In Conversation: Tourism in Tulum, Stanley Kubrick, Gay Magazine

The Internet snippets—great storytelling, just because, or really ridiculous—our editors are talking about this week, gathered here.

From The Cut – What happened to Tulum?

It’s hard to believe that before the raucous crowds of the wealthy and famous took over, Tulum was once little more than a truck stop. The Cut investigates just how exactly the Mexican vacation spot followed in the doomed path of places like Ibiza, where vast impositions of North American frivolity overrun local culture. A mass exodus of travellers seeking contradictory experiences of daytime wellness and nighttime partying—spurred by the social media appeal of picturesque beaches—has made Tulum a hub of celebrity-endorsed trendiness beyond its capacity. The article delves deeper than a lament for the woes of mass tourism: overflowing dumps, a sewage system leaking into the ocean, seaweed strewn beaches, a dying coral reef, and mass real estate developments are slowly killing Tulum. Read the article, here.

From 1843 – The perfectionism of Stanley Kubrick

There is no denying the iconicism of Stanley Kubrick, whose meticulous—bordering on the unsettlingly obsessive—attention to detail earned him the title of one of the greatest filmmakers in cinematic history. Marking the 20th anniversary of the directors death, over 600 Kubrick film memorabilia is now on display at a new exhibition at the Design Museum in London, including the “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy” typewriter from The Shining and the sleek orange car driven by the violent Droogs gang in A Clockwork Orange. The exhibition, described by 1843 as “like walking through Kubrick’s mind”, is a behind-the-scenes look at the five-decade long career of Kubrick and his genius. Read about it, here.

From Gay Magazine – A literary darling’s new venture

Roxane Gay has given us all a gift: Gay Magazine. The writer and feminist commentator who brought us Difficult Women and Bad Feminist has started her own online and quarterly print publication that will be released this June. The digital age continues to create opportunities for the poignant exploration of life through long-form journalism. Her website already has ten captivating personal essays by other authors surrounding the theme of unruly bodies—one of which has already made it on to the best #longreads list for the month. In her inaugural post, Gay humbly states, “Each time a new publication venture begins, the editors offer exciting words about what their magazine will do that no one else is doing. They make it seem like they have developed some amazing innovation only they can offer the world. This is not that.” Gay Magazine will focus on stories about how individuals are shaped by the political and cultural landscape around them and each quarterly print magazine will explore a theme. No word yet on the June theme but we are enjoying satiating ourselves reading the online essays while we wait for more. Find them, here.

Illustration by Alice Clair.

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