Nigerian Photographer Focuses on Self Portraits
Nigerian artist Imran Abiola Sulola started by taking pictures of the sun and the moon. Then in 2021, what began as a hobby changed after seeing photographs taken by Martins Deep, poet, portrait photographer and Facebook friend. “His profound, aesthetically edited photographs became the beginning of my portrait photography,” he remembers. Self-taught, Sulola says he immersed himself in YouTube videos and watched the work of other Nigerian photographers including Ilemobayo Ojo, Adesina Taofeek. Michael Emerald and Deborah Ajilore, “Their beautiful works have been an inspiration for me to keep exploring the digital art space,” he says. … Continue reading Nigerian Photographer Focuses on Self Portraits
Cadence by David Stern
You don’t think about it unless you’re doing it. Coughing. The cough reflex is a critical means by which your body protects your airway from blockage by irritants or foreign materials. Like many bodily functions, it occurs without conscious intervention—until there’s a problem, and then it’s the only thing you can think about. An irritant in your trachea or lungs triggers the reflex, causing deep inspiration followed by forceful exhalation to expel the foreign material. When the cough reflex cannot stimulate a cough strong enough to expel the foreign body, hypoxemia (low oxygen in the … Continue reading Cadence by David Stern
The Slap and the Word by Jean Romano
The slap came before I could take a breath. I had just said the word “Jiao” the way Teacher Zhang had taught me, firm in my seven-year-old confidence. My mother, arising from her chair and putting down her knitting, hovered behind me in her wool jacket and sharp eyes, and didn’t agree. “It’s pronounced Xiao,” she corrected, her voice clipped, sharp. “But Teacher Zhang said Jiao,” I muttered and continued reading aloud, repeating it the way I had learned. Her hand sliced the air. “I’m a teacher too!” she snapped just before it landed across … Continue reading The Slap and the Word by Jean Romano
Interests of Old by Fred Wilbur
My teacher wife says that one learns by teaching. Of course, a good teacher must have mastery over the material to be taught. Another step of this ‘how-to’ of teaching is in preparing the method of communicating the material to the student(s). Process is a large part of teaching, or any craft for that matter. Better teachers are those whose process is engaging, even compelling, regardless of the challenging part. And a good teacher learns what accomplishes this engagement, what interests the students, how they learn. Unfortunately, the public-school curriculum is now dictated by state … Continue reading Interests of Old by Fred Wilbur
Accent by Abraham Kedong Ali
I write in an accent interposed by war school closure, hunger and starvation. I write in an accent interposed by the absence of my father, the word that I stutter to utter due to the vague memory imposed by time despite the good things said about him. I write in an accent interposed by my mother’s many attempts to wrap her arms around the eight of us the way a hen would spread her wings to protect her chicks from the hawk. I write with an accent interposed By the stay-at-home policy of the … Continue reading Accent by Abraham Kedong Ali
The Man in the Golden Helmet by Harry Lee James
I first saw “The Man In the Golden Helmet” in 1976 on a street corner in Monterey California. At that time he was labeled as “The Conquistador.” He was painted on black velvet and framed with enough faux gold woodwork and styling to make a rococo chapel blush. He stood out among the every day black velvet visual chorus of tigers, matadors and breezily attired gypsy women artfully arranged about the centrally placed interpretations of The Three Kings—Martin, Elvis, and Jesus. Much as the original was painted by an artist within the “circle of Rembrandt,” … Continue reading The Man in the Golden Helmet by Harry Lee James
Jasper Johns by Charles Rummelkamp
I read in the paper today was the birthday of the artist Jasper Johns, 95. I didn’t realize he was still alive. I remember him from Art History classes fifty years ago in college, his works on display at the BMA. This sometimes happens, an actor or a singer I’d assumed dead shows up in a story in the newspaper, very much alive. And yet I often dream one or the other of my deceased brothers is still living, often a dream about an argument we’re having, and when I wake up, I’m still … Continue reading Jasper Johns by Charles Rummelkamp
Zoom Pleas by Anthony J. Mohr
Along with her missing teeth, Ms. Goway’s head and puff of white hair were all I saw on the screen. She rattled her handcuffs and said she would try the case herself. It was the spring of 2024. I was a judge in California, handling arraignments, the stage in a case when criminal defendants made their first appearances, entered guilty or not guilty pleas, or—too often—asked for a delay. COVID had receded (sort of), but not its legacy of virtual hearings. While judges had to show up in court, even for brief matters like a … Continue reading Zoom Pleas by Anthony J. Mohr
Mixed Media Artist Jennifer Billingsly
There are mobiles of paper goldfinches flying, falling raindrops, and flower bursts along with fanciful collages and small, carefully crafted books. Such intriguing pieces you will find in the Charlottesville, Virginia studio of mixed media artist Jennifer Billingsly. “I have always loved books and words and have strong memories of my first childhood books and stories,” Billingsly remembers. “In my mid 20s I picked up a camera and this opened up a new world for me. I devoured photography books and really began to think about visual storytelling.” At that time, Billingsly worked part-time … Continue reading Mixed Media Artist Jennifer Billingsly
Ode to a Safety Pin by Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Genius of oval, ovum, overlap capable of great feats, holding back the waterfall of too much cleavage or in my case, too vast a high plain of a post-mastectomy chest, thanks to this duchess of metal modesty protecting glamour girls and plain ones. Eagle landing to save the day and a nylon bag from spilling dozens of caramels in the gutter. Savior of a million opening nights everywhere from Broadway to small town high school renditions of The Music Man or Rent. Grandmother of agility in pink or blue bent on putting the safe … Continue reading Ode to a Safety Pin by Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg