Lucy Tappin

My Recent Work

Lucy’s Substack •

Music and Politics: A Summer of Dissonance

For me, it was a summer of music and heat and politics. Of gripping sweaty hands and sharing pouches of dried tobacco among strangers. Drenched in a honey light, we smoked and spoke passionately. A kinship existed here amongst familiar strangers, a crowded communion on sun bleached fields. The artists performing before us echoed our outrage as we created and occupied space. A space in which demanding the liberation of an occupied nation and people was neither peripheral nor radical, but dominant...
Lucy’s Substack •

Growing up with an Eating Disorder, I’m Now Terrified of Becoming a Mother

I’ve never considered myself to be instinctively maternal. The image of holding a baby, a tangible product of my DNA, hasn’t figured strongly in my mind before. But the prospect of raising children has often dawned on me. Children capable of experiencing hurt and inheriting my chequered history of it.Whilst children are not simply extensions of their parents, or replicas of their combined history, they nonetheless carry a legacy of sorts. And the legacy I carry weighs heavily on my conscience.Di...
Pi Media •

Why We Should all Conduct an ‘Inventory of the Mind’: Lessons in Recovery and Overcoming Addiction — Pi Media

Self-awareness and introspection are generally acknowledged as important constituents of a sound mind and temperament. But an understanding of our cognitive processes and biases is both overlooked and undervalued. Few people have been placed in an environment where they can, and must, question the way their brain is hardwired to think. For those who have, it becomes clear relatively quickly that this knowledge can be translated into personal resourcefulness.I considered myself well-acquainted wi...
Pi Media •

How Misinformation Divides Generations — Pi Media

I once assumed that the polarisation of belief systems across generations could be explained by a diversity of upbringings, or historical context, and I’ve frequently invoked the trope that ‘people get more conservative as they age’ when confronted with relatives promoting views I find personally objectionable. But I have realised this does not adequately explain the recent phenomenon that is increasingly being brought to my attention. A phenomenon that I can only describe as: losing older relat...
Pi Media •

Mapping a Future for Palestine: Occupied State or a State of Mind? — Pi Media

State of mind transcends physical state. This is the idea expressed by Helga Tawil-Souri, a scholar of Palestinian descent based at New York University, that transformed my understanding of Palestine. I scribbled this sentence down amongst eager students and academics, clinging onto every word she uttered. Alongside other scholars discussing media in Gaza and an alternative Palestinian world, her voice caught as she admitted that Palestine must now exist as a state of mind; an occupied state can...
Pi Media •

Transactional and Trusting: Life Drawing and the Relationship Between Artist and Model — Pi Media

I do not adhere to a brand of disciplined body positivity. The kind that insists on perpetually championing our flaws, and dismissing insecurities as parasites. But I do believe in quiet confidence and affirmation. The kind that can be harnessed through the detachment of consciousness from the physical form.Aided by the observation of other people in life drawing classes, I gradually learnt to sever the ties between external shape and identity. This was a subliminal process; I was not initially...
Lucy’s Substack •

British hospitality or hostility? Remembering our reception of refugees

To travel beyond the small parameters of Britain is to perhaps experience something more exciting. And for most of us, outward journeys are premised on the idea that there will be a returning one. But for migrants and refugees, the British border doesn’t seem to be so porous.This is not a novel phenomenon. Whilst immigration policy has tightened and waned with successive governments, hostility towards immigrants has been a constant. It is built into the British state. Anti immigration sentiment...
Pi Media •

‘Arab Capital’ of the US Swung Republican – Why? — Pi Media

As voters and political pundits begin their post mortem of Kamala Harris’ foiled campaign, the Arab community in Dearborn, Michigan are holding their breath; it’s only a matter of time before someone utters ‘I told you so.’Whilst it’s possible to rationalise Trump’s popularity amongst white men, his co-option of the Arab vote initially seems perverse. Considering that one of his first decisions upon entering office in 2016 was to implement a ‘Muslim ban,’ one could assume that the Muslim populat...
Pi Media •

Weaponised Waste: North Korea's New Frontline — Pi Media

North Korea is recycling the ammunition being used against it, littering the skies of the South with capitalist residue. Bags full of batteries, toilet paper, soiled clothes, cigarette butts, plastic bottles, and vinyl have landed on Seoul’s streets, indicating an escalation in the propaganda war waged since the division of the region along the 38th parallel. These trash balloons constitute more than just a biological threat; they shame South Korea’s adherence to capitalism by returning their ma...
Pi Media •

The Floodgates Have Opened: Political Responses To Crisis in Valencia — Pi Media

In the wake of October’s catastrophic floods, Spanish politicians are scrambling to delete a digital footprint of incompetence. But their tracks are already left in the mud of Valencia’s streets. Blame is being triangulated across the Spanish political spectrum. From King, to regional President, to Socialist government, all levels of Spanish authority face allegations of neglect and incompetence. But for the families of victims, the political affiliation of leaders is superfluous. Rather, the po...
Pi Media •

MAGA Messiah: Political strategy or divine intervention? — Pi Media

In the eyes of his followers, Donald Trump has been upgraded from maligned underdog to martyr. And all he had to do was duck. MAGA devotees have resembled a cult from the outset, bound to Trump by a conviction in his ability to lead the promised land, the United States of America, towards its former status of illusory greatness. Indeed, they have done much of the heavy lifting in redeeming their leader’s tarnished reputation. They reconcile opposing realities by claiming they demonstrate Trump’s...
The Borgen Project •

Gardening in Conflict: Sowing seeds of hope in war zones - The Borgen Project

Gardening in conflict offers a vital antidote; the planting of seeds is analogous to the transformation of lives uprooted by destruction. Gardens offer both symbolic relief and tangible rewards for citizens as they grapple with the reality of environmental devastation and displacement. The Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease Reports found that gardening promotes reminiscence and a sense of self, endowing communities and individuals with purpose.Communities across the globe exhibit gardening in confli...