“𝐒𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐭-𝟑𝐏𝐎”
@icyjohnson.bsky.social
Baltimore native in NYC. Reading, Art, Travel, Music and Fashion Enthusiast.
“𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐈 𝐚𝐦. 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲. 𝐈𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭, 𝐇𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐇𝐢𝐦, 𝐌𝐞.”
- 𝐒𝐚𝐮𝐥 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐬
- 𝐒𝐚𝐮𝐥 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐬
October 4, 2025 at 12:57 PM
“𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐈 𝐚𝐦. 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲. 𝐈𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭, 𝐇𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐇𝐢𝐦, 𝐌𝐞.”
- 𝐒𝐚𝐮𝐥 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐬
- 𝐒𝐚𝐮𝐥 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐬
"Christian Dior Denim Flow" released on this day 15 years ago.
Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Pusha T, John Legend, Lloyd Banks & Ryan Leslie
(maybe) The best song not available on DSPs.
Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Pusha T, John Legend, Lloyd Banks & Ryan Leslie
(maybe) The best song not available on DSPs.
October 1, 2025 at 6:24 PM
"Christian Dior Denim Flow" released on this day 15 years ago.
Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Pusha T, John Legend, Lloyd Banks & Ryan Leslie
(maybe) The best song not available on DSPs.
Kanye West, Kid Cudi, Pusha T, John Legend, Lloyd Banks & Ryan Leslie
(maybe) The best song not available on DSPs.
On Prints, Editions, and Starting an Art Collection: In Conversation with Artist Lenworth "Joonbug" McIntosh & Elleree Erdos, Director of Prints & Editions at David Zwirner
On Prints, Editions, and Starting an Art Collection
In Conversation with Artist Lenworth “Joonbug” McIntosh & Elleree Erdos, Director of Prints & Editions at David Zwirner
open.substack.com
September 15, 2025 at 6:28 PM
On Prints, Editions, and Starting an Art Collection: In Conversation with Artist Lenworth "Joonbug" McIntosh & Elleree Erdos, Director of Prints & Editions at David Zwirner
“A white man giving a speech, on a white college campus, in one of the whitest states in America, in front of a snow white crowd, gets shot by a white man. And now, HBCU campuses are the ones being threatened.” - Dr. Stacey Patton
Charlie Kirk Gets Shot in Utah By A White Man, and Now HBCUs Are On Lockdown —Make It Make Sense
This Substack is reader-supported.
open.substack.com
September 12, 2025 at 12:23 PM
“A white man giving a speech, on a white college campus, in one of the whitest states in America, in front of a snow white crowd, gets shot by a white man. And now, HBCU campuses are the ones being threatened.” - Dr. Stacey Patton
What if freedom isn’t about certainty, but about living with risk and responsibility? Simone de Beauvoir’s The Ethics of Ambiguity challenges us to embrace freedom’s fragility, resist dogma, and live passionately in a world without guarantees.
Read the full essay at the link below.
Read the full essay at the link below.
The Ethics of Being Human (It's More Complicated Than You Think)
Why Simone de Beauvoir's philosophy is essential reading for anyone trying to live meaningfully
substack.com
September 9, 2025 at 9:25 PM
What if freedom isn’t about certainty, but about living with risk and responsibility? Simone de Beauvoir’s The Ethics of Ambiguity challenges us to embrace freedom’s fragility, resist dogma, and live passionately in a world without guarantees.
Read the full essay at the link below.
Read the full essay at the link below.
Hey young world...
September 3, 2025 at 8:53 PM
Hey young world...
Reposted by “𝐒𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐭-𝟑𝐏𝐎”
Bad news…the State Department used to spend millions per year to send kids like me (in 2007) to the Middle East to learn Arabic as part of a propaganda campaign to resist “Arab influence” 🤦🏽♀️
And places like Cameroon, Senegal, and Haiti would like a word lol
And places like Cameroon, Senegal, and Haiti would like a word lol
People are melting down at a Tribune article about CHSD 230 considering adding Arabic to its language learning electives. I wasted time in the comments, which I normally avoid doing since it's useless and awful, but it led to possibly the funniest thing anybody's ever said to me about France.
September 1, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Bad news…the State Department used to spend millions per year to send kids like me (in 2007) to the Middle East to learn Arabic as part of a propaganda campaign to resist “Arab influence” 🤦🏽♀️
And places like Cameroon, Senegal, and Haiti would like a word lol
And places like Cameroon, Senegal, and Haiti would like a word lol
A French poet in 1863 cracked the code of modern creativity. His essay about urban wandering predicted everything from street photography to Instagram aesthetics. The flâneur's secret is still the best artistic advice you'll ever get
substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com/home/post/p-...
The Urban Wanderer Who Changed Art Forever
Inside Baudelaire's blueprint for turning city streets into artistic gold
open.substack.com
August 12, 2025 at 6:07 PM
A French poet in 1863 cracked the code of modern creativity. His essay about urban wandering predicted everything from street photography to Instagram aesthetics. The flâneur's secret is still the best artistic advice you'll ever get
substack.com/home/post/p-...
substack.com/home/post/p-...
August 10, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Yoko Ogawa's "The Memory Police" isn't just dystopian fiction; it's a haunting prophecy about how authoritarianism erases consciousness itself.
The Quiet Violence of Forgetting: Art, Memory, and Political Power
How "The Memory Police" reveals storytelling as the last defense against authoritarian amnesia
substack.com
July 24, 2025 at 2:37 PM
Yoko Ogawa's "The Memory Police" isn't just dystopian fiction; it's a haunting prophecy about how authoritarianism erases consciousness itself.
𝑨 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒅𝒂𝒚…
July 16, 2025 at 12:39 PM
𝑨 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒅𝒂𝒚…
"𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐞. 𝐇𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐞 (𝐇𝐲𝐝𝐞) 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐞𝐤𝐲𝐥𝐥 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐞..."
- 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞
- 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞
July 12, 2025 at 1:18 AM
"𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐞. 𝐇𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐞 (𝐇𝐲𝐝𝐞) 𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐉𝐞𝐤𝐲𝐥𝐥 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐞..."
- 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞
- 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞
A banned 1921 novel predicted algorithmic mind control. Yevgeny Zamyatin's "We" birthed dystopian fiction by showing how consciousness itself becomes rebellion against systematic perfection.
"The Banned Book That Gave Birth to Every Dystopia You Know"
From Orwell to Black Mirror: tracing the DNA of dystopian fiction back to Yevgeny Zamyatin's "We"
substack.com
July 8, 2025 at 2:37 PM
A banned 1921 novel predicted algorithmic mind control. Yevgeny Zamyatin's "We" birthed dystopian fiction by showing how consciousness itself becomes rebellion against systematic perfection.
How to Care for Your Denim (and Make It Last a Lifetime) — The Denim Workroom
How to Care for Your Denim (and Make It Last a Lifetime) — The denim workroom
www.thedenimworkroom.com
July 2, 2025 at 12:04 AM
How to Care for Your Denim (and Make It Last a Lifetime) — The Denim Workroom
I thought I understood obsessive love until I read Djuna Barnes.
"Nightwood" is the beautiful nightmare that forces you to confront uncomfortable truths about desire, identity, and what it means to live authentically.
Why this 1936 novel hits different:
"Nightwood" is the beautiful nightmare that forces you to confront uncomfortable truths about desire, identity, and what it means to live authentically.
Why this 1936 novel hits different:
What Happens When Literature Refuses to Behave?
How "Nightwood" by Djuna Barnes broke every rule about identity, desire, and what novels should do
substack.com
June 22, 2025 at 6:26 PM
I thought I understood obsessive love until I read Djuna Barnes.
"Nightwood" is the beautiful nightmare that forces you to confront uncomfortable truths about desire, identity, and what it means to live authentically.
Why this 1936 novel hits different:
"Nightwood" is the beautiful nightmare that forces you to confront uncomfortable truths about desire, identity, and what it means to live authentically.
Why this 1936 novel hits different:
The Underground Book That's Quietly Starting a Revolution
How "Night Train to Lisbon" became the secret handbook for people ready to change their lives
How "Night Train to Lisbon" became the secret handbook for people ready to change their lives
The Underground Book That's Quietly Starting a Revolution
How "Night Train to Lisbon" became the secret handbook for people ready to change their lives
open.substack.com
June 18, 2025 at 3:19 PM
The Underground Book That's Quietly Starting a Revolution
How "Night Train to Lisbon" became the secret handbook for people ready to change their lives
How "Night Train to Lisbon" became the secret handbook for people ready to change their lives
Amy Sherald's "American Sublime" at the Whitney transforms everyday Black Americans into monumental figures through her signature gray-scale portraits against vibrant backdrops. Each work radiates quiet dignity, redefining American portraiture with profound intimacy.
Bearing Witness to the Sublime: Amy Sherald at The Whitney
The mid-afternoon light filtered through The Whitney's calculated architecture as I moved through "Amy Sherald: American Sublime," an exhibition that moved me profoundly by its quiet power and revolut...
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Amy Sherald's "American Sublime" at the Whitney transforms everyday Black Americans into monumental figures through her signature gray-scale portraits against vibrant backdrops. Each work radiates quiet dignity, redefining American portraiture with profound intimacy.
Between burning prophecies and scorched landscapes, Butler's 'Parable of the Sower' resonates with unsettling clarity in our fractured present. This visionary work anticipated our ecological and political unraveling, not as distant fiction but as an intimate cartography of our current moment.
Scorched Prophecies: Butler's Sower and the Burning Edges of America
From Page to Reality, What Octavia Butler Knew...
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 2:21 PM
Between burning prophecies and scorched landscapes, Butler's 'Parable of the Sower' resonates with unsettling clarity in our fractured present. This visionary work anticipated our ecological and political unraveling, not as distant fiction but as an intimate cartography of our current moment.
Maxine Clair's Rattlebone pulses with the rhythms of Black community life in mid-20th-century America. Clair creates a framework for understanding how communities preserve collective memory while navigating uncertain futures. A masterpiece of communal storytelling under segregation.
The Enduring Wisdom of Rattlebone
How Maxine Clair's Masterpiece Illuminates Community Resilience in Times of Change
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Maxine Clair's Rattlebone pulses with the rhythms of Black community life in mid-20th-century America. Clair creates a framework for understanding how communities preserve collective memory while navigating uncertain futures. A masterpiece of communal storytelling under segregation.
Five seminal works: Du Bois, Baldwin, Wilkerson, Bell, and Freire; create a powerful dialogue across time, revealing how critical race literature illuminates our present moment. These texts offer more than academic theory; they're emotional maps for navigating America's complex racial terrain.
Reading Resistance: Five Books That Help Us See America More Clearly
Literary Frameworks for Understanding America's Racial Landscape
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Five seminal works: Du Bois, Baldwin, Wilkerson, Bell, and Freire; create a powerful dialogue across time, revealing how critical race literature illuminates our present moment. These texts offer more than academic theory; they're emotional maps for navigating America's complex racial terrain.
William Gardner Smith's The Stone Face (1963) maps the haunting intersection of American racism and French colonialism through a Black expatriate's eyes in Paris. This overlooked masterwork reveals how systemic oppression transcends borders.
The Expatriate Who Wouldn't Look Away: William Gardner Smith's 'The Stone Face' as Moral Witness
Rediscovering the novel that transformed Paris from aesthetic playground to ethical battleground
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 2:06 PM
William Gardner Smith's The Stone Face (1963) maps the haunting intersection of American racism and French colonialism through a Black expatriate's eyes in Paris. This overlooked masterwork reveals how systemic oppression transcends borders.
The Revolutionary Mind of Mary Shelley: How Teenage Rebellion Birthed Modern Horror || The Strangers Library
The Revolutionary Mind of Mary Shelley: How Teenage Rebellion Birthed Modern Horror
The Gothic origins of our contemporary anxieties about technology and human nature
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 1:24 PM
The Revolutionary Mind of Mary Shelley: How Teenage Rebellion Birthed Modern Horror || The Strangers Library
L'Attesa (The Wait): A Meditation on Grief and Transformation
What cinema can teach us about the geography of loss and connection
What cinema can teach us about the geography of loss and connection
L'Attesa (The Wait): A Meditation on Grief and Transformation
What cinema can teach us about the geography of loss and connection
open.substack.com
June 1, 2025 at 3:16 PM
L'Attesa (The Wait): A Meditation on Grief and Transformation
What cinema can teach us about the geography of loss and connection
What cinema can teach us about the geography of loss and connection