The Boston Globe Magazine | March 2023
“Some days, being the same age as my professors and missing all my classmates’ TikTok references makes me squirm in my desk chair. Still, going back to school for creative writing at 41 is one of the best things I’ve ever done. And yet I wonder: Would I have made the leap if it hadn’t been for COVID?”
WBUR Cognoscenti | February 2023
“As a Russian-born person turbulently infuriated with my birth country, the raw chicken exacerbated my already profound sense of shame for Russia, and my concern for how Russians are now perceived around the globe. To have representatives of our culture behave irresponsibly and not care a whit didn’t sit right at all.”
WBUR Cognoscenti | May 2022
“Propaganda works by weaving strands of lies into a cloth of generally accepted truth. When you get confused and turn to the TV (many Russians’ main source of information) and get all your questions answered by a single, clear narrative … well, you’re only human. Comrades seek clarity. Comrades seek comfort. Propaganda 101.”
Design Museum Magazine | August 2018
“Imagine you’re near Fenway Park, Lansdowne Street on a summer night. As you approach the gigantic steel structure that supports the Green Monster, you hear a rhythm emanating from its bays. Not from a concert within the stadium, but from the actual wall. Then, you see that wall light up, and realize there are people in those bays, drumming on the beams like they’re instruments.”
Harvard Innovation Labs | July 2019
“The stats are hard to swallow. Over 40% of plastic – invented in 1907 and, by many measures, a miracle material – is used just once. Plastic bottles and bags take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade (for context: 1,000 years ago, in the Middle Ages, only about 250 million people lived on Earth; guns didn’t exist; a Viking became the first European to set foot in America; and forests covered 45-60% of the Earth’s surface, compared to today’s 31%).”
YUME Magazine | November 2017
“When we think about sustainable travel, we tend to imagine the physical journey or the destination.
But what if travel became sustainable the moment you began typing in your dates and destinations? What if the very act of booking a trip was enough to make a difference in the world?
This is the premise behind Goodwings.”
YUME Magazine | September 2017
“Maybe it’s because the steady chug-chug of a train is reminiscent of a heartbeat. Maybe it’s the hypnotic speed with which the immediate surroundings – stations, barriers, passing trains – blur from view, while the big picture evolves slowly, pulling at the heartstrings.”
CulturePeel | April 2017
“100 seconds in Kusama’s ethereal universes – for five hours of waiting. Even if you add the peep-show style exhibits with shorter queues, the works on the wall, and the floor installations, the experience of Kusama’s art doesn’t last much longer than an hour. You reach your limit physically and emotionally.
Was it worth it? Every single patience-testing moment.”
CulturePeel | February 2017
“What am I going to make for dinner, but what do We do about the world?” Last spring, I didn’t find this question – uttered with raw despair by Girlfriend in Jackie Sibblies Drury’s play Really – particularly striking as I first read the script.
Not overly concerned with the state of the world, I was enjoying the return of sunshine and the confirmation that our visions were being validated: Hillary Clinton appeared on track to become our first female presidential nominee, perhaps president.”
Lauritz | April 2012
“In recent years, mid-century classics have been joined by a flood of new Scandinavian favourites. Whatever forces are responsible for the re-ignited trans-Atlantic love affair – globalization, a growing penchant for the smart, simple and sustainable, or even Oprah’s famous visit to Denmark – Scandinavian design is enjoying an American renaissance that extends far beyond the pages of the IKEA catalogue.”
Lauritz | August 2013
“Mad Men grips viewers around the world with its characters and storylines. But for those with an eye for art and design, the show is just as much about its visual feast of impeccably curated mid-century style.”
Lauritz | October 2012
“This year, as Helsinki celebrates its bicentennial as Finland’s capital – and its status as World Design Capital 2012 – we can’t resist the urge to contemplate and enjoy the diverse, innovative, and colorful universe of Finnish style.”
Babble | December 2010
“A few weeks ago, I watched the hit documentary Babies and, like many other moms, I’ve spent many a moment since re-evaluating my parenting style and wondering why I went into such a panic last summer when my now 16-month-old son, Oliver, happily devoured a healthy portion of goose droppings at the park.”
Lauritz | May 2013
“Unlike the vast majority of fashion designers before and after her, Chanel didn’t believe in fashion trends. Following the motto “fashion fades – only style remains the same,” she ignored conventions – and tapped into a universal sense of style and comfort based on the way women really live and move.”
Lauritz | May 2012
“For most Americans, encounters with Apple’s iMac, iPod, iPhone and iPad don’t immediately conjure up thoughts of Germany. And yet the master-mind behind Apple’s iconic designs, British-born industrial designer Jonathan Ive, is quite open about the profound influence German industrial designer Dieter Rams has had on his work. Rams, in turn, has said that Apple is one of the few companies that genuinely understands “good design.”
Lauritz | February 2012
“Today, the Russian government also considers icons quite valuable – and even forbids the export of any works over 100 years old without permis-sion. But it was not always so. Actually, the Russian icon’s colourful history reads a bit like an art crime bestseller, filled with tales of persecution, passion, hatred, destruction, smuggling – and a return to grace.”
The return of girls with pearls
Asya Partan 
