The Cartoon That Predicted 2025
Nearly 100 years later, she remains louder, bolder, and stranger than ever. Plus: Grizzly Man, Art Basel, UT Austin Research, and more.
Wednesday, September 18, 2025
Good morning. From 1930s cartoons to Herzog’s Grizzly Man, from Qatar’s art market to the cult of culture itself — this week’s stories all circle the same question: how do we assign meaning to art, and what does it demand of us?
Betty Boop: Why a 1930s Cartoon Jazzy Diva Still Speaks to Us in 2025
-Fiona Fangfei Liu
Betty Boop debuted nearly a century ago, yet she still sparkles with the kind of cultural relevance that most modern characters can only dream of. Her voice, her jazziness, her flirtation with taboo — Betty was not just a cartoon but an avatar of modernity, feminine independence, and musical experimentation.
As we reconsider icons of the past in today’s fractured media landscape, Betty Boop’s endurance feels more like prophecy than nostalgia. She reminds us that performance, even in animated form, can cut straight to the cultural bone.
Fiona Fangfei Liu
📊 2025 Student Arts Census
We are conducting a research project with students at The University of Texas.
Take 3–5 minutes to fill out our 2025 Student Arts Census. It’s anonymous unless you choose otherwise. Your voice will help us better understand what students are facing in the arts today, shape future coverage, and highlight the real challenges (and wins) of being a young artist.
🎶Song of the Week
Airglow Fires – Lone
I was working on this week’s newsletter letting the algorithm do its thing and I came across this amazing electronic track. Put it on and float away.
▶️ Spotify | Apple Music
🐻 What Grizzly Man Tells Us About Creating Our Own Meaning
-Oliver Stevens
Werner Herzog’s Grizzly Man is compelling because it forces us to hold two truths at once: Timothy Treadwell found deep joy and meaning living among bears, and yet he was also profoundly misguided — his life a mix of inspiration and delusion.
The film becomes a study in how we create narratives for ourselves, even if they run counter to objective reality. For Treadwell, this reframing was radical, even fatal. For the rest of us, it is simply the condition of living.
Oliver Stevens
👤 This Weeks Featured Artist
Ryō Takemasa
An illustrator based in Tokyo, Ryō Takemasa’s work blends clean geometric forms with subtle warmth. His illustrations have been featured in publications worldwide and stand out for their timeless, minimal style.
Explore his work here: ryotakemasa.com
🕊 Culture Is a Cult
-Kati Langille
Culture binds us together, but sometimes it binds too tightly. When devotion to art, institutions, or even taste itself becomes unthinking, culture can start to look a lot like cult.
This essay asks whether we are participants in culture, or whether culture has us under its spell.
Kati Langille
🎨 Will Art Basel Qatar Be Safe?
-Wolfgang Burst
As Art Basel expands into Qatar, questions linger about politics, safety, and what it means for the global art market. The fair arrives with promise — and risk.
Wolfgang Bakari Burst
✉️ Closing Note
Thanks for reading The Art Newsletter. We’re an independent project built by university students, for anyone who believe art still matters. If you enjoyed this week’s edition, please share it with a friend — it’s the best way for us to grow.
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Until next week,
Wolfgang, Co Founder - The Art Newsletter.
