“One cannot understand the essence of a country or society without understanding the web of sexual relations of those that built it. Responsible for the birth, the splendour, the decadence, and the fall of the greatest civilizations, nobody can ignore the profound impact of sexuality on the visual art and stories of nations.” This is the creed which prompted Argentine author, Federico Andahazi, to write ‘Pecar Como Dios Manda’, the sexual history of Argentina.

International acknowledgment of Argentine literature has been somewhat monopolised by Jorge Luis Borges and Julio Cortázar. For readers the world over, these writers are household names. However for many, the place of female writers in Argentina’s opulent literary tradition is mysterious ground.

The art of knitting is experiencing a renaissance. Where once associated only with grey-haired grandmothers and nightmarish visions of lumpy Christmas sweaters, it is now women under the age of 35 who are the craft’s fastest-growing market in the West. However, although firmly established in creative circles and as a popular pastime in Europe and the US, is the knitting phenomenon yet to hit Argentina?

In the cosy, conspiratorial atmosphere of Café Vínilo, the curl-crowned figure of Alvy Singer mounts a stage bedecked with fairy lights. He is followed by a quirky troupe of instrumentalists, dressed as though they have just raided an eccentric great aunt’s wardrobe. The 1940s outfits and candlelit tables grant the evening a speakeasy feel, and as the band launches into an unusual juxtaposition of brassy big band pomp and heartfelt acoustic ballads, the modern world really does feel 70 years away.