Google doodles

[9A]

July 3, 2017

Natalia Goncharova's 136th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 136th birthday of Russian art icon Natalia Goncharova. Her contributions to the avant-garde movements of the early 20th century have made her one of the most famous and sought-after female artists in the twenty-first century art market.

Goncharova was born on June 21st, 1881, in a small village southeast of Moscow in the Tula province Her father Sergei Goncharov was a graduate of the Moscow Institute of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, and Natalia began her career by attending the prestigious institute as well. She initially focused on sculpture, with great success; just three years after she began her studies, her work was shown at major Russian salons. In 1909, Goncharova left the institute to help form the Jack of Diamonds, an avant-garde group that focused on combining Russian folk art with developing styles like Russian Primitivism.

Later in her career, Goncharova’s work showed the influence of other emerging styles like Russian Futurism. As the Russian art scene overflowed with new movements, like Rayonism and Cubo-Futurism, Goncharova became a pioneering force. Critic and patron Sergei Diaghilev described her as “the most celebrated of [the] advanced painters” of her time. Later in life, her influence and portfolio expanded into new mediums as she traveled through Europe. In Geneva, Goncharova began designing ballet costumes and sets. She continued on to Paris, where she turned her talent to fashion design. Like her early work, the dresses she designed drew heavily on Russian folk art.

After decades of work and an international career, Goncharova died in Paris in October of 1962. Her pieces are displayed around the world at the Museum of Modern Art, the Tretyakov Gallery, Tate, and more. Today’s Doodle reflects Goncharova’s folk art influences and her distinctive, colorful style.

[9A]

July 3, 2013

Franz Kafka's 130th Birthday



Franz Kafka was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It typically features isolated protagonists facing bizarre or surrealistic predicaments and incomprehensible socio-bureaucratic powers. It has been interpreted as exploring themes of alienation, existential anxiety, guilt, and absurdity. His best known works include the short story "The Metamorphosis" and novels The Trial and The Castle. The term Kafkaesque has entered English to describe situations like those found in his writing.

[9A]

July 2, 2018

Athos Bulcão’s 100th Birthday




Today’s Doodle is rendered in the style of one of Brazil’s great public artists, Athos Bulcão, who would have been 100 years old today. Born in Rio De Janeiro, Bulcão was trained as a doctor but fell in love with art. His change of career transformed the visual landscape of Brazil with his vibrant and colorful tile designs.

Bulcão also designed album covers and book jackets, but is best known for his work on large-scale surfaces including hallways, auditoriums, and outdoor walls. He approached his work with an open mind and a playful spirit, unconcerned about having the last word. One of his trademark mosaic techniques involved creating a variety of abstract geometric tiles, then hiring construction teams to install them without any instructions.

Working closely with Oscar Niemayer, the main architect of Brasília, and city planner Lucio Costa, Bulcão helped realize their vision of the city as a work of art unto itself. Built from the ground up in 1956, Brasília replaced Rio De Janeiro as the Brazil’s capital in 1960. Today it stands as a definitive example of “tropical modernism,” with Bulcão’s artwork integrated into many of the buildings and public areas.

Later in life Bulcão infused Brazilian embassies, hospitals, theaters, schools, and homes with his vivid designs. His legacy lives on through the Fundação Athos Bulcão, created in Brasília in 1992 to document, preserve, and promote his work, as well as to facilitate education for young artists.

Happy birthday Athos Bulcão! Feliz Aniversário!

[9A]

July 2, 2013

Wisława Szymborska's 90th Birthday



Maria Wisława Anna Szymborska was a Polish poet, essayist, translator, and recipient of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Literature. Born in Prowent [now part of Kórnik], she resided in Kraków until the end of her life. In Poland, Szymborska's books have reached sales rivaling prominent prose authors', though she wrote in a poem, "Some Like Poetry" ["Niektórzy lubią poezję"], that "perhaps" two in a thousand people like poetry.

Szymborska was awarded the 1996 Nobel Prize in Literature "for poetry that with ironic precision allows the historical and biological context to come to light in fragments of human reality". She became better known internationally as a result. Her work has been translated into English and many European languages, as well as into Arabic, Hebrew, Japanese, Persian and Chinese.

[9A]

July 1, 2001
Canada Day 2001



Canada Day [French: Fête du Canada] is the national day of Canada. A federal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary of Canadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 1867, with the passing of the British North America Act, 1867 where the three separate colonies of the United Canadas, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick were united into a single Dominion within the British Empire called Canada. Originally called Dominion Day [French: Le Jour de la Confédération], the holiday was renamed in 1982 when the Canadian Constitution was patriated by the Canada Act 1982. Canada Day celebrations take place throughout the country, as well as in various locations around the world attended by Canadians living abroad.

[9A]

June 13, 2018

Mudik 2018





Millions of Indonesians return home at this time each year to spend time with parents and relatives in a centuries-old tradition known as mudik.

The term itself means “to sail upstream,” but most people make the journey home by rail or road. The Indonesian government makes special travel accommodations and workers get extra time off to spend time reconnecting with loved ones in preparation for Lebaran. A joyous feast that marks the end of Ramadan—the Muslim season of fasting—Lebaran is usually celebrated with a lavish spread including ketupat dumplings, sayur lodeh soup, emping chips, and a chicken dish with coconut milk known as opor ayum.

As great as the food may be, the true focus of mudik is strengthening familial bonds by spending quality time together. No matter how far you have to travel—from major urban centers like Jakarta, Bandung, and Surabaya to the remotest rural destinations—mudik is one Indonesian holiday that’s not to be missed.

Eid al-Fitr!

Doodle by Cynthia Yuan Cheng

[9A]

June 13, 2014

World Cup 2014 #4

• Fans of Spain and Netherlands go head to head!
• 
  
  
  Matt making it happen

[9A]

June 13, 2021

Aurélia de Souza's 155th Birthday







Today’s Doodle celebrates the 155th birthday of Portuguese artist Aurélia de Souza, one of the few women whose work was exhibited in galleries alongside Portugal’s great 19th century painters. Infused with strokes of realist and impressionist influences, de Souza’s naturalist paintings served as windows into daily Portuguese life through landscapes of her journeys and her personal favorite genre: self- and family portraits.

On this day in 1866, Maria Aurélia de Souza was born to Portuguese immigrants in Valparaíso, Chile. Her family returned to their homeland after acquiring a farm along the Douro river near Porto, Portugal. It was on these idyllic banks that de Souza began to paint and draw at the age of 16. After only three years, she painted her first self-portrait—an art form that became her hallmark.

In 1893, de Souza further refined her talent in the Portuguese tradition as a student of the Porto Academy of Fine Arts. De Souza moved to Paris in 1899, where she expanded her palette as an apprentice of several French masters. After one year in her new home, she captured herself dressed wearing a red-coat in the oil painting “Self-Portrait,” a work widely regarded as her most famous. She continued to draw influence from the international arts in the years that followed, traveling across Europe before returning to Portugal in 1902.

De Souza’s paintings were regularly featured at her alma mater, just one of the many prestigious Portuguese galleries that championed her work. In addition to her lifelong work as a painter, de Souza also illustrated for Portuguese magazines and the 1913 short story entitled “Perfis Suaves” [“Smooth Profiles”].

[9A]

June 13, 2013

Dano [Korean Festival Day] 2013



Dano, also called Surit-nal, is a Korean traditional holiday that falls on the 5th day of the fifth month of the lunar Korean calendar. It is an official holiday in North Korea and one of the major traditional holidays in South Korea. South Korea has retained several festivals related to the holiday, one of which is Gangneung Dano Festival designated by UNESCO as a "Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity".

In the Mahan confederacy of ancient Korea, this was a day of spiritual rites, and enjoyment with song, dance, and wine. Traditionally, women washed their hair in water boiled with Sweet Flag, believed to make one's hair shiny. Women also put Angelica polymorpha flowers in their hair out of the belief that its aroma would repel evil. People wore blue and red clothes and dyed hairpins red with the iris roots. Men wore iris roots around their waist to ward off evil spirits. Herbs wet with dew on this morning were said to heal stomachaches and wounds. Traditional foods include surichitteok, ssuktteok, and other herb rice cakes.

[9A]

June 13, 2011

Fernando Pessoa's 123rd Birthday



For this doodle celebrating one of Portugal’s most beloved novelists and poets, I referenced an iconic portrait by José Sobral de Almada Negreiros. Pessoa was an author of many styles and pseudonyms, but his writing was characterized overall by a profound vividness which I hope I’ve captured in this depiction of him.

Posted by Sophia Foster-Dimino

[9A]

June 28, 2021

Celebrating Mary Two-Axe Earley





Today’s Doodle, created by Kanien’kehá:ka [Mohawk] guest artist Star Horn, celebrates Mary Two-Axe Earley, a Kanien’kehá:ka [Mohawk] woman from Kahnawà:ke, Mohawk Territory, situated on the southern shore of the Saint Lawrence River across from Montreal. Two-Axe Earley fought for over two decades against sex discrimination in the Indian Act, which stripped First Nations women of their Indian status if they married non-Indian men. On this day in 1985—nearly two decades after Mary began her fight against sex discrimination in the Indian Act—the Parliament of Canada passed Bill C-31, an amendment to restore Indian status to women who had lost it through marriage.

Mary Two-Axe Earley was born on October 4, 1911 on the Kahnawà:ke Reserve. At 18, she moved to New York, where she married an Irish-American engineer. Under the provisions of Canada’s Indian Act, her marriage to a non-Indigenous man meant the loss of her Indian status.The Indian Act of 1876 defines who is an “Indian” and who can belong to an “Indian band” [now referred to as First Nations]. The federal government targeted First Nations women, stripping them of their Indian status [their recognition as an Indian] if they married a non-Indian man. These laws banned First Nations women and their children who lost their status from living in their communities, denying them access to critical social programs and voting rights in their community, and severing their ties to identity and culture. Thousands of First Nations women affected by this legislation are still waiting to be recognized by Canada.

In 1967, Two-Axe Earley founded the Equal Rights for Indian Women organization. For decades, she fought for First Nations women’s rights through associations, impassioned speeches, and letter campaigns. Her perseverance, along with other First Nations women, paved the way for the 1985 repeal of Indian Act provisions, which restored Indian status to thousands of First Nations women. One week later, Two-Axe Earley became the first woman to have her Indian status reinstated. The Bill was effective April 17, 1985, but the movement for sex equality continues today.

In addition to an honorary doctorate and a position among the first members of the Order of Quebec, Two-Axe Earley received a National Aboriginal Achievement Award in 1996 for her lifetime devotion to human rights.

Thank you, Mary Two-Axe Earley, for your unyielding dedication to the rights of First Nations women and their children!

[9A]

Jun 27, 2021

Tamio "Tommy" Kono's 91st Birthday




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Los Angeles-based guest artist Shanti Rittgers, celebrates Japanese-American coach, Olympic gold-medalist athlete, and world-champion bodybuilder Tommy Kono, who is regarded as one of the greatest weightlifters in United States history.

Tamio “Tommy” Kono was born in Sacramento, California, on this day in 1930. During the onset of World War II, Kono and his family, all of Japanese descent, were among the over 120,000 Japanese-Americans forced by the U.S. government to be detained in prison camps [aka Japanese internment camps]. It was in one of these camps that Kono was introduced to weightlifting—which he practiced relentlessly in an effort to become healthier after experiencing severe asthma throughout his childhood.

When the fog of war lifted, Kono returned home to Sacramento, where he entered his first weightlifting competitions. By 1952, he was an invaluable member of the U.S. national weightlifting team, in part due to his rare ability to move between weight classes without losing his strength. Kono won his first Olympic gold medal in the lightweight division that same year at the Helsinki Summer Games. This began a winning streak that crescendoed at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games when he won the light-heavyweight competition—his final Olympic gold medal.

After his 1964 retirement from a career gilded by 26 world records, along with dozens of championship titles in weightlifting and several in bodybuilding, Kono shared his seasoned expertise throughout the 70s as an Olympic coach. In 1993, Kono was inducted into the Weightlifting Hall of Fame, and to this day, Kono remains the only weightlifter in history to hold world records in four different weight classes.

Happy birthday, Tommy Kono, and thank you for using your strength to lift not just weights, but those around you.

[9A]

Jun 27, 2021

Djibouti Independence Day 2021





Today’s Doodle celebrates Djibouti’s Independence Day, an annual holiday that commemorates 44 years of freedom. On this day in 1977, the country in the Horn of Africa became a sovereign state and was officially renamed to its present title: the Republic of Djibouti.

Depicted in today’s artwork, the flag of Djibouti was adopted the same day independence was declared. Its colors represent Djibouti’s natural landscapes, its multicultural populace, and the enduring ideals of its national motto: Unité, Égalité, Paix [Unity, Equality, Peace].

To celebrate this momentous day, Djiboutians prepare traditional meals such as Djibouti Fah-fah [Djibouti soup], a hearty stew prepared with meat and vegetables and served with a side of Canjeero, a crepe-like fermented flatbread. Official Independence Day ceremonies typically include parades led by marching bands—brightly-colored displays of pride that are livened by celebratory song and dance. The annual festivities are accompanied by speeches from national leaders commemorating the nation’s efforts to unify and achieve independence.

Happy Independence Day!

[9A]

August 17, 2020

Indonesia Independence Day 2020



Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Jakarta-based guest artist Martcellia Liunic, celebrates Indonesia’s Independence Day, known locally as Tujuhbelasan [from the Indonesian for “seventeen”]. On this day in 1945, Indonesia’s proclamation of independence officially set the self-declared nation on a path to sovereignty.

Indonesia’s national motto is Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, which translates to “Unity in Diversity.” Today’s Doodle artwork highlights the diversity that shapes a united Indonesia with illustrations such as the Sumatran Tiger and the Rafflesia Arnoldii flower [which has the world's largest bloom], just a few examples of the abundant variety of fauna and flora indigenous to the archipelago.

Also featured in the artwork is a depiction of Panjat Pinang, one of the holiday’s most popular games that requires teams to work together to reach the top of a slippery pole and claim prizes. More than just a game, Panjat Pinang embodies the spirit of gotong royong [“mutual assistance”] and emphasizes the importance of Indonesian unity.

Here’s to lifting each other up. Happy Independence Day, Indonesia!

[9A]

August 17, 2010

Indonesia Independence Day - 2010

[9A]

April 7, 2020

Mother's Day 2020 [Armenia]





In Armenia, Mother's Day is celebrated on 8 March, and on 7 April as Maternity and Beauty Day.

[9A]

April 7, 2014

Victoria Ocampo's 124th Birthday [born 1890]



Victoria Ocampo was an Argentine writer and intellectual, described by Jorge Luis Borges as La mujer más argentina ["The quintessential Argentine woman"]. Best known as an advocate for others and as publisher of the literary magazine Sur, she was also a writer and critic in her own right and one of the most prominent South American women of her time.

[9A]

April 7, 2016

Pandit Ravi Shankar’s 96th birthday




Today we celebrate Pandit Ravi Shankar, who was born 96 years ago today. Shankar evangelized the use of Indian instruments in Western music, introducing the atmospheric hum of the sitar to audiences worldwide. He performed frequently with the violinist Yehudi Menuhin, and composed a concerto with sitar for the London Symphony Orchestra. Shankar also taught George Harrison of the Beatles how to play the sitar, and widely influenced popular music in the 1960s and 70s.

Shankar's music popularized the fundamentals of Indian music, including raga, a melodic form. Raga, as Shankar explained, has "its own peculiar ascending and descending movement consisting of either a full seven-note octave, or a series of six or five notes in a rising or falling structure." The distinctive character of Shankar's compositions attracted the attention of composer Philip Glass, with whom Shankar wrote the 1990 album Passages.

The centerpiece of today's Doodle, by artist Kevin Laughlin, is a sitar. It has two bridges, one for the "drone" strings and the other for the melody strings. Laughlin's design shows the style of sitar Shankar played, which includes a second gourd-shape resonator at the top of the instrument's neck.

Happy birthday, Pandit Ravi Shankar! See archival photos of Shankar at the Google Cultural Institute.

[9A]

April 7, 2015

Gabriela Mistral’s 126th Birthday



Happy 126th birthday to Chilean poet Gabriela Mistral. She was the first and remains the only Latin American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.

[9A]

June 13, 2021

Aurélia de Souza's 155th Birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the 155th birthday of Portuguese artist Aurélia de Souza, one of the few women whose work was exhibited in galleries alongside Portugal’s great 19th century painters. Infused with strokes of realist and impressionist influences, de Souza’s naturalist paintings served as windows into daily Portuguese life through landscapes of her journeys and her personal favorite genre: self- and family portraits.

On this day in 1866, Maria Aurélia de Souza was born to Portuguese immigrants in Valparaíso, Chile. Her family returned to their homeland after acquiring a farm along the Douro river near Porto, Portugal. It was on these idyllic banks that de Souza began to paint and draw at the age of 16. After only three years, she painted her first self-portrait—an art form that became her hallmark.

In 1893, de Souza further refined her talent in the Portuguese tradition as a student of the Porto Academy of Fine Arts. De Souza moved to Paris in 1899, where she expanded her palette as an apprentice of several French masters. After one year in her new home, she captured herself dressed wearing a red-coat in the oil painting “Self-Portrait,” a work widely regarded as her most famous. She continued to draw influence from the international arts in the years that followed, traveling across Europe before returning to Portugal in 1902.

De Souza’s paintings were regularly featured at her alma mater, just one of the many prestigious Portuguese galleries that championed her work. In addition to her lifelong work as a painter, de Souza also illustrated for Portuguese magazines and the 1913 short story entitled “Perfis Suaves” [“Smooth Profiles”].

Happy birthday, Aurélia de Souza!

[9A]

June 13, 2010

Asteroid Explorer Hayabusa Returns




Hayabusa2 ["Peregrine falcon 2"] is an asteroid sample-return mission operated by the Japanese state space agency JAXA. It is a successor to the Hayabusa mission, which returned asteroid samples for the first time in June 2010. Hayabusa2 was launched on 3 December 2014 and rendezvoused in space with near-Earth asteroid 162173 Ryugu on 27 June 2018. It surveyed the asteroid for a year and a half and took samples. It left the asteroid in November 2019 and returned the samples to Earth on 5 December 2020. Its mission has now been extended through at least 2031, when it will rendezvous with the small, rapidly-rotating asteroid 1998 KY26.

Hayabusa2 carried multiple science payloads for remote sensing and sampling, and four small rovers to investigate the asteroid surface and analyze the environmental and geological context of the samples collected.

[9A]

June 13, 2016

Theodosia Okoh’s 94th birthday




Happy Birthday Theodosia Salome Okoh! Affectionately known as “Dosia, Mama Maa” or simply “Maa,” she was a very influential Ghanaian, best known for designing the country’s national flag.

For today's blog post, the Google team collaborated with Okoh's family who shared Okoh’s vision for the flag. From her family: “She always said that the ends of the Black Star must touch the bottom line of the red band and the top line of the green band in the flag.”

Fifty nine years after Okoh first designed the flag, the vibrant stripes of red, yellow, and green behind a black star, remain a strong symbol of national pride and identity for the Ghanaian people.

Okoh, who would have been 94 years old today, was not only an artist but an athlete who led the Ghanaian hockey team to their first ever World Cup appearance. The team also won the Fair Play Award, Ghana's first ever international hockey award, during her tenure. She went on to become the first female chairman of the Ghana Hockey Association and later, served as President of the Ghana Hockey Federation for 20 years. To honor her contributions, the hockey stadium in the center of Accra is named after her.

When the Mayor of Accra sought to change the name, she defended it with the same zeal she showed during games. According to Okoh's family, "Many people in Ghana will remember the infamous cartoon of her pulling the mayor of Accra’s beard in one hand with an oversize pair of scissors in the other, threatening to cut off his beard for having the gall to try and change the name of the hockey stadium."

We hope today’s Doodle by Alyssa Winans inspires people everywhere to pursue their passions, and Ghanaians to celebrate their magnificent flag and the powerful woman behind it.

[9A]

June 21, 2015

Summer Solstice 2015 [Northern Hemisphere]





Sticky fingers? It must be summer!

Today marks the beginning of the year’s sweetest season, a time of hot days, short nights, and soaking up the sun: the Summer Solstice.

What is Solstice, you ask? it’s an astronomical event that creates the longest day of the year in one of the two hemispheres. Today, the Earth’s northern half will be bathed in light for the greatest percentage of a single day. Giving us all a good excuse to stay outside for another hour. Or two. Or until the fireflies come out!

So get out of the house, slather on some sunscreen, and enjoy the summer, before it melts away…

Doodle by guest artist, Kirsten Lepore.

[9A]

June 21, 2017

Summer Solstice 2017 [Northern Hemisphere]




Today’s Doodle celebrates the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. As the longest day of the year, solstice marks the official start of the summer season. If you live north of the equator, today you’ll enjoy the most amount of sunlight in a single day that you’ll have all year. And the farther north, the more sun! In fact, in the Arctic Circle, the sun will shine for a full 24 hours. Whether you'll be outside with the blooms or inside with a good book, enjoy the day. Ready…set…summer!

[9A]

June 21, 2017

First Day of Winter 2017 [Australia, New Zealand]

[9A]

June 21, 2013

First Day of Winter 2013 [Southern Hemisphere]







Music: "The snow Queen" by Kevin MacLeod

[9A]

Jun 20, 2016

Summer Solstice 2016 [Northern Hemisphere]


Today is the first day of summer! Doodler Nate Swinehart created a family of anthropomorphized rocks to commemorate the change of season. Happy summer!

[9A]

June 20, 2016

Winter Solstice 2016 [Southern Hemisphere]



Today is the first day of winter in the Southern hemisphere. Doodler Nate Swinehart created a family of anthropomorphized rocks to commemorate the winter equinox. Happy winter!

[9A]

June 20, 2013

Aleksander Fredro's 220th birthday



Aleksander Fredro was a Polish poet, playwright and author active during Polish Romanticism in the period of partitions by neighboring empires. His works including plays written in the octosyllabic verse [Zemsta] and in prose [Damy i Huzary] as well as fables, belong to the canon of Polish literature. Fredro was harshly criticized by some of his contemporaries for light-hearted humor or even alleged immorality [Seweryn Goszczyński, 1835] which led to years of his literary silence. Many of Fredro's dozens of plays were published and popularized only after his death. His best-known works have been translated into English, French, German, Russian, Czech, Romanian, Hungarian and Slovak.

[9A]

June 20, 2009

Opening of the Acropolis Museum



The Acropolis Museum is an archaeological museum focused on the findings of the archaeological site of the Acropolis of Athens. The museum was built to house every artifact found on the rock and on the surrounding slopes, from the Greek Bronze Age to Roman and Byzantine Greece. It also lies over the ruins of part of Roman and early Byzantine Athens.

The museum was founded in 2003 while the Organization of the Museum was established in 2008. It opened to the public on 20 June 2009. More than 4,250 objects are exhibited over an area of 14,000 square metres. The Organization for the Construction of the new museum is chaired by Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Professor Emeritus of Archaeology, Dimitrios Pandermalis.

[9A]

June 20, 2020

Swedish Midsummer 2020



Today’s Doodle commemorates one of the oldest and most important holidays in Sweden: Midsommar [Midsummer]. In a country where winter can bring just hours of light each day—if that—it’s no surprise that Swedes pull out all the stops for this celebration of the summer solstice, the longest day of the year.

Friends and family traditionally begin the day’s festivities with dance and song around the Midsommarstången [Midsummer maypole], a massive pole decorated in garlands and flowers, as depicted in today’s Doodle artwork. With flower wreaths on their heads, revelers may sing one of the most popular songs of Midsummer: “Små grodorna” [“The Little Frogs”]. To join in the fun, simply hop around the maypole like a frog and sing along to lyrics like, “The small frogs, the small frogs, are funny to look at!”

All that jumping can work up quite an appetite, which is traditionally satiated with a classic Midsummer meal. The menu typically includes Swedish favorites like inlagd sill [pickled herring], snaps [Swedish liquor] , and knäckebröd [crisp bread], all finished off with the iconic desert of jordgubbstårta [strawberry cake].

Glad Midsommar! HOP-py Midsummer!

[9A]

Jun 20, 2020

First day of Summer Season






Google Doodle today marks the beginning of Summer Season in the Northern hemisphere. The doodle illustration shows a flamingo in a hot air balloon on a sunny day on June 21,2020.

[9A]

June 21, 2019


Summer 2019 [Northern Hemisphere]

[9A]

June 21, 2009

First Day of Summer 2009 [Northern Hemisphere]

[9A]

Jun 21, 2013

First Day of Summer 2013 [Northern Hemisphere]
First Day of Winter 2013 [Southern Hemisphere]

[9A]

June 21, 2013

Zlatko Grgić's 82nd Birthday




Zlatko Grgić was a Croatian animator who emigrated to Canada in the late 1960s.

Born in Zagreb, in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Grgić was nominated for the Academy Award for Animated Short Film at the 52nd Academy Awards for his 1979 film Dream Doll, produced by Bob Godfrey.

[9A]

June 21, 2022

Celebrating Norval Morrisseau [Copper Thunderbird]




Today’s Doodle—illustrated by Anishinaabe guest artists Blake Angeconeb and Danielle Morrison—celebrates Norval Morrisseau [Copper Thunderbird], an Indigenous Canadian artist from the Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek First Nation. Morrisseau is widely considered the grandfather of contemporary Indigenous art in Canada, and his work paved the way for the emergence of Indigenous artwork in mainstream galleries. Today, on Canada’s National Indigenous Peoples Day, we honor Morrisseau and his paintings that beautifully captured the stories of Indigenous tradition.

Norval Morriseau—whose Ojibwa name was Copper Thunderbird—was born on the Sand Point Ojibwa reserve in Ontario, Canada, on March 14, 1932. He was raised by his maternal grandparents, who helped instill his pride for Anishinaabe culture and traditions. At the age of six, Morriseau was forced to leave his home and attend residential school—a place where traditional Native ceremonies were banned and speaking traditional languages was forbidden. Despite the trauma and hardships he experienced in his youth, Morrisseau was fueled by his desire to preserve his people’s traditions. His grandfather, a Shaman trained within the Midewiwin spiritual tradition, had introduced Morrisseau to shamanism and passed down the stories and legends of the Ojibwa people.

As Morrisseau entered adulthood, he began exploring ways to incorporate Anishinabek oral traditions and imagery through his artwork. In 1962, he hosted an exhibit at the Pollock Gallery in Toronto, marking his official debut to the art world and the first time an Indigenous artist was featured in a major contemporary art gallery in Canada. His art style became known as Woodland painting, combining rich colors, birch-bark scroll etchings and, oftentimes, skeletal animals and people. Morrisseau’s work represented a unique intersection between traditional Indigenous imagery and modern art styles. His path to success has not been simple - Morrisseau’s artwork has unfortunately been the subject of ongoing art fraud and plagiarism cases, as many sought to capitalize on the value earned through his unique style.

Over his multi-decade career, Morrisseau’s artwork was featured in exhibits across Canada, Europe and the world. Some of his notable paintings include Moose Dream Legend [1962], Conquest of the Thunderbird [1982], Androgyny [1983], and Observations of the Astral World [1994]. Morrisseau also leveraged his growing influence to advocate and support emerging First Nations artists, such as Daphne Odjig and Roy Thomas. He was an original member of the Indian Group of Seven—a group dedicated to uplifting the next generations of Indigenous artists. Morrisseau’s contributions led to his recognition as the grandfather of contemporary Indigenous art in North America.

Today, we can see Morrisseau’s legacy recognized on the global stage as a renowned artist, a revolutionary, and Indigenous icon. His ability to shatter societal, sexual, and commonly held stereotypes exemplifies the perseverance and power that countless Indigenous peoples experience. On National Indigenous Peoples Day, and everyday, we look to celebrate these achievements and recognize the contributions that Indigenous peoples have had and continue to have on Turtle Island.

Thank you, Morrisseau for sharing the stories of your Indigenous culture through art with the world!

[9A]

June 21, 2012

Viktor Tsoi's 50th Birthday




Viktor Robertovich Tsoi was a Soviet and Russian singer and songwriter who co-founded Kino, one of the most popular and musically influential bands in the history of Russian-language music.

Born and raised in Leningrad [now known as Saint Petersburg], Tsoi started writing songs as a teenager. Throughout his career, Tsoi contributed a plethora of musical and artistic works, including ten albums. After Kino appeared and performed in the 1987 Soviet film Assa, the band's popularity surged, triggering a period referred to as "Kinomania", and leading to Tsoi's leading role in the 1988 Kazakh new wave art film The Needle. In 1990, after their high-profile concert at the Luzhniki Stadium, Tsoi briefly relocated to Latvia with bandmate Yuri Kasparyan to work on the band's next album. Two months after the concert, Tsoi died in a car collision.

He is regarded as one of the most important pioneers of Russian/Soviet rock and is credited with popularizing the genre throughout the Soviet Union. He retains a devoted following in many ex-Soviet countries, such as Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia, where he is known as one of the most influential and popular people in the history of Russian music.

[9A]

June 21, 2002

La Fête de la Musique 2002



The Fête de la Musique, also known in English as Music Day, Make Music Day or World Music Day, is an annual music celebration that takes place on 21 June. On Music Day, citizens and residents are urged to play music outside in their neighborhoods or in public spaces and parks. Free concerts are also organized, where musicians play for fun and not for payment.

The first all-day musical celebration on the day of the summer solstice was originated by Jack Lang, then Minister of Culture of France, as well as by Maurice Fleuret; it was celebrated in Paris in 1982. Music Day later became celebrated in 120 countries around the world.

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June 21, 2022

Celebrating Dr. Lim Boo Liat




Today’s Doodle celebrates the life of Dr. Lim Boo Liat, a renowned Malaysian zoologist and leading authority on all things related to Malaysia’s biological diversity. He helped start Malaysia’s national zoo and wrote more than 300 scientific publications about mammalogy and parasitology. On this day in 2003, Dr. Lim became the first Southeast Asian and fourth Asian to be awarded an Honorary Membership to the American Society of Mammalogists.

While attending high school in Klang, Selangor, Dr. Lim frequented the school garden to observe the life of small animals and insects found there. He was only 16 when World War II came to Malaysia, and had to pause his studies to support his family. In 1947, after the war, he applied for a temporary Lab Assistant job at the Institute of Medical Research.

In 1952, he was promoted as a permanent Lab Assistant and was involved in a number of scientific expeditions. Dr. Lim conducted research and attended conferences regarding parasitic effects on wildlife behavior. From 1955 to 1969, he published more than 80 scientific papers on vertebrate animals and was asked to head a newly founded Medical Ecology Division at the IMR.

Seeing his potential and expertise in the field, a few professors from European universities paved the way for him to pursue his Master’s Degree, despite his lack of a formal education. In fact, Dr. Lim did not even receive his Bachelor’s Degree before his sponsorship to the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.

He returned to Malaysia in 1972 and continued running the Medical Ecology Division, this time as a full-fledged zoologist. Dr. Lim received his PhD in Zoology at the Universiti Sains Malaysia in 1977 and was invited to help run the Vector Biology Control Research Unit at the World Health Organization.

His contributions to the field of zoology and biodiversity have inspired the next generation of scientists from Malaysia. From a temporary lab assistant to an honorary member of the American Society of Mammalogists, Dr. Lim is a shining example of immense expertise. He has a number of species of parasites and animals named after him, and is a 2013 recipient of the Merdeka Award.

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June 21, 2022

Father's Day 2022 [June 21]

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Jun 22, 2022

Teachers' Day 2022 [June 22] [El Salvador]

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Jun 22, 2018

Octavia E. Butler's 71st Birthday



Octavia E. Butler’s legacy calls to mind the age old question of whether life imitates art, or vice versa.

Born in Pasadena in 1947, her extreme shyness, tall build, and mild dyslexia all contributed to young Butler’s social anxiety, which led to her spending a significant amount of time in the local library. There, she discovered her love for science fiction. When her mother bought her a typewriter at the age of ten, Butler also discovered her passion and talent for writing.

In a genre historically populated by only white male protagonists, Butler created characters that she, and millions of others, could identify with. She considered herself to have three central audiences — black readers, feminists, and fans of science fiction — and challenged herself to create a body of work that was accessible to all of them. While Butler faced institutional racism and segregation throughout her life, these experiences influenced her writing and thus shone a light on critical social issues


Stories including Bloodchild [1984] and the Parable series [1993-199]) resonated so strongly with readers of all backgrounds that Butler was the recipient of multiple Hugo and Nebula awards. In 1995 she became the first science fiction writer to receive a MacArthur Fellowship, a prize which invests in those with “extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits.”

Today’s Doodle honors the author’s immense contribution to the genre of science fiction, including the diverse worlds and characters she brought to life.

Happy 71st birthday, Octavia!

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Jun 24, 2018

Saloua Raouda Choucair’s 102nd Birthday



Today we celebrate the Lebanese sculptor Saloua Choucair, a trailblazer of modern art.
Fascinated with science and mathematics, Choucair explored mathematical patterns through her abstract sculptures, known for their interlocking parts. Works like her Structure with One Thousand Pieces [1966-68] are renowned for their intricacy. A series she called “poems” was composed of numerous movable pieces that could be appreciated as separate pieces or as an assemblage, much like the verses of a Sufi poem.

After visiting the studio of the renowned French artist Fernand Léger, she was inspired to push even farther into abstraction. A small 1947 show of her work at Beirut’s Arab Cultural Gallery is widely recognized as the earliest exhibition of abstract art in the Arab world. “It’s a universal influence,” Choucair once said of her work, which ranged from sculpture and installation to design and architecture. “What I experience, everyone in the world experiences.”

Like many great artists, Choucair gained recognition and acclaim later in life, creating until she was 90 years old. A tireless worker, she filled up her sketchbooks with endless designs before prototyping ideas in stone, wood, metal, plastic or fiberglass. She was 97 years old when London’s Tate Modern put on a retrospective spanning her 70-year career, her first outside of Lebanon.

Happy birthday, Saloua Choucair!

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June 24, 2016

Juan Manuel Fangio’s 105th birthday




As a child, he was El Chueco – ”the bandy-legged one” – due to his gravity-bending soccer skills. But a lifetime of racing victories made him El Maestro – The Master. Such was the transformation of legend Juan Manuel Fangio, who would be 105 today.

A native son of Balcarce, near Buenos Aires, Fangio’s command of the wheel emerged while driving for the military. Post-service, he kept at it, dedicating himself to punishing routines to make up for lost time and compete with his younger opponents. The result: winning the World Championship of Drivers not once, but a record-breaking five times in the 1950s.

Today’s vintage, poster-inspired Doodle commemorates his dedication and commitment to Balcarce, Argentina, and the timeless art of racing.

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June 24, 2011

Festa Junina



Festas Juninas [June Festivals, "festivities that occur in the month of June"], also known as festas de São João for their part in celebrating the nativity of St. John the Baptist [June 24], are the annual Brazilian celebrations adapted from European Midsummer that take place in the southern midwinter. These festivities, which were introduced by the Portuguese during the colonial period [1500–1822], are celebrated during the month of June nationwide. The festival is mainly celebrated on the eves of the Catholic solemnities of Saint Anthony, Saint John the Baptist, and Saint Peter.

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June 25, 2022

Honoring Anne Frank




This post includes mentions of the Holocaust, which may be sensitive to some readers.

Today's slideshow Doodle honors globally renowned Jewish German-Dutch diarist and Holocaust victim Anne Frank. Although only written between the ages of 13-15, her personal account of the Holocaust and events of the war remains one of the most poignant and widely-read accounts to date. Today's Doodle features real excerpts from her diary, which describes what she and her friends and family experienced in hiding for over two years. Today is the 75th anniversary of the publication of her diary, which is widely considered one of the most essential books in modern history.

Anne Frank was born on June 12, 1929 in Frankfurt, Germany, but her family soon moved to Amsterdam, Netherlands to escape the increasing discrimination and violence faced by millions of minorities at the hands of the growing Nazi party. World War II ignited when Anne was 10 years old, and soon after, Germany invaded the Netherlands, bringing the war to her family’s doorstep. Jewish people were particularly targeted by the Nazi regime, experiencing imprisonment, execution, or forced relocation to inhumane concentration camps. Unable to live and practice freely and safely, millions of Jews were forced to flee their homes or go into hiding. In the spring of 1942, Anne’s family did just that, hiding in a secret annex in her father’s office building to avoid persecution.

The Frank family, like millions of others, were forced to act quickly and leave nearly everything behind to seek protection. Among Anne’s few possessions was an unassuming gift she had received on her thirteenth birthday just weeks earlier: a checkered hardback notebook. It soon became her vehicle to change the world forever. Over the following 25 months in hiding, she filled its pages with a heartfelt account of teenage life in the “secret annex,” from small details to her most profound dreams and fears. Hopeful that her diary entries could be published after the war, Anne consolidated her writing into one cohesive story titled “Het Achterhuis” [“The Secret Annex”].

On August 4, 1944, the Frank family was found out by the Nazi Secret Service, arrested, and taken to a detention center where they were forced to perform hard labor. They were then forcibly deported to the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland where they lived in cramped, unhygienic conditions. A few months later, Anne and Margot Frank were transported to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in Germany. In addition to the brutal, intentional killings of prisoners by Nazi forces, deadly diseases spread rapidly. Eventually, Anne and Margot succumbed to the inhumane conditions they were forced to live in. Anne Frank was just 15 years old.

Although Anne Frank did not survive the horrors of the Holocaust, her account of those years, commonly known as “The Diary of Anne Frank,” has since become one of the most widely read works of non-fiction ever published. Translated into upwards of 80 languages, Frank’s memoir is a staple in today’s classrooms, utilized as a tool to educate generations of children about the Holocaust and the terrible dangers of discrimination and tyranny.

Thank you, Anne, for sharing a critical window into your experience and our collective past, but also unwavering hope for our future.

Pictured: Anne Frank Courtesy of the Anne Frank Fonds

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April 9, 2021

Amácio Mazzaropi's 109th Birthday




Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Brazilian guest artist Arthur Vergani, celebrates Brazilian actor, screenwriter, producer, and director Amácio Mazzaropi on his 109th birthday. Through his signature role as the beloved character “Jeca Tatu,” Mazzaropi used humor to address serious topics and became a fixture of Brazilian cinema.

Born on this day in São Paulo in 1912, Mazzaropi spent time as a child visiting his grandfather’s country home, which influenced the on-screen persona he later developed. As a teenager, the future icon of Brazilian comedy left home to work for Circo La Paz, a traveling circus. There he came up with the idea to perform as a hillbilly, embodied in Marazzaropi’s future performance as Monteiro Lobato’s character Jeca Tatu.

Mazzaropi produced content for radio and television for many years before appearing in his first film, “Sai da Frente” [“Get Out of the Way,” 1952]. With his film career off the ground, and after several other roles, Mazzaropi bought Fazenda Santa, a farm turned studio that also served as the location for many of his films. It was here that Mazzaropi opened his own production company in 1958. Mazzaropi wove social commentary into simple language and covered important subjects to great effect, which caused audiences to flock to his productions for over 20 years.

Interestingly, while Mazzaropi became one of Brazil’s most acclaimed comedic actors, he was also a major supplier of milk to Leites Paulista. Today, Fazenda Santa is Hotel Fazenda Mazzaropi, home to the Mazzaropi Museum, which has a collection of over 20,000 items.

Happy birthday, Amácio Mazzaropi!

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April 9, 2012

Elias Lönnrot's 210th Birthday




Elias Lönnrot was a Finnish physician, philologist and collector of traditional Finnish oral poetry. He is best known for creating the Finnish national epic, Kalevala, from short ballads and lyric poems gathered from the Finnish oral tradition during several expeditions in Finland, Russian Karelia, the Kola Peninsula and Baltic countries.

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June 25, 2013

Antoni Gaudí's 161st Birthday



Antoni Gaudí i Cornet was a Catalan architect from Spain known as the greatest exponent of Catalan Modernism. Gaudí's works have a highly individualized, sui generis style. Most are located in Barcelona, including his main work, the church of the Sagrada Família.

Gaudí's work was influenced by his passions in life: architecture, nature, and religion. He considered every detail of his creations and integrated into his architecture such crafts as ceramics, stained glass, wrought ironwork forging and carpentry. He also introduced new techniques in the treatment of materials, such as trencadís which used waste ceramic pieces.