Google doodles

[9A]

23 July 2014

Opening of Glasgow Commonwealth Games




The Commonwealth Games are underway! Hosted in Glasgow this year, this international sporting event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years. In addition to many typical Olympic sports, the games also include sports popular in the British Commonwealth like netball.

[9A]

23 July 2009

The 40th Anniversary of Comic-Con - Designed by Jim Lee © DC Comics



A comic book convention or comic con is an event with a primary focus on comic books and comic book culture, in which comic book fans gather to meet creators, experts, and each other. Commonly, comic conventions are multi-day events hosted at convention centers, hotels, or college campuses. They feature a wide variety of activities and panels, with a larger number of attendees participating in cosplay than most other types of fan conventions. Comic book conventions are also used as a vehicle for industry, in which publishers, distributors, and retailers represent their comic-related releases. Comic book conventions may be considered derivatives of science-fiction conventions, which began in the late 1930s.

Comic-cons were traditionally organized by fans on a not-for-profit basis, though nowadays most events catering to fans are run by commercial interests for profit. Many conventions have award presentations relating to comics [such as the Eisner Awards, which have been presented at San Diego Comic-Con International since 1988; or the Harvey Awards, which have been presented at a variety of venues also since 1988].

[9A]

23 July 2019

60th Anniversary of 'The Land Of Crimson Clouds' Publication




Today’s Doodle celebrates The Land of Crimson Clouds, a novel by Russian authors Boris and Arkady Strugatsky, published on this day in 1959. Perhaps the most influential science fiction writers in Russian history, the pair was inspired to collaborate on their first book together through a friendly bet. Arkady wagered his wife Yelena that he and his brother, who studied astronomy in Leningrad, could write a better science fiction novel than those being published in Russia at the time.

Censorship guidelines had restricted some of their predecessors, but in the 1950s a “thaw” was taking place, allowing writers greater freedom of expression. Completed in 1957, the same year as Russia’s historic Sputnik mission, Strana bagrovykh tuch [The Land of Crimson Clouds] is the story of a voyage to the planet Venus, set in the late 20th century. Presenting an optimistic view of the future, the Strugatsky brothers foresaw a world where technology and social progress went hand in hand, with photon-drive rockets carrying explorers to Venus in search of uranium to help generate nuclear power.

Although they lived hundreds of miles from each other, the Strugatskys went on to collaborate on over 25 novels. Their follow-up, Noon: 22nd Century, introduced the “Noon Universe,” interpreted by some as an allegory for the ideals of the Soviet Union, a world filled with intelligent, hard-working people happily engaged in interesting work.

By the late 1960s, the brothers increasingly used their writing to offer subtle critiques of authoritarian government, setting the action in faraway universes. Although some of their later works were censored for political reasons, their family has since made all their work available online as the writers originally intended.

[9A]

23 July 2018

Ludwig Sütterlin's 153rd Birthday



Today’s Doodle has the “write” stuff and celebrates German graphic artist and font designer Ludwig Sütterlin for creating the Sütterlinschrift, a unified, kid-friendly script that revolutionized the way Prussian and German school children learned to write from 1915-1941.

At the request of the Prussian Ministry of Culture in 1911, Sütterlin developed a handwriting style that would be easier for beginners to use, especially with the steel-spring pen, a modern invention quickly replacing goose-feather quills dipped in ink. As a result, young students could enjoy simple letters, reduced smudging, and fewer reprimands by teachers. Though forbidden by the National Socialists in 1941, Sütterlinschrift was reintroduced and remained as optional in schools until the 1960s so children could read letters from parents or grandparents.

Sütterlin was also a prolific graphic artist and craftsman who designed Art Deco glassware [as depicted in today’s Doodle], iconic promotions like the “Hammer Poster” for the 1896 Berlin Trade Fair, and notable trademarks like the “Goddess of Light” for the AEG electrical company.

Happy 153rd birthday, Ludwig Sütterlin!

[9A]

23 July 2010

Peder Severin Krøyer's 159th Birthday



Peder Severin Krøyer, also known as P. S. Krøyer, was a Danish painter.
Krøyer's best known and best-loved work is entitled Summer Evening on Skagen's Southern Beach with Anna Ancher and Marie Krøyer [Sommeraften ved Skagen Sønderstrand med Anna Ancher og Marie Krøyer], 1893. He painted many beach scenes featuring both recreation life on the beach [bathers, strollers], and local fishermen.

Another popular work is Midsummer Eve Bonfire on Skagen Beach [Sankthansbål på Skagen strand], 1906. This large-scale work features a great crowd of the artistic and influential Skagen community gathered around a large bonfire on the beach on Saint John's Eve [Midsummer Eve].

Both of these works are in the permanent collection of the Skagens Museum which is dedicated to that community of artists, including those who gathered around Krøyer, a great organizer and bon vivant.

[9A]

15 Jul 2010

Josef Frank's 125th Birthday





Some people see things in an entirely unique way. Josef Frank's work was equal parts inspiring and surprising when I first came across this doodle proposal. Famous in Austria and Sweden for his vivid textiles and patterns, Frank's work delighted the doodle team so much that we decided to launch this doodle in other countries as well!


posted by Jennifer Hom

[9A]

9 November 2020

Marie Dressler's 152nd birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the 152nd birthday of Oscar-winning Canadian-American stage and screen actress, comedian, and singer Marie Dressler, who is widely considered one of the most significant actors of early-1930s film. With her signature style of raucous slapstick humor, Dressler challenged stereotypes to become one of Hollywood’s most unconventional stars.

Marie Dressler was born Leila Marie Koerber on this day in 1868 in Cobourg, a Canadian town on the shore of Lake Ontario. She began acting with stock companies by the age of 14. Over the following years, Dressler showcased her comedic chops in vaudeville, burlesque, and revue performances and ascended from local theater all the way to Broadway musicals.

By 1896, Dressler was a certified theater phenomenon. She reached the apex of her stage career in the 1910 Broadway hit “Tillie’s Nightmare,” which was adapted for the big screen four years later. The result was the first-ever feature-length comedy film “Tillie’s Punctured Romance”—a massive box office hit in which Dressler co-starred alongside a young Charlie Chaplin.

Dressler’s rich stage voice proved a perfect fit for the “talkie” films that came along in the late ‘20s. She delivered a show-stealing performance in the 1930 drama “Anna Christie,” and the following year, her talent was recognized at the highest level when she won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the 1930 film “Min and Bill.”

Happy birthday to a legendary star whose talent and humor knew no bounds.

[9A]

9 November 2019

Celebrating the Edmonton Grads





The Edmonton Commercial Graduates Basketball Club, better known as “The Grads,” started as a high school girls basketball team and became a sports dynasty. Today’s Doodle celebrates The Grads’ induction into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame on this day in 2017. It was a fitting honor for a team that holds arguably one of the best winning percentages in North America—approximately 95 percent over 25 years—in any sport.. With outstanding sportsmanship and determination, The Grads also defeated stereotypes that had discouraged women from participating in competitive sports.

Teacher Percy Page started the team in 1914 as a physical education program for the 60 girls at McDougall Commercial High School in the Canadian city of Edmonton. In their first season, they won the provincial championship, and when some of the graduating seniors indicated that they’d like to continue playing, Page was inspired to set up The Grads after they graduated in 1915.

During the next quarter century, The Grads went on to win 23 of 24 Provincial Championships and racked up stats that would be the envy of any team, including earning winning streaks of 147 and 78 games, separated by just a single loss. They went undefeated in the Western Canadian Championships from 1926 to 1940 and won 29 of 31 games in the Canadian Championships, never losing a series. After the Grads won the Underwood International tournament, also known as the “North American championship,” for 17 years straight, tournament organizers decided to let them keep the trophy permanently.

The Grads additionally won seven of nine games against men's teams and went unbeaten in 27 exhibition games at four Olympic Games—though they never won a medal since women’s basketball was not yet an Olympic sport.

When The Grads first started, basketball was a fairly new sport, having been invented in 1891 by Canadian James Naismith. He would later recognize the Grads as “the finest basketball team that ever stepped out on a floor.”

[9A]

9 October 2020

Hangul Day 2020




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by South Korea-based artist Jisu Choi, commemorates Korea’s Hangul Day [한글날]. One of the world’s only official holidays dedicated to a writing system, Hangul Day celebrates the invention of Korea’s alphabet known as Hangul.

The Hangul alphabet was first unveiled in 1446 by the Choson dynasty’s King Sejong. More than 500 years later, it is still considered a remarkable achievement, even by modern linguistic standards. The 24-letter alphabet remains the only writing system in the world that separates sentences into words, syllables, individual sounds, and elements of articulation like exhalation or voicing. Despite its sophisticated representation of complex spoken language, the writing system is noted for its elegance and simplicity; in fact, it’s said that a dedicated beginner could learn Hangul in just a few hours!

Happy Hangul Day!

[9A]

8 September 2021

Tim Bergling's 32nd birthday





Today's video Doodle celebrates the 32nd birthday of Swedish superstar DJ, producer, songwriter and humanitarian Tim Bergling—known best by his stage name Avicii. Whether blaring from speakers of a music festival mainstage or into the headphones of millions of listeners worldwide, Avicii helped elevate electronic music to mainstream global success.

Whether blaring from speakers of a music festival mainstage or into the headphones of millions of listeners worldwide, the music of Swedish superstar DJ, producer, songwriter, and humanitarian Tim Bergling—known best by his stage name Avicii—is widely considered to have forever altered the trajectory of the Pop genre. Today’s video Doodle, set to one of his most iconic tracks “Wake Me Up,” celebrates his 32nd birthday and honors his legacy as one of the first artists to elevate electronic dance music to mainstream global success.

On this day in 1989, Tim Bergling was born into a family of creatives in Stockholm, Sweden. From 60s soul to 80s glam-rock, multi-genre musical experiences played an important role in his upbringing. By 16, he was mixing tunes in his bedroom, and began writing uplifting, melodic electronic music soon after. In 2011 he released the dance anthem ‘Levels’ under the name “Avicii,” breaking ground as one of the first electronic music tracks to climb the Pop charts. Desiring more than just industry success, Bergling also set off on “House for Hunger,” a 2012 American tour that donated its proceeds to combating food insecurity worldwide. That year, Madonna joined him in closing Miami’s Ultra Music Festival, where the pair broke the festival’s live stream viewer record.

From 2011 to 2016, Bergling played an estimated 220 Avicii sets globally, including a five-year residency in Ibiza and sold-out shows at the 16,000 person Ericsson Globe arena in Stockholm. In addition to breaking down sonic boundaries with hits like the 2013 bluegrass-house-hybrid “Wake Me Up,” Bergling was also among the first DJs and producers to share the spotlight previously reserved for vocalists and instrumentalists.

Within a few years, Bergling racked up over a dozen global music awards such as Swedish Grammis Awards for Best Innovator [2012] and Best Artist [2014], as well as a World Music Award for Best Electronic Dance Artist [2014]. In the U.S. he was nominated for several Grammys and won the American Music Award for Electronic Dance Music Artists [2013], the Billboard Music Award for Top Dance/Electronic Song [2014], and the MTV Music Award for Best Dance Music Video [2018].

Like so many individuals globally, Bergling struggled with his mental health for years. Unfortunately, he died by suicide in 2018 at the age of 28.

In 2021, it was announced that Stockholm’s Ericsson Globe Arena would be changed to Avicii Arena. A symbol of Swedish pride, the arena stands today not only as an events venue but also as a hub for the exchange of ideas focused on mental health. This initiative is led by the Tim Bergling Foundation, an organization founded by the Bergling family to honor Tim’s life and legacy, remove the stigma attached to suicide, and promote mental health awareness, especially among young people worldwide. Additionally, the foundation supports aid work in areas where Tim had a passion such as climate change, global hunger and preservation of wildlife and endangered species.

Here’s to you, Avicii.

Avicii
Avicii in 2014
Born	Tim Bergling 8 September 1989 Stockholm, Sweden
Died	20 April 2018 [aged 28] Muscat, Oman

[9A]

28 March 2020

Wubbo Ockels’ 74th birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 74th birthday of Dutch astronaut, physicist, and professor Dr. Wubbo Ockels, the Netherlands’ first citizen in space. A champion of sustainable energy renowned for his positive outlook on life, Dr. Ockel’s contributions to science and space exploration were truly out of this world.

Born on this day in 1946 in Almelo, Netherlands, Wubbo Johannes Ockels went on to pursue a doctorate in physics and mathematics from the University of Groningen. Taking a break from his research on nuclear energy, he stumbled across an advertisement from the European Space Agency looking for candidates to go to space, and the rest is history. In 1978, the ESA selected Ockels and two others to begin astronaut training as part of an ambitious series of missions utilizing Spacelab, the agency’s manned research module.

On October 30th, 1985, Dr. Ockels launched into space aboard the Challenger space shuttle as a scientific research specialist, the eight-person crew becoming the largest ever to do so aboard the same craft. In honor of the Netherlands, he carried onboard a large bag of gouda cheese. After logging 168 hours in space, a dizzying 110 orbits of Earth, and over 75 scientific experiments, the crew returned safely home.

After that, Dr. Ockels never made it back to space, but his unique experience of the world’s beauty revealed the vulnerability of our planet. Instilled with the profound notion that humankind has no spare home, he used his newfound fame as an astronaut to promote sustainability back on Earth. In 2003, he became a full-time aerospace engineering professor, with a focus on developing alternative sources of energy.

Thank you, Dr. Wubbo Ockels, for defying gravity to create a better future for us all! ​

[9A]

28 March 2016

240th Anniversary of the Bolshoi Theater's Foundation



A famous choreographer once said: “wherever a dancer stands is holy ground.” If so, then there are few stages more sacred than the Bolshoi Theatre, which has hosted the world’s finest opera and ballet performances for more than two centuries. Today’s doodle by artist Lydia Nichols commemorates the order by Empress Catherine the Second to build a public theater. Today, 240 years later, this stately neoclassical venue still stands in the heart of Moscow, a timeless symbol of artistic excellence.

[9A]

21 July 2019

Buchi Emecheta’s 75th Birthday





“I work toward the liberation of women. My books are about survival, just like my own life,” said the Nigerian novelist Buchi Emecheta, whose life and work are celebrated in today’s Doodle.

Born to Ibo parents in the Lagos suburb of Yaba on this day in 1944, Florence Onyebuchi Emecheta grew up listening to her grandmother’s tales and went on to become a prolific author. Although she resisted labeling herself a “feminist” author, much of Emecheta’s writing addressed issues of gender and race.

Married at age 16, Emecheta moved to London with her husband in 1962. She supported her five children by working at a library, pursued her sociology degree, all while writing tirelessly on novels—usually at the kitchen table as her children played.

Emecheta published 16 novels, including In The Ditch, Second-Class Citizen, and Slave Girl, as well as her 1986 autobiography, Head Above Water. She also wrote several plays for stage, TV, and radio.

During the 1970s and ’80s, Emecheta worked as a lecturer and founded the Ogwugwu Afor Publishing Company with her son. She was named an Officer of the British Empire in 2005, a remarkable accomplishment for someone who faced such adversity.

"Just keep trying and trying,” Emecheta once said. “If you have the determination and commitment, you will succeed."

Special thanks to the family of Buchi Emecheta, for their partnership on this project. Below, her son Sylvester Onwordi shares his thoughts on his mother’s legacy.


Photo courtesy of Valerie Wilmer

"My mother was a born storyteller. She was a descendant of Praise Singers—storytellers to the ancient Kings of Ibusa—the small Igbo-speaking town in Eastern Nigeria where her parents and my grandparents were born.

As an immigrant single mother battling poverty in the slums of 1960s London, she would draw her five small children around her, light candles, and delight us with what she called her ‘Moonlight tales’—stories she had learned at twilight by the light of a hurricane lamp from her aunts in the village, or imbibed at her father’s knee during her family’s internal exile in Lagos. For the young Nigerian girl who dreamed even then of being a writer, these tales were like umbilical threads connecting the lonely orphan she became with the lost world of mythical ancestors and her beloved home town of Ibusa.

Later, from the fabric of her personal experience as a reluctant exile in a foreign land, experiences of motherhood and racism, she began to weave stories of her own and to write them down. My mother famously compared writing novels to having children, which means that aside from my four blood brothers and sisters I have an extended family of at least 20 siblings roaming at large in the world, most of whom were conceived on the old typewriter on our kitchen table.

My mother’s passing inspired many feelings in me. One was the desire to ensure that her unique storytelling voice continue to be heard by future generations; another, that her name and legacy be associated with social works which reflected the values she lived by. A publishing company Omenala Press now exists to ensure that her novels remain in print and are available to a global readership. In addition, we, her surviving family, are in the process of working to establish a Buchi Emecheta Foundation."

Photo courtesy of Valerie Wilmer

[9A]

21 July 2021

Belgium National Day 2021





On this day in 1831, King Leopold I took an oath as the first Belgian king, signaling Belgium as a sovereign state distinct from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. Today’s Doodle proudly celebrates Belgium’s National Day, an annual commemoration of their independence.

As the COVID-19 pandemic and flooding disasters currently impact the nation, Belgians are coming together to help one another now more than ever. Today’s Doodle recognizes and gives a special thanks to Belgium’s many everyday heroes. Whether it be a delivery person, medical worker, firefighter, or a kind citizen lending a helping hand—here’s to the Belgians who work every day to help the country thrive.

[9A]

21 July 2012

Belgium National Day 2012

[9A]

21 July 2014

Belgium National Day 2014

[9A]

6 November 2015

Adolphe Sax’s 201st Birthday






If you were alive in the mid-nineteenth century and had a particularly keen ear for music, you might have noticed a void somewhere between the brass and woodwind sections. Adolphe Sax certainly did, and being both a talented musician and the enterprising man that he was, he started tinkering and endeavored to fill it. The result was the iconic, honey-toned instrument still bearing his name: the saxophone.

The son of an instrument-maker, Sax was highly creative and had a deep understanding of brass and woodwinds. He started tinkering with instruments of his own, and upon bringing together the body of a brass and the mechanics of a woodwind created a hybrid that would revolutionize music. His eponymous saxophone had a sound all its own, a wonderfully smoky middle ground between the two.

The Saxophones that were popularized by the likes of John Coltrane, Lisa Simpson, and Kenny G constitute only a fraction of his impressive body of work. From the whimsical looking 7-bell trombone to the large and swooping saxtuba, Sax never tired of exploring, experimenting, and creating new—and sometimes unusual—instruments. To properly highlight his inventiveness we couldn’t possibly make just one Doodle. Which is why you can find five unique Doodles today, each celebrating a different instrument created at the hands of Mr. Sax. There is one notable exception—what we affectionately call The Googlehorn. Inspired by the intricate tubing Sax employed to alter and manipulate sound, this is Doodler Lydia Nichols' attempt to fashion an instrument as unique and quirky as both Adolphe Sax and Google.

Initial sketches with some errors in hand-placement. From left to right: Saxtuba, Alto Sax, 7-Bell Trombone, Soprano Sax, 'Googlehorn.' The background treatment was changed in the final to mimic the plates and engraving typically found on instruments of that era.

All five Adolphe Sax inspired Doodles!

[9A]

6 November 2017

Jackie Forster’s 91st Birthday




It is quite an achievement to leave a lasting legacy. Jackie Forster is known for two: first, for her charismatic TV news reporting; second, for her trailblazing gay rights activism.

Born on this day in 1926, Jackie launched her famed career first in acting, appearing in various West End productions and films in the 1940s. She moved to television news under her maiden name, Jackie Mackenzie, and became a favorite of producers and the public with her sharp, lively, and quirky delivery. Her coverage of the wedding of Prince Rainier to Princess Grace in 1956 won her the Prix d’Italia.

Thirteen years later, Jackie made history by publicly coming out as gay, paving the way for many other women of the time. Soon after, she appeared on a host of television programs, speaking openly about her identity and helping viewers find the strength to accept themselves. She walked proudly in the first gay rights march in the UK and co-founded Sappho, an English lesbian magazine and social club.

Today’s Doodle by London-based illustrator Hannah Warren celebrates 91 years of Forster’s passion and pioneering spirit.

[9A]

6 November 2009

40th Anniversary of Sesame Street - Bert & Ernie



Sesame Street is an American educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop [known as the Children's Television Workshop [CTW] until June 2000] and was created by Joan Ganz Cooney and Lloyd Morrisett. It is known for its images communicated through the use of Jim Henson's Muppets, and includes short films, with humor and cultural references.

[9A]

13 Nov 2009

Discovery of Water on the Moon





One question that us doodlers answer pretty often is "how long does it take to draw a doodle?" Well, sometimes it takes a few weeks [since we talk to local experts on the relevance and appropriateness of our work], other times we have a year to think about a doodle [Halloween, for example, happens every year], and then there are occasions like this doodle. The discovery of water on the moon was a fun project because I had about four hours to work on this from start to finish. I was sitting at my desk at 9 am, Pacific time, when I stumbled on an article about this current event. I quickly sent the article to my team and, by the time I was about to take a bite out of my lunch, I received a call to have this doodle sketched, drafted, finished, and live on all our homepages in four hours. It was an exciting day for a doodler and the world of science!

posted by Jennifer Hom

[9A]

4 November 2021

Charles K. Kao's 88th birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the visionary Chinese-born, British-American physicist and educator Charles K. Kao, considered the father of fiber optics whose innovations revolutionized global communication and laid the groundwork for today’s high-speed internet.

Charles Kuen Kao was born on this day in 1933 in Shanghai, China. Drawn to intellectual work early in life with notable academic success, he went on to study electrical engineering in England. He supported his graduate studies as an engineer at Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd., where his colleagues invented the laser in 1960.

Shortly after earning his doctorate, Kao and his collaborator George Hockham published a groundbreaking paper in 1966 that proposed fibers fabricated with purified glass could carry a gigahertz [1 billion hertz] of information over long distances using lasers. Kao led the development of this revolutionary technology, and in 1977, the first telephone network carried live signals through optical fibers. By the 1980s, Kao was overseeing the implementation of fiber-optic networks worldwide.

Kao was a dedicated educator in addition to being a trailblazing researcher. Beginning in 1987, he spent nearly a decade as Vice-Chancellor of The Chinese University of Hong Kong and founded Hong Kong’s Independent Schools Foundation. Kao’s landmark research in the 1960s earned him a joint Nobel Prize in Physics in 2009 and cleared the path for the over 900 million miles of fiber-optic cables that carry massive quantities of data across the globe today.

Happy birthday, Charles K. Kao—thank you for using every fiber of your being to make the world a more connected place!

[9A]

4 November 2019

Virginia Gutiérrez de Pineda’s 98th Birthday






Today’s Doodle celebrates Virginia Gutiérrez de Pineda, the acclaimed Colombian anthropologist and educator whose pioneering research reshaped traditional family structures and folk culture of Colombia.

Born in the town of El Socorro on this day in 1921, she was among the first generation of Colombian women allowed to pursue higher education. After studying at Bogotá’s Universidad Pedagógica Nacional, Gutiérrez then traveled to attend the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a master's degree in Social and Medical Anthropology before returning home to Colombia to complete her Doctorate of Social and Economic Sciences.

Making the most of her educational opportunities, Gutiérrez went on to author a dozen book-length studies that laid out a fundamental understanding of the lives of Colombia’s people, including women and children of lower social and economic status. Her study of the street children of Medellín led to an interest in solving social problems by focusing on the family unit.

In books like La familia en Colombia, Gutiérrez explored different cultural nuances within the various communities of the Andean, Santandereano, Antioqueño, and coastal-mining regions. She also undertook academic surveys of popular medicine in Colombia and traditional remedies known as curanderismo.

Other than studying families, Gutiérrez also raised a family of her own after marrying fellow anthropologist Roberto Pineda Giraldo, whom she met at university. For her invaluable contributions to Colombian society, Gutiérrez was awarded Colombia’s Woman of the Year award in 1967, as well as the 1983 Gold Medal for Scientific Merit from the Inter-American Family Congress.

[9A]

12 February 2022

Lou Andreas-Salomé's 161st birthday




Today’s Doodle illustrated by Berlin, Germany-based guest artist Isabel Seliger celebrates the first woman in history to become a psychoanalyst, Russian-born German poet, essayist, biographer, and novelist Lou Andreas-Salomé. Pursuing a career in philosophy in a time when women’s opportunities in the field were restricted, Andreas-Salomé broke convention by becoming a central figure in prominent intellectual circles in late 19th and early 20th century Europe.

Lou Andreas-Salomé was born Louise Salomé on this day in 1861 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Raised in an intellectual family of Russian, German, and French heritage, Andreas-Salomé developed a fascination with French and German literature as a young adult. In 1880, she furthered her academic studies at the progressive University of Zurich, one of the few schools at the time that did not exclude women.

In 1882, Andreas-Salomé joined the literary salon of eminent feminist Malwida von Meysenburg in Rome, where she met Friedrich Nietzsche. The German philosopher fell in love with Andreas-Salomé, and many believe her intellectual prowess inspired Nietzsche’s 1883 masterwork “Thus Spoke Zarathustra.” Through the turn of the 20th century, Andreas-Salomé published numerous psychological essays and novels—many based on her experiences as a woman navigating societal norms and the growing intellectual movement of her time.

In 1911, Andreas-Salomé met and began an apprenticeship under Sigmund Freud, known today as the father of psychoanalysis. She integrated Freud’s training with her decades of experience writing on the psyche to become the first woman psychoanalyst. Although Andreas-Salomé's story was little-known during her lifetime, a dramatic reimagining of her encounters with Nietzche shed light on her story in the 1981 eponymous opera, “Lou Salome.”

[9A]

12 February 2012

Anna Pavlova's 131st Birthday





Anna Pavlovna Pavlova, born Anna Matveyevna Pavlova, was a Russian prima ballerina of the late 19th and the early 20th centuries. She was a principal artist of the Imperial Russian Ballet and the Ballets Russes of Sergei Diaghilev. Pavlova is most recognized for her creation of the role of The Dying Swan and, with her own company, became the first ballerina to tour around the world, including performances in South America, India and Australia.

[9A]

21 Feb 2012

Carnival 2012



The Carnival of Brazil is an annual Brazilian festival held the Friday afternoon before Ash Wednesday at noon, which marks the beginning of Lent, the forty-day period before Easter. During Lent, Roman Catholics and some other Christians traditionally abstained from the consumption of meat and poultry, hence the term "carnival", from carnelevare, "to remove meat.

Rhythm, participation, and costumes vary from one region of Brazil to another. In the southeastern cities of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Vitória, huge organized parades are led by samba schools. Those official parades are meant to be watched by the public, while minor parades allowing public participation can be found in other cities, like Belo Horizonte, also in the southeastern region. The northeastern cities of Recife, Olinda, Salvador, and Porto Seguro have organized groups parading through streets, and public interacts directly with them. It is a six-day party where crowds follow the trios elétricos through the city streets, dancing and singing. Also in northeast, Olinda carnival features unique characteristics, heavily influenced by local folklore and cultural manifestations, such as Frevo and Maracatu.

The typical genres of music of Brazilian carnival are, in the Southeast Region in general, mostly cities of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo: the samba-enredo, the samba de bloco, the samba de embalo and the marchinha; and in the Northeast Region including Pernambuco [mostly cities of Olinda and Recife]: frevo and maracatu, and Bahia [mostly the city of Salvador]: samba-reggae, pagode [also a type of Samba] and the main genre axé music. These rhythms were mainly developed by Afro-brazlians and Pardos, incorporating and adapting many cultural influences, from the percussion beats of Africa to the military fanfares of Europe and iberian music in the use of instruments like pandeiro and cavaquinho.

[9A]

21 February 2006

2006 Torino Olympic Games - Curling

[9A]

26 February 2011

100th Birthday of Taro Okamoto




Tarō Okamoto was a Japanese artist, art theorist, and writer. He is particularly well known for his avant-garde paintings and public sculptures and murals, and for his theorization of traditional Japanese culture and avant-garde artistic practices.

[9A]

26 February 2015

José Mauro de Vasconcelos' 95th Birthday





For Brazilian writer José Mauro de Vasconcelos’ 95th Birthday, our doodle takes a page from his most famous novel My Sweet Orange Tree.

[9A]

26 February 2021

Lantern Festival 2021





Today’s Doodle honors the annual celebration, known as the Lantern Festival, a treasured occasion signaling the finale of Lunar New Year celebrations all over the world.

The Lantern Festival tradition has been practiced for more than 2000 years, dating back to China’s Han Dynasty. Once known as Shang Yuan, early lantern festivals were designed as offerings to the gods, and families lit lanterns near their homes to represent a holy place.

Since its inception, the Lantern Festival is now celebrated across Asian and around the globe with illuminating art installations, in addition to lanterns of various sizes and designs. The lanterns are painted with everything from pandas to cats, and each have their own meaning, such as great fortune or luck in a relationship.

Happy Lantern Festival!

[9A]

26 February 2017

25th Anniversary of Ujung Kulon Park





There are only about 50 Javan rhinos left in the world, and today, we honor their home: Ujung Kulon, a wildlife refuge at the westernmost tip of Java. Twenty-five years ago, it was named one of Indonesia’s national parks. Spanning 475 square miles, the lush peninsula and neighboring islands are home to a number of other endangered species, too, including the banteng [wild cattle] and the Javan leopard.

Although the park is just a few decades old, some of the land has been protected for nearly a century. In 1883, the eruption of the nearby Krakatoa volcano left the area covered in ash, wiping out wildlife and forcing all humans to evacuate. The people never returned, but eventually, the plants and animals did. Once the jungle was thriving again, the land was declared a nature reserve in 1921. Now, the park boasts Java’s largest remaining lowland forest, as well as pristine sandy beaches and coral reefs.

Showing a one-horned rhino splashing with its calf, today’s Doodle pays tribute to the natural beauty and preservation of this important national park.

[9A]

10 April 2018

Omar Sharif’s 86th Birthday





Actor Omar Sharif made his indelible mark on Hollywood cinema without uttering a word. Playing the Arab warrior Sherif Ali in the 1962 epic Lawrence of Arabia, Sharif first appears as a tiny dot on the desert horizon, growing larger as his camel gallops into the frame with Peter O’Toole.

From that point on, he continued on an incredible journey that made his indelible mark on Cinema in the arab world and beyond.

Born Michel Demitri Shalhoub in Alexandria, Egypt on this day in 1932, Sharif worked for his father’s lumber company before pursuing a movie career. Taking the name Omar El-Sharif, he starred in Egyptian hits including his first film in 1954, Struggle in the Valley [also known as The Blazing Sun, in which he co-starred with his future wife, actress Faten Hamama], A Rumor of Love [1960], and There is a Man in Our House [1961].

With Lawrence of Arabia [1962], Sharif expanded his orbit from Egyptian matinee idol to international heartthrob. During the 1960s, the charismatic, multilingual actor played, among other roles, a king of Armenia in The Fall of the Roman Empire [1964], a Mongol leader in Genghis Khan [1965], a Russian doctor in Doctor Zhivago [1965]—perhaps his most acclaimed part—and a big-time gambler in the box-office sensation Funny Girl [1968].

Sharif racked up two Golden Globes and an Oscar nomination for Lawrence of Arabia. He also received numerous other awards including a César for the 2003 film, Monsieur Ibrahim, and a UNESCO Einstein medal in 2005, acknowledging his contributions to cultural diversity.

While acting was his main occupation, Sharif was also an internationally renowned bridge player, writing a syndicated column on the topic for the Chicago Tribune.

Today’s animated Doodle shows Sharif in true dashing form.

Happy 86th birthday, Omar Sharif!


Doodle by Sophie Diao

[9A]

6 March 2018

Gabriel García Márquez’s 91st Birthday






Deep in the Amazonian jungle, through the lush green canopy and multi-hued vibrance of the hot and humid rainforest, look carefully and you might catch a glimpse of a city of mirrors; a city separated from the world by an expanse of water and yet reflecting everything in and about it; a city that is home to the Buendia family and the site of strange otherworldly happenings. Here, little fish made of pure gold dazzle the eye; large yellow butterflies flit through the flowers; a train chugs along once in a blue moon; and the only visitors are the all-knowing, mysterious gypsies who come bearing strange tales.

Depicted in today's Doodle is this magical city of Macondo, brought to life by the Colombian author, journalist, and Nobel laureate Gabriel García Márquez [affectionately known as Gabo throughout Latin America] in his book, One Hundred Years of Solitude.

Born in Aracataca, Colombia, Gabo is considered one of the most significant authors of the 20th century. In his long literary career, he penned over 25 books, transporting readers into a world of magical realism where they find themselves in the lush, humid tropics — moldering into solitude or being slowly consumed by the throes of passion.

Gabo’s keen sense of political activism and courage also allowed him to author a number of non-fictional works that eloquently document the times that he lived in, News of a Kidnapping being among the most famous of these.

For all this and more, we celebrate the 91st birthday of a cultural icon whose star continues to shine brightly over the literary and journalistic worlds of Latin America and beyond.

Feliz cumpleaños, Gabo!

[9A]

16 October 2018

Lachhu Maharaj’s 74th Birthday




Born on this day in 1944 to a family of musicians, Lachhu Maharaj [born as Lakshmi Narayan Singh], was one of the most celebrated tabla players of his time. Maharaj trained under his father, Vasudev Maharaj, and started performing at an early age. As a child, his gifts caught the attention oflegendary tabla player Ahmed Jaan Thirakwa, who was deeply impressed by Maharaj’s performance at just eight years old.

Lachhu Maharaj was best known for his inherent sense of rhythm which was best exemplified in his solo performances. Even though he played alongside nearly all the greatest tabla players of his time, his solo performance are the most remembered. Girija Devi, whom he often collaborated with, claimed that “he would play for hours without repeating himself, new gats, tukras and parans, leaving his audiences awestruck.”

Happy Birthday Lachhu Maharaj!


Doodle by guest artist Sajid Shaikh.

[9A]

16 October 2012

Hisashige Tanaka's 213th Birthday








Hisashige Tanaka was a great inventor, born in what is today called Fukuoka Prefecture in Japan on October 16th, 1799. Tanaka’s prolific career began in his youth, when he famously engineered a set of handmade karakuri dolls; small, mechanized figurines capable of performing simple tasks, such as shooting a bow and arrow, receiving an empty teacup and returning with a filled one, and writing calligraphy with a miniature brush and inkstone. I was immediately taken by the elegance of the karakuri, and set about developing a sketch in which the calligraphy writing doll completes the Google logo by painting an ‘o’ upon his canvas.






It soon became clear that in order to illustrate the fine motor movement of the doll, a bit of animation on the homepage would not go amiss. I then separated each element of the drawing into layers, which I used to create a animatable, digital puppet.







Though the karakuri dolls are only one facet of a truly inspiring career, it was truly an honor to have the opportunity to celebrate Tanaka's 213th Birthday.

Posted by Kevin Laughlin, Doodler

[9A]

16 October 2008

Queen Elizabeth II Visits Google London

[9A]

16 Oct 2010

Oscar Wilde's 156th Birthday





Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s. He is best remembered for his epigrams and plays, his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, and the circumstances of his criminal conviction for gross indecency for consensual homosexual acts in "one of the first celebrity trials", imprisonment, and early death from meningitis at age 46.

[9A]

31 January 2019

Celebrating Mercedes Sosa





"I never thought that I would sing for a living," said Mercedes Sosa, the powerful Argentinian vocalist widely known as “the voice of the voiceless ones.” Also known as “La Negra” due to her long, black hair, Sosa’s powerful voice afforded her opportunities to perform at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall in New York City, as well as the Sistine Chapel and the Colosseum in Rome. A driving force behind the “Nueva Canción” movement, her songs married traditional South American folk music with powerful lyrics advocating for human rights.

Born on July 9, 1935 in the northern Argentine province of Tucumán, Mercedes Sosa’s family lineage came from the indigenous Aymara people. Her heritage deeply influenced her stylistically and by 15, she won a radio talent contest for her traditional folk music. A dramatic tipping point of her career happened on this day in 1965, when singer Jorge Cafrune invited Sosa on stage during his set at Argentina’s renowned Cosquín Folk Festival. Her performance received a massive ovation and by the following year, she had signed a recording contract.

Many of Sosa's best-known songs were written by others, but her performances of songs like Violeta Parra’s "Gracias a la Vida" [Thanks to Life] and Horacio Guarany’s “Si Se Calla El Cantor” [If the Singer is Silenced] helped catapult her into fame. She released some 70 albums over the course of nearly a six-decade career, exploring diverse genres such as Argentinian tango, Cuban nueva trova, Brazilian bossa nova, rock, and sacred music. In later years, she collaborated with artists such as Luciano Pavarotti, Sting, Joan Baez, and even Shakira.

Fearlessly singing truth to power, she went into exile from her homeland for several years and was finally able to return home in 1982. She continued to perform around the world and later became a UNESCO goodwill ambassador.

Here’s to La Negra!

[9A]

27 January 2022

Arkhip Kuindzhi's 180th birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 180th birthday of Russian artist Arkhip Kuindzhi. By integrating emerging discoveries in physics and chemistry with the contemporary styles of Impressionism and Romanticism, Kuinzhi developed a new painting technique that captured the natural world like never before.

Arkhip Ivanovich Kuindzhi was born on this day in 1842 in the coastal town of Mariupol, Ukraine, into a family of cobblers and goldsmiths. To support his family, Kuindzhi worked odd jobs growing up while fostering his early interest in drawing on his off time. Historians believe a bread merchant was the first to notice Kuindzhi’s talent as an artist and encouraged him to apprentice under Ivan Aivazovsky, a popular painter of maritime scenes.

Kuindzhi walked over 250 miles from his hometown to Aivazovsky’s studio in Feodosia, Ukraine. Despite Aivazovsky denying him an apprenticeship, Kuindzhi pursued an education at the Academy of Arts in St. Petersburg, where he took classes on the physical effects of light with famed Russian chemist Dmitrii Mendeleev. Due to its limited focus on European painting methods, the academy’s rigid traditions frustrated Kuindzhi. He left the school to paint natural landscapes of the Russian countryside and co-founded an organization for nomadic painters known as the “Society of Itinerant Artists” in 1870.

Kuindzhi became known for capturing massive, empty scenes of contemporary Russia, such as the seascape painting “Red Sunset on the Dnieper, 1905-8,” which remains his most famous work to date. Today, his former living quarters in St. Petersburg host many of his paintings and have been opened to the public as The Arkhip Kuindzhi Apartment Museum.

Here’s to a painter who shined a new light on contemporary art—Arkhip Kuindzhi!

[9A]

6 October 2021

Margaret Fulton's 97th birthday




In 1970s Australian kitchens, no other cookbooks were more common than those authored by beloved Scottish-born Australian food writer and journalist Margaret Fulton. Today’s Doodle celebrates Fulton’s 97th birthday and her legacy of spicing up the Australian palate with international cuisine.

Born on this day in 1924 in Nairn, Scotland, Margaret Fulton emigrated to New South Wales at three years old. At 18, Fulton moved to Sydney in the hope of becoming a dress designer, but after hearing a prediction that the food industry would boom in post-war Australia, she instead pursued a career in cookery. In 1947, Fulton took a position as a cooking teacher for a utility company, where she found her passion for developing easy-to-follow recipes while teaching a class for visually impaired home cooks.

Fulton refined her recipes in the decades that followed while working as a pressure cooker salesperson, advertising executive, and food journalist. In 1968, she published the first of 25 cookbooks titled “The Margaret Fulton Cookbook” which has sold over 1.5 million copies.

Although international fare was already the standard in countless kitchens around the continent, the bulk of the Anglo-Australian populace had retained a relatively simple culinary tradition for decades. Thanks to innovators such as Fulton who were inspired by these cooking traditions, many Australian households broke convention to embrace new ways to feed their families—a powerful cultural phenomenon that contributed to the country’s modern status as a culinary melting pot.

Happy birthday, Margaret Fulton—here’s to your gastronomical impact on the world of food!

Special thanks to the family of Margaret Fulton for their partnership on this project. Below, Margaret Fulton’s granddaughter Kate Gibbs shares her thoughts on her legacy.

She was a woman who forged the way for other female cooks, stepping outside the stereotypes and what was expected of most young women at the time. She always had us laughing, but she could hold intelligent conversations with any person, from chefs in restaurant back kitchens [[she would even disappear during a meal to go and chat with them) to academics, children, and her own family.
She showed us how to cook spaghetti Bolognese and paella, but also that the best food is about simple, in-season ingredients. She taught Australia how to cook, and in this way she was a culinary pioneer. We loved her. She is deeply missed. She inspired each of us. My sister Louise Keats, myself, and my mother Suzanne Gibbs have all gone into food because Margaret showed us that if you can cook, and teach people how to cook and eat well, you can make people happy and even change their
lives. This is her legacy.

.
Kate Gibbs, Margaret Fulton’s granddaughter with Margaret
Photo courtesy of Margaret Fulton’s Family


Margaret Fulton and Louise KeatsPhoto courtesy Margaret Fulton’s Family


Margaret Fulton with daughter Suzanne Gibbs Photo courtesy of Margaret Fulton’s Family


Margaret Fulton at the cutting boardPhoto courtesy of Margaret Fulton’s Family


From left: Kate Gibbs; Margaret Fulton, Louise Keats
Photo courtesy of Margaret Fulton’s Family

[9A]

6 October 2014

Thor Heyerdahl's 100th Birthday





What would it take to get you to cross the Pacific Ocean in a handmade wooden raft? It didn’t take a lot of persuading for Norwegian explorer and scientist Thor Heyerdahl to do it—in fact, he did it to prove a point. In 1947, Heyerdahl set off on his Kon-Tiki expedition from Peru to French Polynesia to demonstrate that ancient South Americans could have done the same. The jury is still out on Heyerdahl’s conclusion, but we’re grateful for the remarkable story he left behind. Our doodle around the world marks his 100th birthday.

Thor Heyerdahl was a Norwegian adventurer and ethnographer with a background in zoology, botany and geography.

Heyerdahl is notable for his Kon-Tiki expedition in 1947, in which he sailed 8,000 km [5,000 mi] across the Pacific Ocean in a hand-built raft from South America to the Tuamotu Islands. The expedition was designed to demonstrate that ancient people could have made long sea voyages, creating contacts between societies. This was linked to a diffusionist model of cultural development.

Heyerdahl made other voyages to demonstrate the possibility of contact between widely separated ancient peoples, notably the Ra II expedition of 1970, when he sailed from the west coast of Africa to Barbados in a papyrus reed boat. He was appointed a government scholar in 1984.

[9A]

6 October 2012

Francisco Gabilondo Soler's 105th Birthday






Francisco Gabilondo Soler [October 6, 1907, Orizaba, Veracruz Mexico – December 14, 1990, Texcoco, State of Mexico] was a Mexican composer and performer of children's songs. He recorded and performed those songs under the name of Cri-Cri: El Grillito Cantor ["Cri-Cri: The Little Singing Cricket"].

[9A]

6 October 2017

Meret Oppenheim’s 104th Birthday





Although it might not seem so unusual today for a woman to become a professional artist, it was nearly unheard of a century ago. But Meret Oppenheim, born on this date in 1913, knew from an early age that she wanted to make art and challenge accepted ideas. She became one of the foremost surrealists of her time, and she was the first woman to have a piece acquired by the Museum of Modern Art.

Oppenheim grew up in Switzerland in an intellectual family who supported her ambitions. One day Oppenheim's grandmother, also an artist, did a tarot reading for her granddaughter. The cards said it was time to try something new, and that's how Oppenheim ended up moving to Paris to attend art school.

In Paris, Oppenheim kept company with the rising stars of the abstract and surrealist movements: Pablo Picasso, Marcel Duchamp, and René Magritte - to name a few. They often asked Oppenheim to model or serve as a muse — women were seen as inspirations for art, not artists in their own right. Despite these expectations and obstacles, Oppenheim believed in herself and worked hard to make a name for herself as an artist.

Today's Doodle, created by guest artist Tina Berning, celebrates Meret Oppenheim on what would have been her 104th birthday. The Doodle nods to one of her most known works, Object, and honors the surrealist tradition of combining unexpected elements to create something new.

[9A]

6 October 2018

2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games





Let the games begin! Today’s Doodle celebrates the 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games, held this year in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Over 200 countries will take part this year, sending thousands of athletes age 15-18 to the summer games.

Described by the International Olympic Committee as “an elite sporting event for young people from all over the world,” the Youth Olympic Games [YOG] are much like the Olympic Games [OG] in many respect. They have a mascot—this year it’s Pandi the teen jaguar, who loves sports and is native to Argentina. The games occur every four years in a different city and country with summer and winter editions. Gold, silver, and bronze medals are awarded for first, second, and third place — this year designed by 18-year-old Farid Husen from Indonesia.

This year kiteboarding and BMX freestyle park will make their debuts, as well as a new version of handball that’s played on the beach. Football [aka soccer] is out, in favor of futsal — an indoor game played on a smaller hard court. This year will also feature mixed gender events as well as mixed National Olympic Committee events, bringing athletes from different countries together on the same team. Athletes are not the only young people who can get involved in YOG. There are also opportunities for Young Reporters, Ambassadors and Athlete Role Models. Besides showing off their athletic skills, participants take part in workshops and other activities designed to expose young people to different cultures and instill the Olympic Values: Friendship, Respect and Excellence as well as Determination, Inspiration, Courage and Equality.

Good luck to all the athletes at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympic Games!

Doodle by Cynthia Yuan Cheng and Vrinda Zaveri

[9A]

4 April 2018

2018 Commonwealth Games






The 2018 Commonwealth Games are officially underway on Australia’s Gold Coast. Over the next two weeks, thousands of athletes from 70 Commonwealth countries and territories will compete in 18 sports and 7 para-sports. Today’s Doodle jumps right into the action as one of the Google “Os” takes us through various sports in the Games, including boxing, lawn bowls, para-cycling, and netball.

This multi-sport event started in 1930, when 11 countries from the Commonwealth of Nations sent athletes to Ontario, Canada to partake in what were then called the British Empire Games. The inaugural Games included six sports: athletics, boxing, lawn bowls, rowing, swimming and diving, and wrestling.

Though competitive by nature, the Games were meant to foster camaraderie and sportsmanship. Since 1930, they’ve taken place every four years, excluding 1942 and 1946, and have grown in teams, athletes, events, and traditions.

2018 is already setting records: this year features the largest integrated program of events and para-events, and for the first time, women will compete for the same number of medals as men.

Let the Games begin!

[9A]

23 August 2021

Aimé Painé's 78th birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 78th birthday of Argentinian activist and singer Aimé Painé, a member of the Mapuche nation who devoted her life to preserving the traditional music of her community.

On this day in 1943, Aimé Painé was born in Ingeniero Luis A. Huergo, Argentina as Olga Elisa, a name she had to adopt due to a law that barred the use of Indigenous names. After being separated from her family at the age of three, Painé’s adoptive parents recognized her unique vocal talent and enrolled her in music school. She joined the National Polyphonic Choir in Buenos Aires in her late 20s. During one of the group's international recitals, she learned that Argentina was among the only nations in attendance that didn’t perform Indigenous music. This denial of native heritage prompted Painé to embark on a journey to southern Argentina to reconnect with her Indigenous roots.

Her quest led to a reunion with her biological, Mapuche father who inspired Painé to carry on their ancestral heritage through music. She reinterpreted ancient Mapuche songs in the native language of Mapudungun while playing traditional instruments, such as the cultrun and the cascahuillas. As one of the first musicians to popularize Mapuche music, Painé traveled across Argentina dressed in traditional Mapuche garb through the 1980s, singing stories of her people and denouncing their marginalization.

In 1987, Painé represented the Mapuche people at a United Nations conference, where she brought global awareness to her community’s struggle for equal rights. Today, Painé's legacy is honored each year on September 10 as the “Day of Mapuche Culture” in Argentina.

Happy birthday, Aimé Painé and thank you for safeguarding Mapuche musical traditions!

[9A]

23 April 2019

St. George's Day 2019





St. George became a heroic figure of legend who was declared Patron Saint of England in 1348. Today’s Doodle by London-based guest artist Alice Pattullo celebrates St. George’s Day, which became an English feast day in 1415.

April 23 is also the day when the Order of the Garter, England’s highest honor of knighthood, is awarded by the English monarch with a medal bearing an image of St. George in battle with the mythical dragon. In fact, the Order of the Garter banners displayed in St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle were a source of inspiration for Alice’s final Doodle concept: "I love the simple applique graphics and the bold heraldic colours," she notes.

St. George’s valor has always held a special significance for the people of England. His flag [a red cross on a field of white] will fly all across the country today and many English people will wear a red rose on their lapel, inspired by the legend that a red bloom grew on the martyr’s grave. Traditional celebrations include parades, dancing, and gatherings at historic sites featuring hog roasts and all manner of medieval-themed merriment.

Happy St. George’s Day 2019!

[9A]

23 April 2015

St. George's Day 2015

[9A]

3 April 2012

St George's Day/The 30th Anniversary of the ZX Spectrum







The ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer developed by Sinclair Research. It was first released in the United Kingdom on 23 April 1982 and went on to become Britain's best-selling microcomputer.

Referred to during development as the ZX81 Colour and ZX82, it was launched as the ZX Spectrum to highlight the machine's colour display, compared with the black and white display of its predecessor, the ZX81. The Spectrum was released as eight different models, ranging from the entry level with 16 KB RAM released in 1982 to the ZX Spectrum +3 with 128 KB RAM and built in floppy disk drive in 1987; altogether they sold over 5 million units worldwide [not counting unofficial clones].

The Spectrum was among the first home computers in the United Kingdom aimed at a mainstream audience, similar in significance to the Commodore 64 in the US or the MO5 in France. The introduction of the ZX Spectrum led to a boom in companies producing software and hardware for the machine, the effects of which are still seen. Some credit it as the machine which launched the British information technology industry. Licensing deals and clones followed, earning Clive Sinclair a knighthood for services to British industry.

The Commodore 64, Dragon 32, Oric-1, Oric Atmos, BBC Micro and later the Amstrad CPC range were rivals to the Spectrum in the UK market during the early 1980s. The machine was officially discontinued in 1992.

[9A]

23 Apr 2011

120th of Birthday of Sergey Prokofiev








Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who later worked in the Soviet Union. As the creator of acknowledged masterpieces across numerous music genres, he is regarded as one of the major composers of the 20th century.

Sergei Prokofiev's brilliant compositions are numerous and varied, but Peter and the Wolf is definitely the most evocative and delightful. I listened to many adaptations of this famous work, including editions read by Sting, David Bowie, and Basil Rathbone. I also watched the 2006 Oscar-winning stop-motion animated film, which inspired me as well.







I wanted to use a visual treatment that evoked folk art and childrens' books, so I worked in a color separation style with a limited palette. Since Peter and the Wolf has such a clear and direct narrative arc, I decided to collaborate with engineer Kris Hom to create a four-image scrolling doodle that covers the entire story of Peter and the Wolf, from Peter's first foray into the forbidden field outside his house, to the eventual parade through the town when the wolf is captured. The scrolling aspect evokes the seamless transition between the different segments of the musical composition. I hope this doodle is as fun to read as it was to make!


posted by Sophia Foster-Dimino

[9A]

24 August 2020

Ukraine Independence Day 2020



Today’s Doodle commemorates Ukraine’s Independence Day, considered one of the most important Ukranian holidays of the year. On this day in 1991, Ukraine officially proclaimed full autonomy from Soviet rule.

Illustrated in today’s Doodle is a wreath that showcases blue knapweeds and yellow sunflowers, colors that reflect the stripes of the Ukrainian flag. The country’s national flower is the sunflower, which saw a boom of cultivation across the rich soil of present-day Ukraine in the early 19th century, due in part to its useful and versatile oil.

Today, sunflowers cover more than 20% of Ukraine’s farmable land, which helps to make the country the largest exporter of sunflower oil in the world.


Happy Independence Day, Ukraine!