STRICTLY MEMORIES: Summer 2021 by CASA ALTA

STRICTLY STRICTLY

In In the the Alecia Alecia Winter Winter Scott Scott

Luis Luis "L.T." "L.T." Martinez Martinez

Polimana, Polimana, Butterfly Butterfly Maiden Maiden

Summer 2021

of of the the Summer, Summer,

these these are are some some of of

the the MEMORIES MEMORIES

that that motivate motivate us. us.

Soak Soak up up the the dog dog

See See what what the the

days days of of Summer Summer

with with our our fourfour-

legged legged muses! muses!

have have to to say! say!

MEMORIES STRICTLY STRICTLY Art. Art. STRICTLY STRICTLY Community. Community. STRICTLY STRICTLY You. You.

MEMORIES

Table of Contents Intro

...

Night Blooming Jasmine

...

STRICTLY Creatives

...

MEMORIES I

...

Summer Forecast Pg.35

Now I know My ABC's

...

Artists' Muses

...

Fishing With Grandma

...

Alecia Winter Scott

...

Luis "L.T." Martinez

...

Night Blooming Jasmine

Polimana, Butterfly Maiden

...

Now I Know my ABC's

Summer Astrology Forecast

...

MEMORIES II

...

Shark On The Menu

...

Much Ado About Nothing

...

Quarterly Highlights

...

In Memorium

...

Credits

...

Fishing with Grandma

Artists'

Shark on the Menu

Muses Pg.18

Memories

C Co ov ve er r

p ph ho ot to o

b ba ac ck kg gr ro ou un nd d

b by y

M M ii c ch ha ae e ll

O O ll s se en n o on n

U Un ns sp p ll a as sh h ..

MEMORIES

n i e f Li

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES

A CONVERSATION WITH THE STRICTLY TEAM: ALECIA WINTER SCOTT, LUIS "L.T." MARTINEZ, AND POLIMANA, BUTTERFLY MAIDEN Luis "L.T." Martinez: We're here, we're queer, and

AWS (con't): ... whether casually or professionally. We want to

we are going to talk about why, how, where, when

highlight the stuff that makes you happy and helps your heart to

and who.

thrive. We showcase all kinds of independently made art on our website, which is always open for submissions because we want to help you expand the audience of your work. If you have a website to

Alecia Winter Scott: Who, what, when, where and

link to, or you want people to know about a premiere that you're

why...

involved in; even live performances. On our website, we want people to be able to experience art forms other than the ones they

LTM: ... I don't know the rest of the words. Okay,

experience every day. The magazine is a bit more focused. We seek out certain artists to highlight specific pieces or topics they are

Miss Editor and (slash) in chief -

artistic experts on.

Alecia gives a bubbly chuckle.

LTM: What is a good example of when artists would want to utilize the STRICTLY platform?

LTM: What is STRICTLY? AWS: STRICTLY is a great platform to use if you

AWS: STRICTLY is an online platform

are wanting to, let's say, boost your streams on a

and magazine that focuses STRICTLY

new single. We can link to your works on our

on the art and artists without going

website so that visitors can be taken directly to

into third party conversations or

your Spotify page, YouTube channel, or wherever

tangents that take away from the

you'd like. Also, if you have any shows coming

quality of the work.

up, or if you're in a film festival with open voting and your team is looking to increase

LTM: I really I love this, and I'm so glad

their numbers, we can also showcase your

that you came to me with this. It's

project while you're in the festival circuit. Any

really awesome to see that your

time that something important needs a wider

friends can trust you in such a

reach, we're here to help.

way. Next question - who is STRICTLY for?

LTM: Providing accessible, cost-effective marketing to artists.

AWS: We have two different

entities for Strictly: the

AWS: The website is also a great

website and the magazine.

place to browse if you're

The website is for anybody

trying to connect with

that is an artist of any kind,

other people in different art realms.

COVER STORY

AWS (cont): If you need to find a hair and makeup artist, for

LTM: Okay, now I want to know, Polimana, as an artist who has their

example, and you don't know anybody in your intermediate -

work on this platform and who has also been working to help get

immediate circle.

our friends all together so they can submit their works as well - what do you see in STRICTLY’s future?

Polimana suddenly bursts out into a hearty chuckle. Poli: I definitely see it spreading out and creating a really strong, Polimana: You want to run in the advanced circle.

tightly-knit community of independent artists who all want to collaborate. So much art is collaborative, and I feel like you made a

AWS: Yes! Then you would take a look at our Collaborators and

really good point about how we see people as competitors when

reach out to whomever you're vibing with. They can also easily find

they really should be our allies and our supporters. I think that's a

your work in the same place theirs is showcased. It’s just an overall

really big problem in the artist community because of what

great place for community support... because this shouldn't

capitalism has done to art. It’s been made into this competition. It's

be a competition.

become just another part of the rat race when it should never have been. It's art. It's something that we do because we have to do it;

LTM: It feels as though that’s how the industry was built: some-

because it's how we humans express and deal with ourselves. And

one has to win, but that's not really the case here.

this ability to connect comes naturally to people like us - like we're breathing. I definitely see STRICTLY expanding and becoming a

AWS: Right.

really good platform for starting off new collaborations - that kind of thing.

LTM: For me, the Magazine is a celebration of all of the things that have transpired in the past quarter. Celebrating not just our friends, but other people that feel like their work should be celebrated - because they submitted it.

LTM: I think if we have at all influenced the first meeting of two people, we did our job. At the end of the day, no matter how that collaboration ends up going, that's their thing. But I love the fact that they were able to meet and decided to work together; that is the core of what we aim for. You really do need to

Poli: Riiight!

find good people to work with, and it often does feel like a magical discovery when the connection is right. When

LTM: We sent out the submission notice, people filled it out,

you meet somebody and you're like, “Omg, how are

and now they get to have their art published. I'm just so hap-

we vibing so hard right now? How do we work so well

py to be involved in giving people this kind of affirmation. Like,

together and why have we not done this before?” I

"Yes! You are an artist!"

really want to be able to facilitate that and show people the things that they don't really get to see.

AWS: "And what you’re doing matters."

Obviously - starting off - this magazine is going to be a bunch of our friends, but our friends are

LTM: Exactly. What you're doing matters because it helps

incredible artists. They are incredibly creative

you be more human. It helps you be more in touch with

and incredibly innovative, and they know

things beyond the physical. It help you to be contemplative,

what to do with what they have. That is something that deserves

to take time and indulge into something you're passionate about. It's

recognition. It's something that deserves to be talked about in a way

a meditation.

that is respectful. These are the people that we know and we love and we see on a daily basis, so why wouldn't we want to uplift them?

AWS: We just want to give artists a platform to be able to speak

It makes no sense to tear somebody down just so that you can feel

about their art in a way that helps them feel like they're in control of

larger. It's not what art is about at all. Art is about creation.

their story. Even if the only people that read their piece in the magazine are the people that they share it with, then at least those

AWS: Exactly.

people are going to get an authentic inside scoop on what exactly the artist was thinking without worry of it being derailed onto a

LTM: Final question - unless you want to go on tangents, because

different course. We're making sure artists' stories are accessible

you know, we can just talk - so, final "official" question. Why

and told in the way they see fit.

STRICTLY and why now?

COVER STORY

AWS: Well, let me give you the backstory here, because I think it's important. I listen to a lot of interviews with my favorite artists. I've heard this a lot about their interviews: that the questions that they are being asked end up going in a way that's either politically charged, or just to get their opinion on some gossip that's happening right now. Those are the people with a voice that have the power to influence other people to do things, so it makes sense to want to have their input, but maybe in a different interview that doesn't take away from the reason why you brought them in to interview in the first place: the art that they are releasing or have recently released.

thought, and that is: I am so proud of you. Of both of you. Both of them: Awww LTM: I am! It's so cool to see you both blossom into the strong and powerful human beings that you are. And it's so awesome that you, Alecia, came to me with

LTM: They love the drama.

this idea. I'm just so

AWS: Exactly. And so, I wanted to create a place where it was always about the art and the artist. You get to tell us what you want to talk about. We're a digital magazine, so we don't have a page number that we have to cut you off on. At the end of the day, we're going to get out on the page what the artist wants. LTM: Fantastic. Any closing thoughts from anybody? Poli: I have no thoughts, my brain is like the endless sea. LTM: She's an artist. AWS: Poetic! Poli: Wrinkle free. That's me. LTM: Wow. And this is a song. Poli: Yeah. LTM: Do you have any closing thoughts, Miss Scott? AWS: STRICTLY art. STRICTLY community. STRICTLY you. LTM: Period. Love that. I think we're good...

LTM (cont): Oh! I do have one closing

thoroughly excited to see what it ends up looking like because it will constantly evolve. I really am just so impressed by your swift evolution. Once you understood the assignment, you were like, "Okay, here we go. This is it.” You truly are the Editor AND Chief. AWS: You're confusing me with the editor "and" chief now! Is it AND or IN? LTM: It’s in - Editor-in-Chief! But anyways, that email you sent was the best. I will never forget that. And that is how you know this is a beautiful thing that will last for quite a long time. AWS: Why am I "in" a chief? LTM: I don't know :-) That's just what they call it. It's like in dashes when you write it. "Editor-in-Chief," as in you're the chief editor. AWS: That’s why I thought it was "and!" Editor and the Chief! LTM: Well... what a great day!

MEMORIES

Community Editorials

TO THOSE THAT WENT BEFORE... "LETTERS"

"KEEP YOUR LOVE" A poem by Sol Briar

I’ve been heartbroken, so keep your love. Protect it with someone you sworn to be and keep your heart under your glove.

ON "LETTERS": “Crafting this project was meant to combine not specific memories into one single shot, but the feeling of memory throughout my life. As I play the college student, and my father plays the older man, this is meant to evoke the unfurling passage of my time - where once I was a little kid in Brooklyn waiting to dream, so my father was a younger man, trying to bring those dreams to life. On a more introspective level, “Letters” is meant to celebrate the multicultural neighborhood of Bensonhurst that I grew up in, specifically the African shadow puppet theatre my mother would take me to. The character’s wanting to go to Africa is my tapping into that memory - it turns a narrative into an autobiographical recollection of the boy I was, the man I am now, and the father I hope to be." - Peter Carellini, filmmaker

Cry at your bruises and gold when the day is tough. The numbers don't care if your face or faith is torn. This is what you get when you keep your love. Darling, I hate it easy. You know I like it rough. Death towards you. You’re ready to be born. Keep your head. It slid out of your glove. Orange flames in the sky, we see a dove. It’s a bad sign, we hear children mourn from a beautiful, shameless love. Blame the first person you shove, The angel with a tail and horn; and clean the dirt and blood on your glove. Remember that He is watching from above. He’s not God, nor your father, but He’s seen you grow. To become a man I’ve known to love and the man who keeps his heart under his glove.

"MEMORY"

"DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER"

A poem by Ben Bishop

PRODUCTION TEAM:

"I often feel like certain memories weigh me down, and have spent a considerable amount of time wading through them and trying to shake their hold on me. Through this poem I hoped to humanize the source of those memories that I often feel so upset at. In personifying Memory, I realize how much they and I need each other to coexist.

That won't happen, however, until we both agree to stop this never-ending round of fighting we find ourselves stuck in." - Ben Bishop

Starring: The ALEJANDRO Queen Creative Director: Timothy Lewis Director of Photography: Dillon Mercure Production Management: CASA ALTA, LLC Executive Collaborator: Luis "L.T." Martinez Production Assistant: Karla Sandoval Vocal Performance: Shirley Bassey (1971) Composers: John Barry & Don Black Make-Up Artist: Melissa Vasquez Set Design: Timothy Lewis & Luis "L.T." Martinez Wardrobe: Cannababe Lashes Outfitters Wig MariGold Dresses Location: Another Hour Studios 9

NATURAL REMINISCENCE A collection of artworks by John Boudreau "I am an artist and art instructor at a mental health wellness center in Los Angeles. I have a B.F.A. in painting from Pratt Institute in New York. My inspirations include the late artists Chu The-Chun, Hilma af Klint and Roberto Matta. Currently I am working on a metal leaf series and the other series I am working on includes intuitive abstract paintings both which have symbolic components. My artwork has been in exhibits to raise awareness for social issues and charities. One of my artistic goals is to inspire others." - John Boudreau

"Constellation Light" (above) "Before a Journey" (below)

)thgir( "dniW eht sekaT"

"FUNERAL FOR YOUR MEMORIES" Music by Esin Aydingoz Performed by Dzintra Erliha

"Though they are all stored in the same part of the human body, the method by which these memories are remembered and recalled are unique. Sometimes memories can be recalled as unexplainable rushes of color and emotion flowing like water with no defined starting or ending point. Other times they can be recalled in stiff, rigid, and chronological structure that stands tall even after one trying so hard for so many years to destroy it. It is these variations that make up the universal human experience." - Zainab Malik | Instagram

Dimensions: 17" x 10" Materials: cotton yarn, acrylic yarn, wool yarn, plastic bead Year: 2020

"Based on a picture of myself as a child this weaving represents how I would get criticized for thinking I was being fun, but in actuality was maybe annoying. This feeling has traveled with me into adulthood and every once in a while I am reminded I should probably stop, being too much, too annoying, too girly, too whatever. But will I ever stop?"

- Nicole Staller Website | Instagram 12

F R AG MENTED M EMORI ES MENT ED MEMORI "THE FAMILIAR"

"For STRICTLY: MEMORIES, I decided to submit images from my series Fragmented Memories: The Familiar. Each of the images in this series represent moments from the past and present that are fragments of recognizable memories. What I mean by this is, I wanted to show these memories that I've had of road trips or times that I've spent with loved ones and friends in a way that a broader audience could relate to."

A photo series by Tammy Mariah-Gill

"These flashes of life that we see over and over again; driving down the road and seeing that astonishing sunset, or the red light that shines on your face at night from the car in front of you, or even just laying down and looking up at the world around you. Those moments that are so small that they're overlooked but are also so common that they create this universal connection between so many people." - Tammy Mariah-Gill Website | Instagram

"UNTITLED" A poem by Sol Briar

My child, a star is lighting the sky. You thank God for another day of life. They explain in half words a goodbye. My, the blood stains under the wing of their flight. He kneeled on the clean grass one November, Five days before his victorious flight. Friends joined in a coldhearted December And received new open wings overnight. Another star shines, it must be a sign. When your team says they’re not coming back. Broken microphones fall from the sidelines, I guess they too couldn’t title their headline. You want an ugly fact or the beautiful truth? 76 stars shine red on your roof. But now... they have a title too... "Both [of these] poems symbolize cataclysm over triumph. Although things did not go as planned, there is always hope at the end of the tunnel." - Sol Briar 14

"MOON OVER SUNSET"

A poem by Jordan Nishkian

There is a moment when you have me on your shoulders—I ask “Do you think I make the moon look small?” You start to run: knuckles blanching on knees, stomach binding to balance, arms scopic, unending. I think of when my father lifted me off his shoulders to the top of the park's gazebo for the frisbee. I climbed over moss to the pinnacle, flung the disc, then myself immeasurably, eyes sealed, awaiting a soft landing into the callouses of his hands. Now you are the one pulling up blankets in bed, to which I wear my dad's Dead Kennedys shirt. We puddle into sleep, humming to planes that always look small when they're next to the moon. "This poem is based on an early memory I have from my childhood and the feeling of nostalgia that comes from seemingly unrelated moments." - Jordan Nishkian Website | Instagram

Life in

T H E

D O G

D A Y S

FOUR-LEGGED FRIENDS SOAK UP

O F

S U M M E R

THE WARM SUMMER FORECAST

Life in

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES A CONVERSATION WITH EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, ALECIA WINTER SCOTT, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ Gerry Peña-Martinez: Alecia Winter Scott, a woman of multiple names and multiple hats. I call you that as you’ve carried the monikers of

AWS: I get attached to places, things, and people so that comes through in my writing. I try to make everyone feel as if they're at home whenever I’m writing. These places aren’t solely interesting to

producer, writer, and actress. Beyond TV and the

me, but anyone can relate to this sensation and imagine their similar

silver screen, you have a published anthology of

scenarios.

poetry. How do you

GPM: I tried to picture my space while reading, so it was definitely

do it all?

effective. Imagining my person through your vocabulary. You work on "Tales of the Universe" as producer, writer, narrator and probably more uncredited titles. How do you balance all the plates?

Alecia gives a reminiscent chuckle.

AWS: A lot of the credit also goes to my creative partner, Kate Coleman; without her it would be a hot mess. We work well together.

Alecia Winter Scott:

Whether she comes up with the idea or I do, we are opposites and

That’s a good question.

help scattered ideas form into one cohesive thought. She is the rock in that process because I have to sit down and start writing or it will

I am inspired by a lot

never happen. I’m not always in the creative mood, and I have to

of things, and they

write for multiple roles. It’s difficult, but it’s a big collaborative

don’t all filter into the

process, even on set. If something changes, we are lenient with each

same art form.

other.

Whether it goes into a song or piece of poetry, writing is my natural happy place. I definitely don’t like writing for myself, so my scripts are for

GPM: It isn’t a unilateral prescriptive model. This mutual reciprocity to let the writing and good shots and found moments form the story helps the organic feel I mentioned earlier.

somebody else. It is fun being creative and I am inspired by a wide array of items and channel them into some creative form. GPM: I definitely see this wide influence in your works. In your videos, and particularly the poetry, I hear a strong sense of place. You use strong vocabulary and lingering descriptions, that aren’t grounded in a singular real place. Was this universality a conscious goal in the poetry?

Pictured: (Left) Beginning The Past, Reliving The Future; (Up Right) Alecia Winter Scott on set for "Tales of the Universe"; (Down Right) Alecia Winter Scott and her creative partner Kate Coleman, on set for "Tales of the Universe".

COVER STORY AWS: The creation of

STRICTLY: CREATIVES

the series was made by Kurt Peña, and he drew little art squares, the ones that appear before the credits. I saw a few of

A CONVERSATION WITH EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, ALECIA WINTER SCOTT, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ

those on his Instagram, already titled Tales of the Universe. Each post

AWS: Sometimes, especially the first season, I wrote all the

generated a story in

narration before filming because it is such an abstract

my head, so I reached out for the rights to

genre. This gave Kate inspiration for when she started

these squares to

choreographing. By the second season I was lost and had filming and editing, with some bullet points, go first to inform my narration. Season three was episode by episode.

create a story. Thankfully, he was on board. GPM: One question I want to ask everyone, If you were to submit to

GPM: You had the beats without the full skeleton? [yeah]

the “memory” theme, what would you offer?

How much of the video was rigidly choreographed and where was it par-choreographed with key moments and an amorphous path between them? AWS: It was variable. Anything with multiple people on

AWS: I would offer a song I wrote, maybe the first song I finished, because it’s been with me for so long. I was feeling a lot of emotions when I wrote it at the ripe old age of 11. GPM: Hey, double digits are stressful.

screen was planned beforehand and those moments would be used through numerous scenes or returned to as motifs.

AWS: [laughs] People are very surprised that I wrote this song at 11.

Like, Time does a lot of certain movements, that’s his genre

It’s still very true and relatable. I can picture where I wrote it in my

and it makes it consistent for clarity. Anything that is solo

grandma’s house. Though I would only be able to submit the lyrics or

was improvised, with certain phrases we liked checking in for reproducibility.

an a cappella version because I don’t write music. GPM: You avoided it, but what is the song about?

GPM: I didn’t know what to expect

AWS: It’s called “Now it’s

when I started but it is entrancing.

Time.” It’s a couple reliving

It isn’t a standard ABC, NBC drama,

each time in their relationship,

it is a short form work that only

from first meeting, pet names,

exists in our current digital land-

to breaking up. I wrote that

scape. It still has narrative beats but my experience focused on the emotive vignette for each video. Which goes into one of my big

very much in love with Nick Jonas and thought of this as our love story. But why did I make it so sad? We don’t even end up together!

curiosities, what inspired the series naming convention? The names

GPM: The self-insert and

seem like an ode to serial shows,

the self-removal.

a la Friends or Bones, but you are far more painterly and abstract than those titles. Pictured: (Left) Alecia gives you a big birthday smile; (Up Center) Alecia in the recording studio; (Down Right) Photo by Orlando Perez. 25

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES

A CONVERSATION WITH THE PUBLISHER, LUIS "L.T." MARTINEZ, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ Cue the initial Zoom delays... Gerry Peña-Martinez: … Hello? LTM: Absolutely. I had that experience for sure, but a little more on

Luis “L.T.” Martinez: HI!

the other end as well. All of sudden my friends and I had a bunch of free time, and - in order to keep from going insane - we just decided to start making stuff. It’s mostly been from our

GPM: Good… afternoon? Yes,

phones, and very not high-quality cameras.

it’s afternoon. LTM: Is it a- … Okay, yeah you’re right it’s afternoon. How’s it going?

Every once in a while we get to have something nice, but it’s just been really amazing to see them take advantage of this moment of pause from all of the commercial crap that goes on. They’ve used it - I mean - we have used this this time to invest in ourselves. That’s something we never really get the opportunity to

GPM: It’s going alright. You know, behind every interview there’s 7000 cables and wires and lighting to figure out, but it’s been nice. How about yourself?

do. In a weird way, I guess I am glad to have been forced to sit down and stop running in the rat race; just make things that make me laugh, give me good memories, or are simply a part of something I’m feeling in the moment. It’s so cool to see what giving yourself a break can do.

LTM: It’s been really good. We actually just finished our group interview; talking about the Magazine, dreaming

GPM: Yes! In my interview with Daniella, Daniella, they were

dreams and stuff. We had a little breakfast vibe before

talking

and we were just chatting, then when we got to more

environment that was festering. Being able to slow it down so we

important topics I was like, “Okay, maybe it’s time to

can all see what’s around us; ask, “Do we really value what we’ve

record this conversation so we we can write things down

been building?”; building?”; and critically re-examine to see how we want to

later.”

about pausing the capitalist momentum; the toxic

invest our time, our money, our attention in the future. This was a time of immense loss, but it’s also been a time to reflect and rebuild.

LTM (cont): (cont): It was actually the first time my sister (Polimana) met Alecia in-person. It’s really crazy, but also so cool because it’s like

LTM: Yes! Rebuild!! The phoenix rises from ashes, dude.

they’ve known each other. We’ve been working together for this

And it’s not even just a metaphor. When a forest burns it blooms

long, there was really no need for an “introduction,” I guess. It’s really

VIGOROUSLY afterwards. There are some People that have known

beautiful for me, to be able to experience making connections and

this for a long time and have used it to their advantage, but

producing art on our own terms.

“civilization” has lost touch a little bit. It’s such a privilege and an honor to be able to be there for [my] People, and to remind myself

GPM: Yes! And especially since this last year has been a creative

that I also need to be there for myself. Because I have things that I

hiatus where I felt like I wasn’t creating, participating, seeing my

wanna make; I have visions in my head and projects I want to see

friends make beautiful art. It’s really nice to see us flourishing again.

come to fruition. fruition. I have causes that I care about and I know that art can help those causes. Art is a tool of the time.

Photos by Noah Fontaine

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES A CONVERSATION WITH THE PUBLISHER, LUIS "L.T." MARTINEZ, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ LTM (cont): I say that because I heard it somewhere. I don’t remember [where], and I’m just really bad at names so I’m sure somebody really important said that. I think it’s so wonderful when you [can] give yourself a break, and you [do] invest in yourself, you fall in love again. I don’t know about anybody else, but I - at a certain point - fell out of love with my art. It was never good enough, it was never what I wanted. I never had enough money to make it what I wanted, and that is not what it’s about. It’s about taking the time, it’s not about spending cash. That is just something you kinda have to do, not something to aim for. Like, “If I spend this much money on this it’s gonna be worth this much.” NO! It’s gonna be worth as much effort as you put in, really. At least, for me. GPM: Maybe not in actuality right now, but there is that long-term desire to re-imagine beyond capitalism, to see your own work and worth beyond monetary value, beyond what it can contribute financially. I definitely hear parts of that conversation that I’m heading towards. LTM: I think we all are; because we all respect art and respect each other as People that create art, and also as People who need to eat, too. Why is it that our industry is so okay with saying that artists are starving? Why shouldn’t we teach them how to be in commerce with each other? Why shouldn’t we teach them how to communicate, collaborate, and connect; to uplift and profit each other? As opposed to [focusing on] this fake thing that has no real backing any more. [The Dollar.] And I don’t even really understand the economy, I’m just existing in it. GPM: Even with an econ degree, let me tell you: there’s still parts that I don’t fully understand! L.T. bursts out in a boisterous belly laugh. LTM: Good, I’m glad I’m not alone, honestly. Because sometimes I feel like, “Wait, why didn’t they tell me any of this when I was, like, 14 and could do math in 5 seconds?”

GPM: Fully. You know, I prepared this whole big intro, but I love the beginning conversation we just ended up flowing into. To just “formally” begin an introduction and an inquiry into who you are... You are difficult to introduce because you are always evolving and venturing into new disciplines. Presently, I would call you a dancer, teacher, entrepreneur, and a big ball of energy. I like that moniker because there’s momentum to your dancing, as if a gust of wind is always at your back. What was your dance upbringing and how did it foster your style? LTM: Hmm. Well, I grew up in Whittier, Pico Rivera area. I lived in “Unincorporated Whittier'' for a while. And then we moved closer to the high school that I went to, which was Whittier High School; that is where my dancing started. It was a summer class going into my junior year. I guess it's a little cliché, but I watched So You Think You Can Dance. I loved the energy, the impressiveness, the athleticism, the artistry. Dance was like nothing else; before that I was a musician. I continued doing music throughout my high school experience, at least. But when I went on to college, I really focused in on dance because the goal was to be on The Broadway. My teacher, Catherine Brunel, was a modern dancer and - no, wait: she is, sorry. She is a modern dancer and we did a lot of theater, so it's always big movement. For me, as I learned more about movement and more about expression…

Pictured: A stage set up by WHS Theatre Department Alumni for those who wished to pay respects to our shared mentor, Aaron Morgan. 27

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STRICTLY: CREATIVES

LTM: YAAAS! GPM: It’s a really good metaphor. I became an admirer of dance because my sister did dance in high school. I would watch her recitals and we would cowatch SYTYCD. I admired from afar what talented

A CONVERSATION WITH THE PUBLISHER, LUIS "L.T." MARTINEZ, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ

people can do. I think describing it as a sentence -

LTM (cont): I just love circles. And circles do create crazy

vocabulary that dance provides.

maybe sometimes a monologue, sometimes a bunch of poetic bursts - is really nice for the dense

momentum. Sometimes, you have to kind of throw it away and not really care if you can control it. You just have to direct it. When I

LTM: OH, yeah. A dense vocabulary, indeed. And it's a vocabulary

choreograph, at least, that's where a lot of my work stems from, I

that is very much foreign to a lot of people. That's a big part [of it] for

suppose. If I'm just going through a flow, I really like to think about

me. I want to make art, in general, accessible, but - very specifically -

the elements. When it's a flow it's water; it’s air. It can be fire, too,

dance because... people don't get it. They don't understand why or

sometimes. Probably not earth, unless it's quicksand? That word,

how. There's so, so many layers to what [dance] is. Some have gone

momentum, is perfect because I don’t like having too many…

so far as to say you could walk in a certain way and it's dance, and

interjections - as in movement interjections. If you're going

“Let me tell you why.” I respect that, but a lot of folks aren't down to

somewhere and you don't know where it is... just keep going until

accept something that feels, too, abstract. I want to put it in words

you get there? When you're going in a certain direction, follow it

and in terms that people can comprehend and attain. So they can

through to the end and then decide where we go [from here]. I also

watch a piece of work from anybody, and say, “Oh, okay, I

listen to music a lot. I was - I am a musician still; not as I was, but I

understand... I understand what this person is trying to say and I

am still... kind of. So I think about phrases; you just have to finish

understand how they tried to say it.” No matter how “technical” it

your sentence, and you have to put some punctuation on it. There is

might be, I just want people to understand that there is so much

grammar involved in communication, even if it's not “proper

more [to it] than just the product you look at on stage or are

grammar.” It doesn't matter what language you're speaking, you

watching in the film. There is context, and there are layers upon

have to be very clear about how you punctuate. It's the same with

layers of connection; a thought process.

movement. Sometimes I’m a little hard on myself within the creation process because I'm like, “Okay, what are you even saying?” Especially lately, I'm rehearsing alone. I'm making up dances by myself and I have to record myself and I have to look back at it because nobody else is going to tell me. So I gotta ask, “Where is the sentence? Where’s the subject? Where's the verb? What's going on, dude?” But that type of hypercriticism shall be dealt with, don't worry. Did I answer your question? GPM: There is really no “answering the question.” It's more just posing ideas and making observations. I really love the literary analogy. I see through a visual art history lens where it is a lot of, “What are they trying to say? Do I buy it?” And I love the way you're saying: “With these movements, here's my verb, here's my subject. Here's my Oxford comma.”

Pictured: (Up Center) A photo by Allyson Becerril of L.T. during an adventure through the gardening section; (Down Left) L.T. and a Golden Orb Weaver pose for a selfie at the Natural History Museum's Spider Pavilion; (Down Right) Selena la Rosalía asks her dad if he needs any help pruning the loquat tree.

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES A CONVERSATION WITH THE PUBLISHER, LUIS "L.T." MARTINEZ, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ

GPM: And, to go back to your previous metaphor, in a language that you shared; a vocabulary you learned because of that mentor. It’s a phrase of “thank you, thank you, thank you,” but with the language of dance you can stretch and squeeze it; it's a multidimensional experience to strengthen what you wanted to say to that energy. LTM: Totally, and it's the most honest thing. I would like to say that I have a pretty good vocabulary, and I’m pretty articulate, but in some instances I have no words. I have nothing that I can say; all I can do is do, and what I do is move. What I do is communicate the things

GPM: With your accessibility comment, I’m reminded of my

that I cannot say. And I can say a lot, so if I can't say it, you know it's

experience in this art space that did dance focused on how

something.

differently dexterous and abled people come into this space. It broke down, for me, that dance isn’t necessarily highly formal

GPM: What’s that old theatre adage? When words aren’t enough

Russian ballet, or tap dance; it is how you move through the world. I

you dance, and

think that experience really started my interrogation. How do I

then you sing?

critically think about what a “dance” is or what an “art performance” is? It is all around us. Long before Western minds institutionalized it,

LTM: Yeah!

dance appeared as a compliment to spiritual practice, Indigenous

Something like

performances, little boys on the streets unaware and unconcerned

that. I don’t know,

with the technical names that might later be given to their

honestly, but

movements.

that’s exactly it. When words aren't

LTM: For me, dance is absolutely spiritual. I very recently... Actually,

enough, you gotta

what's today? Monday? So, two days ago, I had to say goodbye to

move around to

one of my only mentors growing up. There was no way I could

express yourself,

express the grief, the pain, the frustration other than to serve him a

and if the move-

ritualistic farewell. If you want to get technical about it, what that

ment inspires

was is a single phrase repeated three times: to the front, to the

some audible

back, and to the front again.

noise, you gotta let

When I was creating and, in

it out. If you don’t,

between, breaking down,

it’s like holding in

crying and stuff, I asked

a sneeze. It’s not

myself, “Okay, what are the

gonna be a good

logistics? You don't have a lot

time.

of time, but this is a dance that you need to offer to this

GPM: I had so many questions prepared, but I love this. I think I've

spirit that came in and

really gotten to know you. Thank you, again, for sharing how you are

changed your life. You have

right now. I’m glad you felt safe enough to open up in such a way.

to.” Not that it's an obligation; that you have to. It's that you

LTM: And thank you for your energy. It’s been a good time. We've

need to pay respect to the

only met over email so it’s nice to have a voice to voice moment.

energy that this human being gave you because you would not be here without that. So the best way to logically do this was to decide

GPM: One question I want to ask everyone: if you were to submit to

to finish the phrase and allow it to flow into itself as a cycle. To say,

the “Memories” theme, what would you offer?

“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” Three different times. It was very hard, but it also made me so grateful to have this. Because, as hard as it still is, if I wasn't able to say goodbye, I don't know how I would be dealing with it even now.

Pictured: (Left) L.T. and Timothy Lewis strike a pose on set for "Got 2B Real"; (Right) L.T. drops it low in Downtown Los Angeles after wrapping up production for "A June Jambalaya Christmas" 29

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GPM: Absolutely. My look on death is inspired by the Mexican

A CONVERSATION WITH THE PUBLISHER, LUIS "L.T." MARTINEZ, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ

LTM: That's the cool thing about connection. No matter how distant

Catholic traditions. Where death is a celebration where we come together. When my grandma passed and we all reconvened in Mexico, the time and space disappeared since we last saw each other.

they get, or how much time has passed, if it's real, it will always be real. There are no walls in the spiritual world, and if you're really connected with somebody's spirit - with somebody’s soul - there is nothing that can keep you apart. GPM: And that thread, that history; the sedimentation of all that time together will always be there. LTM: Truly. It's so crazy that we’re doing “Memories,” and then, all of a sudden, I’m immediately thrown back into high school. But it's also an incredible privilege to be able to remember where you come from... L.T. pauses for another inhale. LTM (cont): Well, that was fun! GPM: I wasn't expecting or intending to put you in such a low position with that question. LTM: Don't even worry about it. You know... I guess it's exactly what needed to happen.

LTM: I’m not sure, but I can tell you what I will be including in this issue: a final “Thank You” tribute. A fellow alumni and member of the Auditorium Technical Crew (ATC) wrote a letter to Aaron that he read aloud to us at the Friday night vigil. His words touched my heart, so I had to include it. It feels like a dreadful loss, but the end of something is also a beginning of something else. And I know it’s the beginning because, without Aaron Morgan, I wouldn’t be doing this interview with you right now. This person was the first I saw create a platform for their art, and he did it so well. He fostered a... L.T. pauses to take a breath. His voice begins to falter. LTM (cont): ... family... and that's my goal, because people need a home. So, why not build a home for the people that I've found who are also looking for somewhere to plant roots? That is why I’m doing this magazine. That is why I made this company. I actually had no idea why I was doing any of this until very recently; sometimes it takes something like this to make you see what you’re doing. 30

Pictured: (Up Left) Photo by Chloe J. Martinez of L.T. as "THE PRIDE CLOWN"; (Down Right) A smaller L.T. serves you some holiday cheer in the jersey of his maternal Grandfather's favorite college football team.

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES A CONVERSATION WITH ARTIST COLLABORATOR, POLIMANA, BUTTERFLY MAIDEN, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ Gerry Peña-Martinez: In my short inquiry into the work, I am struck by the candid, romantic, and wanderlust quality of your sound. I am grateful to be other’s guide into this world. Music is now part of your daily life, but

GPM: We gather so much from our environment. I can remember my mom playing Jenni Rivera and Emmanuel and my sister playing Artic Monkeys and Sex Pistols. Those diverging interests informed my ear. If I hear those artists now, I am transported to those first introductory moments.

what was your introduction into music and its production?

Poli: Totally, my brother often listened to Mayday Parade, The Postal Service, blink-182, while my parents listened to more Soul and R&B. I,

Polimana: My introduction to music was being born. I was born into a very musical family. It’s a mixed race family of Samoans, Hopi, Navajo (Diné Bizaad), and Mexicanos; all of them musicians. So I grew up surrounded by people making music. My relatives didn’t write music, but they definitely performed.

myself, turned to more Folk, I don’t know where I get that from. All these sounds came together as whatever I call my music taste. GPM: Though we have these clear influences and molds, you are your own force and found the best way to express yourself. When you sit down to start a project, what sparks it: lyrics, melody, storytelling?

Like all children, I made a band with my cousins, called the Sold Out Burritos. We wrote terrible songs - mostly, I did. My family has a lot of writers: my grandma, my other grandma, uncle; everyone writes. I grew up in this house full of music, which meant the only way I could express myself was through music and art.

Pictured: (Up Right) Photo by @veraphotographyart; (Down Center) Photo by Polimana .

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Poli (cont): Like, little ornamental trees in bank parking lots in their little concrete islands. We don’t think about them much, but that’s a tree, an actual species of tree. It has this whole long history of how it came to be, how it came to look like that, how it evolved to spread out its leaves and catch light and perform photosynthesis. It belongs to a

A CONVERSATION WITH ARTIST COLLABORATOR, POLIMANA, BUTTERFLY MAIDEN, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ

family. It has a name, it could be a hickory, or a chestnut, but we don’t know because we don’t think of it. But it has a name. It’s not just a decoration. With this album, I want to be immersed in it and make the background the industrial noise, rather than the natural world.

Poli: Sometimes I write the melody first, sometimes the lyrics, but the story is always primary. The way I write, music begins with the story I want to tell. I have to write with what I want to say in mind, otherwise I can’t write. I’ve tried to force it out, but it’s been disappointing. If I have nothing to say, I won’t, but when I do, that’s when I sit down and start writing. GPM: What you chose to say is powerful because you are so selective. Connected to that, your most recent project “Live for the Ants at Forest Hills,” was lovely. It’s set in this wooded area that is safe but not impenetrable, which was my biggest take away. Audiences hear the sirens of cop cars from the surrounding city alongside your performance partnered with rustling leaves and bird calls. This duality of fantasy within harsh reality was mesmerizing. Can you speak about how you devised this interplay of permissible noise? Poli: I’m really glad to hear that you really thought through this project. Sometimes, as an artist, you can feel like you are the only one that’s going to understand all the little things. Nuance and layers are really important to me. Any given verse will have all these double

GPM: Though you use both the natural and city’s synthetic noises as

meanings and triple meanings that a lot of time aren’t seen. Forest

collaborators, the city is always clearly set as antagonist. The way you

Hills is this little wooded area that is very small and surrounded

bring in the sound while still delineating who has power and agency in

by the concrete jungle that is Washington, D.C., which is where I was

this space is well done. I also resonated with your mention of

at the time. There are a lot of those little islands of green surrounded

domination. I grew up in SoCal, I remember taking the bus and clearly

by cement in that area and in our country. It’s a mix of things for me,

seeing who could afford to water their lawns despite the water

a mix of the verdant resilience of the natural world and its attempted

preservation ordinances. The richer populations still had well-

domination. I feel that, in such a big way, shapes all of us; this idea

manicured lawns with hedges and topiaries. The palm trees that are

that we have — take grass, as an example. You have a lawn of grass.

now synonymous with L.A. are not supposed to be in this arid dessert

It’s a perfect example of this mindset that says we need to dominate

land. Most of [California's] farmland is up in Northern/Central California

nature, control it, and when you have this manicured lawn it’s a

worked by underpaid POC and migrant laborers. We have pushed

microcosm of that greater societal mindset, of what we do to the

and pulled to make this dessert land produce strawberries, almonds,

whole world. I’m always thinking about that, honestly.

and watermelons that aren’t supposed to grow here.

Pictured: (Up) Photo by @veraphotographyart; (Down) The Badlands by Polimana

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES A CONVERSATION WITH ARTIST COLLABORATOR, POLIMANA, BUTTERFLY MAIDEN, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ

Poli: Ants are thriving. Living in huge colonies across the globe in harmony with their surroundings. Why can’t we do that? There are ways to live symbiotically. GPM: We were at points, trying to live within the land, but we quickly wanted to control and make demands over everything that we do. Now, if we want mangoes in December, we get them shipped from Brazil. We don’t have that same reverence for where our foods and clothes come from. My parents came here from Mexico, but even with one generation I must remind myself where I come from. To think about the generational loss from our lands and other people’s land that our stolen, specifically thinking for myself as a non-Native individual, how we must think critically how we engage with our surroundings. Poli: There’s this book I read that I think you’ll like: it's called Braiding Sweetgrass, by Robin Wall Kimmerer, a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation and an esteemed botanist. She wrote in an early chapter about becoming indigenous, asking what it means to be indigenous to a place. In their Potawatomi world view, all mankind came from Skyworld. The turtles, ferrets, and rats where in this kind of ocean. She fell through the hole and geese caught her. They had to figure out where to place her because she didn’t belong in the water. The smallest creature was able to go down and retrieve dirt to place on the turtle’s back. She danced on the turtle’s back and created the whole world. Then she has children. These children are immigrants from Skyworld but are indigenous now. How do we go from immigrants of Skyworld to indigenous? That and how she went into what it means to be indigenous were really interesting to me.

GPM (cont): We do it because we want these crops year round. We’re unwilling to let our diets be controlled by the seasons and local availability. Poli: It was really important to me that ants were the protagonist, that’s why I named them in the title. In my Hopi culture, ants are the ones that saved us from ourselves. In our cosmological world view, this is the fourth world. We got here via the grand canyon from the house of the ants. Every time there was a new world, we went underground with the ants, and they would take care of us. I love that we took these humble creatures and made them the saviors of mankind. GPM: Especially with your devised work with the city, the ants built their own city that is in partnership with nature without destroying it.

Photography by Polimana

COVER STORY

STRICTLY: CREATIVES A CONVERSATION WITH ARTIST COLLABORATOR, POLIMANA, BUTTERFLY MAIDEN, AND JOURNALIST, GERRY PEÑA-MARTINEZ Poli (cont): Is it possible for people who aren’t ancestrally connected to a place to become indigenous or to behave as though they were? She talks about the European immigrants that came over, the way they treat the land is not how you treat your home. They treat the land like they still have one foot on the boat, one foot on the land, and them in-between. GPM: These colonizing forces have had unfettered mobility; they could always leave or go over there. Their home, or what they

GPM: One question I want to ask everyone, if you were to submit to

considered home, was always back there safe. The lands and

the “memory” theme, what would be your offering?

resources they have taken have now completely terraformed the space they inhabit, that we try to cohabit.

Poli: I’m looking through my old poems. Whenever I make things, I treat them like a time capsule, write unapologetically to capture this

Poli: Absolutely.

specific moment. It’s all memory to me.

Pictured: (Up Left) Photo by Polimana; (Down Left); A photo of Polimana; (Right) A photo by Polimana of their step-sister, Penny; (Down Center) Photo by @veraphotographyart.

by Ellen Aura @ellen.aura

LEVEL LEVEL UP! UP!

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THANK YOU PROFESSIONAL. PROFESSIONAL.

"I WIL L BUY B UY THE HOUSE"

"My mom had to put my childhood house up for sale during her divorce. It was an unhappy marriage. There were always two lives we led: the one we showed and the one we felt. I remember from an early age being very aware of the fact that my parents looked at each other differently. My mom’s dedication to making a home was always undermined by my dad’s abuse. I would love for my childhood house to one day be filled with her memory of warmth. The only thing she ever wanted was a safe place for her children to come to and rest from their lives. This poem discards the pain of the past for the memory of someone who always did her best to create space meant to breathe in. " - Gabi Tabib Instagram | Twitter 43

"ORIGAMI PROJECT: GENTRIFICATION" GENTRIFICATI ON" "I walked around one afternoon taking pictures of a neighborhood in my city that is experiencing gentrification. The local community was very diverse, home to people of all races and incomes, but I could see the older, poorer areas being renovated and repurposed into newer, unaffordable houses and shops. It made me have mixed feelings towards the city - it’s great to have attractive new areas for living and shopping, but sad to see the less fortunate members of society being pushed out. Those deemed “less desirable” were being uprooted and having their lives changed to make room for those with more wealth. Most of the local neighborhoods dealing with this issue have high concentrations of people of Color, while the new residents tend to be predominantly White. “Origami Project: Gentrification”, helps show the problems in our society that come with gentrification, while highlighting the “positive” impact that can come as a result. It may not change the world, but it can help make people aware of how many communities, largely those of poorer Africa Americans, are affected by renovations and rising prices on their streets." "I upcycled and repurposed old receipt paper by making origami hexagons. I also used the photos I took from walking around and printed them off onto thermal paper. I then used 70% isopropyl alcohol and heat from a candle to manipulate the images and receipts to give them the appearance of being old, used, and undesirable. Meanwhile, the untouched white hexagons are to be viewed as pure, new, and desirable. To represent the newly constructed and renovated properties in these neighborhoods. They are hung white at the top and black at the bottom to show the hierarchy of society. Some hexagons outside of the condensed area represent outsiders, loners, and those who aren’t bothered by what's going on but are all still building blocks in the cycle. The origami pieces are hexagonal to mimic the structure of a beehive. In a colony of bees, each bee works with the others to provide protection and stability to the community. If a worker is seen as unhelpful or undesirable, they are kicked out of the colony and left to fend for themselves. In the same way, once people aren’t viewed as useful for their larger communities, they’re moved out and replaced. Whether the result of this gentrification is positive or negative is left up to the viewer." - Anna Grace Website | Instagram

"A HUMMINGBIRD TRIGGERED CHILDHOOD MEMORIES" "I wrote this piece a few days after I returned home from college this semester. Being back in my childhood bedroom always brings with it an immense nostalgia, almost a romanticization of the past, and now that I've grown and changed so much over the last three years and I am going into my final semester of school, I find myself thinking a lot about the past, the things I did, and the way my family was different from others in that it was so normal, so suburban, so without strife or challenge. That in and of itself became a challenge as I wrote about looking at my childhood through the lens of someone who understands now that I only did so much of what I did because it was societally expected and pop-culturally influenced: having a lemonade stand even though we never needed money; running away from home for an hour and then coming back because I loved my family and they loved me, etc." - Daisy Sellas Website | Instagram

Memories can feel dreamy, And dreams can feel like memories, Is the line, that separates the two, ever sharp enough? - Red Moth Website | Instagram

DREAMY

YELLOW SNAKE

(left)

(right)

LOVE IS BLUE

(left)

"This piece was created in memory of my grandma, who was a practitioner of witchcraft. I was unaware of this until after her passing when I went through her things. It was very shocking! The items featured in this photo came from her collection and are now used in my own practice." - Abbie Steele | Instagram "As a melding of poetry and photography, this visual depiction of the Brown Eyes Poetry series logs my memories over the last three, turbulent years. I have many negative recollections from this time, but these snippets (blearily) remember all the good stuff that I don't want to slip away ." - Aimelia Kuiper | Website

MEMORIES IN COLOR " TI NNTT ED LENSES"

A collections of poems by Alysia Wise

red: when i was two my birthday party theme was red and my mother went all out. i can only remember through photographs, an elmo poster and red strings of mardi gras beads, red frosting staining my lips orange: a few months ago i made a list of things that didn't seem to be anyone's favorites i had never met anyone whose favorite candy bar was milky way. whose favorite band was maroon 5. whose favorite color was orange. and then it was everywhere - a soft orange tank top worn to threads clementine colored platform crocs and even though i still couldn't stand the taste of it for a moment i let orange be my favorite yellow: in high school i was sick. i was also desperate to fit in, eager to be known, spent every day with a carefully crafted image branding myself as best i could, but i was sick. my brain was tying itself up into knots on the daily a collection of poisonous thoughts and violent voices and i was only getting worse, but that brand i created? to be the happy go lucky, the cutest, most adorable? i told everyone her favorite color was yellow green: for most of my childhood, i assumed every boy's favorite color was green. after all, cameron's favorite color was green, and he was the only boy that mattered to me. i thought the same thing about my dad, listing his favorite things. he likes helicopters, legos, and the color gree. eventually he broke it to be that he was blue green colorblind and suddenly i didn't recognize him

blue: the easiest way to determine the things i didn't like as a child was to figure out what my litter sister did like. there's a whole host of movies that i've never seen because she liked them, foods i didn't eat for years, colors i wouldn't wear. like blue. because blue was her everything, and we were a binary. my shoes pink, her shoes blue, my coat pink, her coat blue, and when we moved across the country my parents found the perfect house where we each got our own rooms, the walls already painted. my room pink, her room blue.

purple: there's something about people who love purple it's more than just their favorite color, it's a way of life and my grandmother is the same way the color of royalty, it remember her saying and it's true in her case, there's no one more deserving of the association

pink: i cut off all of my hair when i graduated high school i still don't know how i got the nerve making such a drastic change. and when i showed my coworkers, one of them said it made me look like a lesbian and i didn't know she'd turn out to be right. but it only took another two months before i cute it even shorter, dyed it hot pink, and moved to a new city and a new person white: raised in the church, not just any but the church, i was baptize in all white, eight years old then offered the experience time and time again, dressed for purity and trained for marriage in all white but i never made it to the temple, and i won't wear white to this day black: the first girl i loved, she loved black, dark curls, dark eyes, and dark humor, she was my opposite in every way and i don't think i ever told her that she was scientific proof that opposites attract

"This poem is a collection of smaller poems based on each color of the rainbow. I was inspired by the phrase "rose colored glasses" and the idea that sometimes our memories are romanticized in the present. I filtered my memories through colored lenses and created this series of poems about my colorful memories." - Alysia Wise | Instagram

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

MEMORIES IN COLOR "COLORS"

An extended poetry piece by William Horvatits

YELLOW Yellow are the rays of the summer sun I long for every year, their warmth that gives me comfort, the rays that follow me every where I go, the strings of lights at the naval park downtown, my city’s jagged and beautiful skyline. The sunflowers you tried to grow on the side of the shed that never seemed to fully bloom, that I was reminded of as I stood among a field of sunflowers, the sticky July air, salty sweat, adorned with a cream colored shirt of flowers and cutoff denim, the field stretching beyond me like a sea of gold. Gold like the golden hour treks in the rose garden, Kodak lens capturing the petals and the grand stone architecture, orbs dotting my pictures like polka dots, as bright as the glitter that emanated from the gold dust woman, surrounding her body as she hypnotized us into a trance with her presence as we all watched her dance in her glory. The light escaping from the eclipse as we watched in anticipation, the loud roar of our screaming as she sang to the angels before emerging from below as woman, as a celestial being surrounded by the stars and planets I look up at the yellow painted metal towering above me as I drive over the Warhol bridge, Fort Duquesne Boulevard, the first city I drove into that felt like home, driving over and over that bridge in the city traffic, going in circles lost in the metropolis, stepping onto that metal to feel the wind of the cars rushing past, gazing into the Ohio River beneath me feeling the warm sunlight over my head and I was just happy. Counting the miles we drove to the Iron City, like I counted the lines on the roads lit only by the pale headlights, on those late night drives we used to have where you’d speed 90 on a 55 and I’d clutch your shoulder, grit my teeth and watch as the strips of white blurred into one long line and I could no longer count them, and I was scared. But it was electric I think about your blond hair, during senior year when you wanted to cut it short and I wanted mine long. I miss how it was when we were kids. PINK His lips parted in ecstasy, our soft passion calm. The brilliant summer sunsets, pink fading into gold, purple, pale blues and oranges we'd see driving through the countryside, getting lost in Eden, lowering the windows and sticking our heads out of them to feel the rush of the wind and being wild and free, and young, and screaming at the top of our lungs to our favorite songs, the pink clouds as our signal that it would be dark soon. And that's when the big pink headlights turned on to blind our eyes, light our heads, as the backdrop of the stage where we stood shoulder to shoulder and jumped up and down as they sang to the rhythm of the night. The triangle marking my identity, and those who were persecuted that I proudly emblazon and no longer dim for no one. The pale blush color of my t-shirts, the bandana I wore tied around my neck on my 20th birthday, 2 days after he left me. The rose bouquet he gave to me that lasted longer than we did, and I tried to refocus, but my mind kept going back to him. Much like how it keeps going back to you. You smile, your laugh, how I used to run my hands through your dark curls, and that time I drove you home when you fell asleep and I looked over and just smiled to myself. How my face used to get blusehd with you, and how you made me feel like I was your only. But you pushed me away. And I thought I could fix it by jumping into the arms of another, but he could not fully give himself to me how I wanted.

RED The cadmium I use on my canvas, mixing oils with crimson pigment, painting lips like Warhol's Marilyn, the smooth motions of the bristles forming the delicacy of flower petals, Great grandmother's rose bush that you replanted at your house in Wyoming county, the flowers full and beautiful, a testament to her longevity. Tart, fresh cherries in the summertime, juice running down beside my cheek. Light leaks in my instant photographs, my own little forever preserved in memory. Record scratches as I flip through the songbook, the transparent scarlet vinyl sings about honeymoons, the art deco and a long lost Italian lover, like Elio in Crema, who deserved better than that American boy. Poppy fields and paisley prints, stepping into Oz like a friend of Dorothy. My maroon sneakers, reminding my of my father's maroon van he had when we were all still a family on Bellwood. The choloclate lab that was my protector. Our house is haunted. Our house is haunted, or is it human? The riots, the fires, the color that bled from my friends and comrades in the war for human rights, against authority, against the world, the centuries long killing of innocents, watching as one by one more and more die before my eyes on the screen, flags waving, proudly hating, proud boys, rage rising, hands shaking, throat raw, soul screaming, bullets firing, and while the whole world was at war they just kept dancing, silence equals death, Fuck your fascism, we are all just pieces in their games sent to fight their battles but I am not your soldier and we will not be silenced! WHITE And so I look up at the cumulus clouds floating by, sunlight dancing through them, tinted by the sky like a painter's pallet, so wide and wondrous and bright, as bright as the names on the highway signs, the paint reflecting in my vision, Cranberry Township, Zelienople, the little factory towns in the hills, Colden, day trips to Ellicottville, toll booth tickets littering my console, Kinzua Bridge wide and tall, the foam at the base of the rushing falls, the water a bright and almost unnatural turquoise, the mist rising up to touch my face. Everywhere I've gone, and everywhere I'm going to be. And I drive just a little bit faster now, that's something that I picked up from you. I've stoped counting the white strips on the road but I have no idea where I'm going. I have no route pointing me to a destination, no GPS directing me to a path, a road more or less traveled, every thread I tried to follow snapped under my touch. Everything I thought I knew is falling away, and I'm scared. So I decided that everything and nothing mattered, and that I could change. I looked at those hanging LED ceiling lights and walked out of that building for the last time, ripped out that chapter from my book and burned it. And there's a light, however small it might be, in the distance. Something different on the horizon. A day where I stop thinking of you every time I drive past your street and remind myself to just keep moving forward, and just ride.

"This extended poetry piece is inspired by the concept of relating my own memories and experiences to colors, and each part of the piece is segmented into colors based on the memories I associate with them. In this piece I wrote about my own memories of my family, traveling/places I've been, relationships, as well as my view of historical, environmental and political events from the past few years. Because the poem is segmented it can be separated and read as smaller poems or put together as a longer narrative." - William Horvatits | Website 49

Life in

H C U M

BOUT A O D A

Photographer and make-up artist, Orlando Perez, explores the nuance of human duality in their photo series, Much Ado About Nothing. Born from a revisitation of a queer childhood experience growing up in Mexico, Perez depicts a defiant journey of self-love and acceptance with his model, Luis "L.T." Martinez. Follow Casa Alta's YouTube channel for an exclusive and intimate interview with the creators on their experience developing this project!

Single of the Summer

"IN COLOR" ELIJAH DEMETRI

“Color me, I wanna see all your colors, Babe.” Just in time for the summer, Elijah Demetri reminds us that life is in color and should be lived as such! This catchy, uplifting single is perfect for all your summer playlists.

"WHALE" LIZ BUSTLE

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Dance Film of the Summer

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Her body is an instrument of artistic expression. Liz Bustle, along with husband, Andrew, walk us through an emotional performance dedicated to the complexity of grief. In her own words: “Creating space to grieve is not remunerative, it isn't glamorous or Instagramworthy, but it is completely imperative.”

If you're looking for a tune to lift your spirits, then check out Filmmaker of the Summer “In Your Company” directed, produced, and written by Bradley Sharper. In this colorfully produced music video you'll find good vibes, boyband dance moves, and hopeless romantics expressing their longing for the embrace of their partner. With its quirky choreography, by Luis "L.T." Martinez, and charming storyline. Sharper's Florist and friends know how to turn on the charm to impress and express.

"IN YOUR COMPANY" SHARPER'S FLORIST

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"PROMISES" CILIENCE

Indie Production of the Summer

The juxtaposition of both vibrant and dark colors gives this music video a classic alternative feel. The band, clothed in all white, are surrounded by grungy projections that seem to reflect the band members’ own perspective on promises made to and by them.

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Hello, adventure book lovers! Searching for a fun book to give to a young reader in your life? Check out Chasity Ramsey’s The Adventures of Marlz ! Ramsey has created an endearing series of books inspired by her own pet rabbit with the mission of teaching a new generation the fundamentals for a kinder world! You can order her books on her website at chasitysshop.com !

THE ADVENTURES OF MARLZ

Chasity Ramsey

BEGINNING THE PAST, RELIVING THE FUTURE

Alecia Winter Scott

It’s never easy having to relieve the unfortunate situations in life. We often have only two options for remedy: live in the past; or, learn from it and move forward. STRICTLY Magazine Editor-inChief, Alecia Winter Scott, offers you a courageous, personal, and intimate look into her own past experiences, present emotions, and future aspirations. You can find her poetry book, Beginning the Past. Relieving the Future . on Amazon !

Photographer of the Summer

The use of shadowing and color by Orlando Perez emphasize the true and natural beauty of the human body. Perez captures the essence of unfiltered humanity without succumbing to traditional commercial tropes. Check out more of Orlando's work in their portfolio at operezcreative.com !

Model: Luis "L.T." Martinez

MISTER DENNIS SCHAEFER

Artwork of the Summer

One illustration can sometimes say one million things. This is definitely the case with Mister Dennis Schaefer's painting of a woman sitting on a chair taking a smoke break after cleaning. His acrylic illustration, titled Lush Life , brings us to a moment of domestic bliss; taking a pause for an inhale of what's to come and an exhale of what has passed. Take a look at the rest of his portfolio on DeviantArt .

ORLANDO PEREZ

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