Reflecting on Anais Ninn's brief for the bar on the eve of our writers week

Posted on Thu July 25, 2024.

It's an Art hotel. But is it an Art bar ? The thoughts of Anais Ninn the famous mid 19th century writer and author of an outrageously erotic personal diary that shocked society gave us some direction.

I saw a beautiful quote about writing attributed to Anais Ninn emblazoned across a 2nd hand coffee cup in a Kalk Bay bric a brac shop; "I write so that I might have a place to live". It was actually a misquote but for me it sums the  attraction of writing  up perfectly. Then more recently I came across another quote - this one specific to place;

Author and erotic diarist Anais Ninn

 

“I need a place where I can shout and weep, I have to be a Spanish savage at some time of the day. I record here the hysteria life causes in me. The overflow of an undisciplined extravagance. To hell with taste and art, with all contradictions and polishings. Here I shout, I dance, I weep, I gnash my teeth, I go mad – all by myself, in bad English, in chaos. It’ll keep me sane for the world and for art”.

Anais Ninn. Incest: From “A journal of love”. 27 October1933.

"To hell with taste and art". 

Further Reading

Graham Abbots Analogue festival - an immersion in retro tech and romance..12 -20 Dec Wed October 1, 2025

The poster is out ! Barrydales arty , hands on celebration of the art of analog photograpy runs from the 19th -20th December.

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Barrydale in Bloom 14-16 Nov Tue September 30, 2025

With this event going from strength to strength this is a brilliant weekend to be in Barrydale. The hotel is fully booked but this is just a heads up re the program

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WOMAD 4 OCT Tue September 30, 2025

Prauge, Athens, Moscow...Barrydale. Who would have thought

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