll find that the awareness it gives you will gently result in your priorities starting to shift.

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Think: Calm in a jiffy

Quick fixes and inner peace may seem unlikely bedfellows - but there are simple tools you can use to feel more serene

Wouldn’t it be great to be more patient, unruffled and at ease? To be able to hold onto that sense of contentment and serenity that comes over you when you experience a gorgeous sunset, a walk in the woods or a restful soak in a bath. Yet those moments of peace tend to quickly evaporate and anxiety, ever present in the background, finds a way to creep back to the surface. The good news is that becoming more serene doesn’t have to mean changing your lifestyle completely or hours of meditation or yoga. It can be as simple as practising some easy calming techniques that you can call upon in stressful circumstances or when you’re just feeling a bit ruffled. Have a go at the following micro-practices, find out what works for you and use them whenever you need an extra dose of calm.

Feed your good wolf

You may have heard the old Native American parable about the two wolves fighting inside of us all. There’s the wolf of fear and hate and the wolf of love and compassion, and whichever wolf we feed will win the fight. Most people are incredibly hard on themselves both in their thoughts (self-criticism) and behaviour (destructive and self-sabotaging). Yet if we are kind and compassionate to ourselves and feed our good wolf, we develop the ability to have compassion for others.

Try the 4-7-8 breath

This is an ancient breathing technique that restores and recalibrates the central nervous system. The combination of a short inhale followed by a twice-as-long exhale has an immediate effect on the parasympathetic nervous system, putting the brakes on your stress response.
1 Inhale to the count of 4.
2 Hold your breath to the count of 7.
3 Exhale through your mouth as if blowing through a straw to the count of 8.
4 Repeat cycle twice more.
5 Do three cycles in the morning and the evening for a calmer, less reactive disposition.

Consult your inner wise woman

Imagine if you could consult your future self for advice or counsel? Perhaps your 98-year-old self, even now, has some wisdom to impart to you.
1 Close your eyes and imagine yourself at the age of 98.
2 Formulate a question or a concern that you’d like to ask your inner wise woman.
3 Imagine your older, wiser self conversing with your current self – you could even have her write you a letter if that makes it easier.
4 See if a wider perspective shifts your current perception of what’s going on today.

Turn to page 86 of April's The Simple Things for more suggestions, including how to embrace change, giving morning thanks, armchair travel, sitting in child’s pose, carrying a talisman, 
and the butterfly hug technique.

Taken from The Little Book of Inner Peace: Simple Practices for Less Angst, More Calm by Ashley Davis Bush (Octopus)

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Think: Women and the census

The census, taken on a spring night every decade since 1801, is a record of both everyday sexism and the emancipation of women

When the idea of a national census was first championed in Britain, it was argued that, “the intimate knowledge of any country must form the rational basis of legislation and diplomacy”. Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t always so “rational”, especially when it came to the female proportion of the population. Each decade’s census gives us a – sometimes unintentional – glimpse into society’s attitudes towards women.

In 1811, the second time the census was taken, households were asked to give only their chief source of income. In most cases, this this overlooked the contribution of women who, while likely not the primary earner, frequently did odd jobs, such as selling handicrafts, that kept the family from the breadline. Twenty years later, it changed so only adult male employment was registered, with the exception of the 670,491 female servants in England, Scotland and Wales, once again completely ignoring the long hours put in by women.

Turn to page 76 of March's The Simple Things for more.

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Think: The gift of goodwill

Giving and doing good helps others while making you a happier person too. but only if you do it for the right reasons

December's The Simple Things looks at how giving can be good for you, as well as your cause. Or read on for a quick guide to being kind.

Altruistic could-do list

Show kindness
Give unwanted warm clothes to a homeless person, offer the toys/bike you were going to put on Ebay to a family who might appreciate some help this Christmas.

The Salvation Army, for example, runs a Christmas Present Appeal, salvationarmy.org.uk. 

Donate
Many of us have a cause that’s close to our hearts, but if you want to donate to charity and feel bewildered by the choice of worthy recipients, GiveWell (givewell.org) is an independent evaluator that rates charities in terms of lives saved or improved.

Volunteer
Type your postcode in to do-it.org, a national volunteering database, to find opportunities in your community, from dog-walking to admin.

Be neighbourly 
More than one million elderly people in the UK regularly go a whole month without speaking to anyone. If you don’t know a person who needs befriending, ageuk.org.uk can put you in touch.

Turn to page 90 of December’s The Simple Things for more.
 

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Think: Meditation – the art of quietening the mind, explained

Six simple ways to start meditating by yourself

1 FOLLOW THE BREATH: start to become aware of your breath – don’t try to control it in any way, just notice the inhale, the exhale, and the pause between the two. Every time your mind wanders, gently bring it back to the breath.

2 USE A MANTRA: pick a sound or phrase that appeals to you. “Om” is the classic (tone it slowly with three sounds – AH-OH-MMM). Or use a vowel sound – such as “aaah” or “oooh”. Or pick a word or phrase you like, such as “Peace”. Sit calmly and slowly repeat your chosen mantra over and over.

3 COUNT TO TEN: count very slowly from one to ten in your head, keeping your attention on each number. If you feel your attention wandering (and undoubtedly it will, often before you reach three!), simply go back to one and start again.

4 GAZE ON A CANDLE: focus your eyes on the flame and watch it. Notice the way it moves, the colours within it. When your attention wavers or your mind starts jumping, gently bring it back to the flame.

5 WALK: walk very slowly, paying attention to every part of every step. Say “lifting” as you lift up your foot; “moving” as your foot moves through the air; “placing” as you place your foot down on the ground; “shifting” as you shift your weight onto that foot.

6 BODY SCAN: scan slowly through your body, paying attention to where you are holding tension. Don’t judge or try to let go – just be aware. Move gently from top to bottom, paying attention to any changing sensations.

For more on meditation turn to page 75 of September's The Simple Things.

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Think: Wind-down stretches

Try these to help relax your muscles, expel some of the tension of the day and prepare you for a good night’s sleep. This idea and the illustrations come from Calm by Michael Acton Smith (Penguin)

Shoulder rolls

Stand with a straight back, your legs hip-width apart. Let your arms hang loosely. Shrug both shoulders forward and up, then slowly roll them back and down. Repeat this several times. This helps to loosen the shoulders, neck and back.

Standing forward bend

Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Slowly bend at the hips and fold your torso towards the ground. Keep a small bend in your legs to avoid straining your back. Either let your hands rest on the ground, or fold them to hold your elbows. Straighten your legs gently to stretch out the back of your legs.

Back stretch

Lying on your back, bring your right knee towards your chest, then let it fall to your left. Rest your left hand on your right knee and stretch your right arm out straight. Bring your gaze to the right, or slowly let your head fall to the side. Repeat on the opposite side. This twist will gently stretch your spine.

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From the February issue

Think posts

Mindfulness posts

February's The Simple Things is out on Wednesday 27 January - buy, download or subscribe. 

Think: Whole year resolutions

How much more meaningful to commit to a project for a year, giving yourself time to learn and grow. It’s not about abstinence or breaking bad habits but rich new experiences and a re-shaping of your world view. It doesn’t even have to start in January...

Caroline Jones, aka ‘Knickers Model’s Own’ – pledged to wear only charity shop clothes each day for a year. Except for her underwear, that is. The idea was inspired by Caroline’s mother, who’d sadly died of cancer the previous year. She’d volunteered for 13 years at her local Cancer Research UK shop so Caroline wanted to fundraise for the charity in her memory and, in part, to give herself a focus.

She was up for a challenge but, truthfully, thought this one wouldn’t be too tough. “I’ve always worn secondhand clothes so I assumed it would be easy,” she says, “a giggle for my friends, and something Mum would have loved.”

Her focus shifted on day six, when a BBC journalist discovered her Facebook page – it meant more than 97,000 people saw Caroline’s pictures within the first week. Her fundraising target increased from £1,000 to £36,500. And she realised there was no going back. It became, she says, the “hardest thing I’ve ever done”.

Caroline admits she didn’t consider the practicalities, like who would take her photos, before starting (she had to rope passers-by into taking many of the shots). Or the necessity of taking 14 different outfits on holiday.

Harder still was the mental challenge. “I’m not naturally a completer/finisher,” Caroline admits, “but I had to see this through. And I wanted to do it well.” Her advice to anyone attempting a year-long resolution is to take it in small stages, a week or day at a time.

Although Caroline deliberately kept her posts positive (and wore nothing black the entire year), the pictures became a kind of diary of her first year without her mother. On what would have been her mum’s birthday she wore a sea green coat and pillbox hat. “It was actually lovely,” she says. “People saw me and smiled. Wear something great and people respond.”

Caroline’s huge number of social media followers loved her style as much as her sentiment. Although she’s naturally drawn to 1960s fashions, the challenge encouraged her to be more adventurous, resulting in an inspiring array of looks. Her now finely honed formula for charity shop success is to always try things on. Caroline ended the year determined to continue fundraising and resolved “never to spend £65 on a new cardi again.” However, there was one aspect of fashion that even Caroline struggled with. “Wearing other people’s old shoes is hard!” she says. “I kept thinking, ‘oooh, I can’t wait to get a new pair. That’ll be so lovely’.”

Fancy contributing to Caroline's cause? Head to her Justgiving page. 

This is just one of many Whole year resolutions on page 33 of January's The Simple Things. 

 

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From the January issue

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Seasonal mindfulness tips

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Think: How to look at art slowly

When you’re visiting the latest exhibition, don’t get swept along with the crowds. A slow, mindful visit inspires the imagination and piques cultural curiosity.

We’re now more open to arts and culture than ever. Last year, visitor numbers to museums and galleries increased by six per cent compared to 2013, yet we only spend a measly 15–30
seconds looking at a painting. It’s easy to see why. Visit a major arts institution for a mega exhibition and you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a rock concert. The surge of the crowd towards the ‘hit’ paintings, the determined ‘me with Matisse’ selfies, the pressure to see the star turn – the whole experience can be exhausting. But we can choose to slow down. A gallery or museum isn’t somewhere to do battle before collapsing in the cafe, but an opportunity to calm the mind.
 

How to look at art slowly

1 Try to visit a gallery or museum in quieter times, such as early morning, late afternoon or evening.
2 Treat gallery walls like a postcard rack – we pick a postcard we like without hesitation, so have the confidence to do the same with great works of art.
3 Don’t spend ages reading the labels or listening to the audio guide.
4 Take time noticing and recognising your reactions. The piece might be showing what you need more of.
5 Don’t worry if you’re scratching your head at the meaning.
6 Remember, unless you have to write an essay, you’re there to feel, not learn.

Turn to page 80 of October’s The Simple Things for more of Loma-Ann Marks’ Arts in Mind feature.

Five must-see exhibitions for winter 2015/16

Ai Weiwei
Royal Academy of Arts
19 September — 13 December 2015

Ai became widely known in Britain after his sunflower seeds installation in Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall in 2010 but this is the first major institutional survey of his work ever held in the UK and it bridges over two decades of his extraordinary career. Curated in collaboration with Ai Weiwei from his studio in Beijing, the Royal Academy presentx some of his most important works from the time he returned to China from the US in 1993 right up to present day. Among new works created specifically for the RA’s galleries and courtyard are a number of large-scale installations, as well as works showcasing everything from marble and steel to tea and glass. 

Works to Know by Heart: Matisse in Focus
Tate Liverpool
20 November 2015 – 2 May 2016

At almost three metres square, The Snail is one of Matisse’s largest and most significant paper cut-out works. Made by cutting and tearing shapes from paper hand painted by his assistants in a range of bright colours, Matisse began experimenting with this cut-out method in the late 1930s, adopting it wholeheartedly by the late 1940s when ill health prevented him from painting.
Shown alongside The Snail will be additional Matisse works from the Tate collection that span the genres of portraiture, landscape and still life, encompassing sculpture, painting and works on paper. Displaying works from 1899 onwards, Matisse in Focus will represent over 50 years of this giant of modern art’s fascinating and impressive career. 


The World of Charles and Ray Eames
Barbican
21 October 2015 - 14 February 2016

Charles and Ray Eames are among the most influential designers of the 20th century. Enthusiastic and tireless experimenters, this husband and wife duo moved fluidly between the fields of photography, film, architecture, exhibition-making, and furniture and product design.
From personal letters, photographs, drawings and artwork, to their products, models, multi-media installations and furniture, The World of Charles and Ray Eames includes not only the designs for which they are best known, but provides an insight into the lives of the Eameses, the Eames Office and the breadth of their pioneering work, bringing their ideas and playful spirit to life.
 

Alexander Calder: Performing Sculpture
Tate Modern
11 November 2015 – 3 April 2016

American sculptor Alexander Calder was a radical figure who pioneered kinetic sculpture, bringing movement to static objects. Calder travelled to Paris in the 1920s, having originally trained as an engineer, and by 1931 he had invented the mobile, a term coined by Duchamp to describe Calder’s sculptures which moved of their own accord. His dynamic works brought to life the avant-garde’s fascination with movement, and brought sculpture into the fourth dimension. Continuing Tate Modern’s acclaimed reassessments of key figures in modernism, Alexander Calder: Performing Sculpture will reveal how motion, performance and theatricality underpinned his practice. It will bring together major works from museums around the world, as well as showcasing his collaborative projects in the fields of film, theatre, music and dance.
 

Evelyn Dunbar: The Lost Works
Pallant House Gallery
3 October 2016 - 14 February 2016

A remarkable collection of lost works by WW2 Official War Artist Evelyn Dunbar (1906–1960) goes on show for the first time, including highlights from an extraordinary hoard of previously unrecorded work discovered in the attic of a Kent Coast house. Included in the exhibition are other important rediscovered, unseen or rarely seen works by Dunbar from public and private collections.
 

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From the October issue

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Unusual words to describe emotions

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Think: Unusual words used to describe emotions

Happy, sad, angry, glad – it’s all in The Book of Human Emotions by Tiffany Watt Smith

This intriguing book gets to grips with our sometimes bewildering onslaught of feelings – from anger to apathy, wanderlust to worry – and explains how emotions and our perceptions of them have changed throughout history. Watt Smith also explores how different cultures have specific vocabulary for some unexpected, but resonant moods. 

There’s the Dutch gezelligheid – the cosy feeling that comes from being inside with friends on a cold night, the Finnish kaukokaipuu – the craving for a different land – and awumbuk, a word used by the Baining people who live in the mountains of Papua New Guinea to describe the heaviness and sorrow left behind after visitors depart. 

As well as these, we've found seven more unusual words and some curious images to match. Do you have an intriguing word you'd like to share with us? Head to Facebook or Twitter and let us know. And we share a Lost Word each month in the Miscellany pages of The Simple Things.

Words: Lottie Storey

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From the October issue

Think posts

Good reads

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Think: Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson was a prolific poet, but most of her 1800 works remained undiscovered during her lifetime. After her death, her sister Lavinia found a cache of her work and set about publishing the poems, with their unconventional punctuation and capitalization, and their themes of loss, love, death and immortality.

“Hope” is the thing with feathers - (314)
By Emily Dickinson

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -
That perches in the soul -
And sings the tune without the words -
And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -
And sore must be the storm -
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land -
And on the strangest Sea -
Yet - never - in Extremity,
It asked a crumb - of me.

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From the September issue

Things to make you think

More Books posts

September's The Simple Things is on sale - buy, download or subscribe now.

Wellbeing: Be a better list-maker

Lists aren’t just for crossing off chores. Writing down your hopes and feelings is a powerful way to create a life you love. 

The arrival of autumn brings the irresistible urge to start again. Before you make a list of the things you need to do or change, consider that a new approach to list- making might be what you really need. Most of us use lists, even if it’s just for food shopping or when extra busy at work – but a list can have many more uses than just a physical reminder for you of what you need to do. 

Turn to page 86 of September’s The Simple Things to read Anna Hewitt’s guide to making lists. Or tick off the following tips to becoming a better list-maker.

1 Remember that how you want to feel is as important as what you want to accomplish.
2 In everyday to-do lists, include tasks that you enjoy, like going for a bike ride or meeting a friend.
3 Don’t be afraid to share your list with others for their perspective, feedback, and encouragement.
4 Be creative. Use colour, pictures, or a unique design to make your lists feel more interesting and appealing.
5 Boost your happiness regularly by making a list of three things you are grateful for each day.
6 At the end of each day choose one to three things that you will work on tomorrow – and let go of the rest.

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From the September issue

Wellbeing posts

Kick off the new term in style with The Stuff of Life

September's The Simple Things is on sale - buy, download or subscribe now.

Ideas: Smile in portraiture

Why do we so seldom see people smiling in painted portraits? It’s a lot about how we want to be viewed, says Nicholas Jeeves.

Today when someone points a camera at us, we smile. Such are our expectations of a portrait. But, as a walk around any art gallery reveals, the open smile has been largely, as it were, frowned upon.

It’s commonly thought that for centuries people didn’t smile in pictures because their teeth were awful. This is not true – bad teeth were so common that this was not seen as necessarily detracting from a person’s attractiveness. Lord Palmerston, Queen Victoria’s Whig prime minister, was described as being devastatingly good-looking, despite having a number of prominent teeth missing due to hunting accidents. Nonetheless, both painters and sitters did have a number of good reasons for being disinclined to encourage the smile. The primary reason? It’s hard to do. In the few examples we have of smiles in formal portraiture, the effect is often not very pleasing, and we can still see this today. When a camera is produced, we perform gamely. But should the process take too long, our smiles become grimaces. A smile is like a blush – a response, not an expression, and it can neither be easily maintained nor recorded. 

Turn to page 96 of June's The Simple Things for more, 

A longer version of this article was originally published as ‘The Serious and The Smirk: The Smile in Portraiture’ in The Public Domain Review under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 

If you wish to reuse it please see: http://publicdomainreview.org/legal/

Think: Go slow with a series of unhurried programmes from BBC Four

Inspired by the concept of slow TV, when an event is filmed in real time, BBC Four Goes Slow features a series of three deliberately unrushed programmes celebrating traditional craftsmanship, an uninterrupted two-hour canal boat journey down a historic British waterway and a recording of the birdsong of sunrise, devoid of voiceover or added sound effects.

Another brilliant example of something only BBC Four would do, this surprising selection of programmes is the antithesis to the general direction much of television is going in. Slowing everything right down gives us the time to really observe things as they happen and this series of programmes celebrates the simple pleasures of life in the slow lane.

Sounds right up our street. Want to watch again? Follow the iPlayer links below…  

Handmade is a series of three half-hour films celebrating traditional craftsmanship. In a world of fast-paced, high-tech mass production, Handmade takes a quiet, unhurried look at the making of a series of simple objects. Beautifully filmed and edited at a leisurely pace with no voiceover, each film is an absorbing, often hypnotic portrait of time-honoured skills and techniques, observing in exquisite detail the slow and careful crafting of objects such as a classic steel knife and a wooden chair.

1. Glass

Filmed in real time and without voiceover or music, this is a beautifully-filmed portrait of the making of a simple glass jug by glass designer Michael Ruh.
 

2. Metal

Filmed without voiceover or music, this film is an absorbing portrait of the complex processes behind the crafting of a steel knife by bladesmith Owen Bush.
 

3. Wood

Filmed over five days, this film reveals the complex, time-consuming processes involved in creating a Windsor chair, made by Jim Steele in his Warwickshire workshop.
 

All Aboard! The Canal Trip

All Aboard! The Canal Trip is an uninterrupted two-hour canal boat journey down one of Britain's historic waterways filmed in real time. Inspired by the concept of slow TV, when an event is filmed in real time, the film is a rich and absorbing antidote to the frenetic pace of modern life. Take in the images and sounds of the British countryside, spot wildlife and glimpse life on the tow path, as if you were there. Guidebook facts about the canal and its history are delivered by captions imbedded into the passing landscape.
 

Dawn Chorus: The Sounds of Spring

The birdsong of sunrise in all its uninterrupted glory, free from the voiceover and music of traditional television. With the first glimmers of sunlight, the birds of Britain's woodland, heathland and parkland burst into song. This is an opportunity to sit back and enjoy a portrait of three very different habitats and the natural splendour of their distinctive chorus.
 

Think: Unbound Books

Founded by three writers, Dan Kieran, John Mitchinson and Justin Pollard, Unbound books is trailblazing a new way of getting books to readers. The trio had already headed down the traditional route to publication – publishers, bookshops, marketing departments – and felt that there was too much distance between author and audience, so they set about bridging the gap. Crowd-funding, they decided, was the way forward. Caitlin Harvey, Unbound’s community co-ordinator, explains: “An author comes up with an idea and if we think it has legs, then we film a pitch video, calculate the

amount we need to raise to publish the book and then put it live on the Unbound site. If we get enough people to pledge for the book in advance, we publish it and send all the supporters the ebook, a limited first edition and any other rewards included with their pledge level.” They’ll consider everything as long as it’s well written, and once you sign up to an idea you get access to the authors’ shed, an online space where writers share their techniques, showcase their work, ask for readers’ opinions and talk about all things book related. Brilliant. 

www.unbound.co.uk