Spanglish modmuze
Finding strength and selfacceptance in the space between cultures
Chaos One Controls
Finding peace in the chaos we can control
A reflection on finding meaning in the act of creating itself
November 25
Spanglish * On the Cover Finding strength and self-acceptance in the space between cultures
A reflection on finding meaning in the act of creating itself 8 12 14 18 22 26 30 32 36
A Bridge of Borrowed Mind Poem
Art-ificial
A call to protect the humanity and integrity of art in the age of AI
Lasting Impressions
A look at how identity forms through the lasting impressions of others
Golden Reverie
Non-Writing
Chaos One Controls Finding peace in the chaos we can control
Editorial
The Void That Consumes
Ethereal Bond
Non-Writing
If Not for My Art Do I Even Exist?
. Exploring identity through the act of creation
Editor’s note
The Modmuze team and I are so excited to invite you to read this issue, “If not for my art, do I even exist?” A celebration of how art is perceived through different perspectives and how it shapes us as individuals. When the idea was first brought up, I immediately loved it because art truly is interpreted differently by every person you meet.
Art isn’t always found in galleries; sometimes it’s stitched into the seams of our clothes, written between the lines of our choices, expressed through the way we grew up, the stories we read, our political beliefs, and so much more. “If not for my art, do I even exist?” is not a question of vanity, but of being, a reflection of how deeply creation and identity intertwine. Through every feature, photograph, and thread of inspiration in these pages, we explore what it means to exist because of the art we create.
Lately, I’ve been realizing just how fast time moves. I graduate in six months, and while I’m so excited for the future, I’m also scared, but in the best way. From starting college to now, I’ve seen how much I’ve grown, and how much my friends and family have too. It’s made me appreciate the importance of slowing down and truly living in the present. Running this magazine has been one of the most meaningful parts of that process. Writing and fashion have always been my art. My way to relax, reflect, and be creative. When I first accepted this position, I doubted whether I could lead it well since I’d never done anything like this before. But seeing this issue come to life has filled me with so much gratitude and confidence.
If I could offer one piece of advice to anyone who’s in a similar place. The feeling of being uncertain, nervous, or hesitant it would be this: go for it anyway. Even when you’re uncomfortable, even when you’re scared. You’ll never know what you’re capable of until you try. I was terrified of failing or disappointing people, but standing here now, I couldn’t be more proud of myself and of my amazing team. Don’t let fear stop you from creating or chasing what you want.
To my team and our executives, thank you. I could not have done this without you. You poured so much love and energy into this issue, and it shows on every page. I’m endlessly proud and grateful to share your passion with the world. Finally, this issue is a love letter to the creators, the dreamers, and those who blur the line between living and creating. It’s for anyone who finds meaning in movement, in culture, and in the art of simply being themselves. Here’s to the art that saves us, defines us, and dares us to be seen and heard.
Love,
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & President Karli Clemons, MKTG
CREATIVE DIRECTOR & Vice President Erin Kistler, DM
PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Madison McMaster, GD
MARKETING DIRECTOR Samantha Williams, DM
PHOTOGRAPHY DIRECTOR Loren Rogers, DM
STYLING & MODEL DIRECTOR Reese Ehrhart , DM
TREASURER Riley Kirkman, DM
WRITERS
Karli Clemons
Aliyah Young Lisabriela Calleros
Brooklyn Taylor-Talbert
STYLISTS
Aliyah Young
Lisabriela Calleros
Ella Mills
Aubrey Wanger
Emily Bass
Madelyn Campbell
Audrey Flood
Gretchen Teigen
Sarah Even Mitchell
Payton Durbin
Zoe Hoffman
Audrey Flood
Riley Kirkman
Reese Ehrhart
PHOTOGRAPHY
Hannah Cozens
Toni Purnell
Reagan Downs
Loren Rogers
Cosette Branstetter
Rayleigh Henson
FACULTY ADVISOR
744-2803
stephanie.choi@okstate.edu
modmuze is a fashion and lifestyle magazine produced by students, for students. Our magazine provides a unique platform for students to freely express themselves creatively in any and all ways imaginable.
Our Mantra Empowering self-expression
MARKETING
Sammy Williams
Garret Andaverde
Kamryn Major
Elijah Miles
Sarah Miller
Erin Kristler
Rylee Day
PRODUCTION
Madison McMaster
Triere Nikel
Loren Rogers
Kayla Gross
Sean Evans
kelly.kerr@okstate.edu
modmuze editorial team
Directors
Karli Clemons Editor in Chief & Writing
As the President, Karli keeps the whole magazine running by making executive desisions and managing all the fine details while supporting her team and the writers.
Madison McMaster Production
In charge of Production, Madison oversees the team that makes the magazine come to life.
organized and maximized for members to have more
Loren Rogers
Photography
In charge of Photography, Loren directs and manages her team while contributing to the visual artform itself.
Reese Ehrhart
Styling
In charge of Styling, Reese inspires her teams creativity with wordrobes and settings while managing their extensive process.
By Lisabriela Calleros
A Bridge of Borrowed Mind
Worlds are bridged with words, opening a path where time is torn, and distance has no authority to stop the deceased from enlightening the unborn.
Authors connecting with minds unmet, pencil, paper, and a sorcerer’s intent paving a bridge of ink and graphite
So mundane we forget to marvel, at the silent magic contained between margins.
Telapathy hidden in typography
Typed and tatted, secret portals
Writing is merely a path to understanding liminal space, waiting interpretation is the catalyst pushing thoughts from mind to mind Without a vessel to transport meaning
Words are nothing but place holders
Letters scattered like sand Enchantments without command
Writer: Aliyah Young
Photography: Emily Bass
Syling: Emily Bass and Madelyn Campbell
Layout: Loren Rogers
Waiting for a witness to bring them to life
For a dreamer to will them to be So the reader can connect with the author In a fantastical synergy
A link between strangers
Profound and cheap
A receipt from a cash register
A kind letter you want to keep
The bridge we’ve all crossed or brought someone to
A thing we all share but don’t mention we do
An ability to share a thought Without knowing who
Imagine if stories were unwritten Wisdom lost in time Knowledge now forgotten History left behind There is purpose in writing
Past penmanship and frilly adjectives
The chance to gain consciousness Of uniquely introspective individuals
To feel the dread of a soldier entering the battlefield
As if those emotions are organic
Like the deep passion of a poet’s declaration of love
Or the terror of a mother’s panic
To think it is ordinary, to feel a feeling not of your own
As if you’re in the author’s life Is a tragic understatement
Yet, we still don’t deem it magic
But the words don’t read themselves
Our brains have plasticity, Ever-changing, casting spells
Acknowledge the whimsy in writing
Building bridges, making strangers into kin
Shared memories having never touched skin
See the beauty of places you’ve never been
Shifting realities in immersion
Persuaded to change opinion through cohesion
Self-help and sci-fi
Essays and codes for wi-fi
We are submerged in a constant conversation Every word written with intention Behind the print, a person’s conflict
A person’s intention hoping to reach the other side of the bridge
Breathing the atmosphere of a borrowed mind, our consciousness conjoined at that liminal space, breaking barriers in space and time.
Art ificial
Art is human. It is what we are. There is no us without art, so how can there be art without us?
By Aliyah Young
People argue that my outrage is unprecedented, though I don’t see how. Should I not dislike the mimicry of human expression, mocking the emotions we mustered from heartache? Artificially simulated with codes and numbers, labeled as art.
Art, the same word we call our expression. Art that we created to rebuild our broken culture. Art, the embodiment of our identity, is collected as data and compiled for computers to export the exploitation they label as art.
Art is human. It is what we are. There is no us without art, so how can there be art without us?
The excuse of interpretation and subjectivity in art cannot overcome this artificial production. The very idea is hypocritical. It is an apparent, futile attempt at creation, destined for hollow results. Akin to asking a rock to walk, AI creating art is doomed by nature, all the while destroying the very communities it claims to represent. Poisoning us with pollution disguised as progress, in pursuit of generating fictitious expressions of imaginary people. I think this is grounds for outrage.
We made ourselves who we are. Through injustice and pain, we created beauty. The Blackness we fought to express was used to fuel a misinformed machine, unaware of significance and too aware of stereotypes. It is a modern-day minstrel show, with robots painted Black. All of our efforts are being colonized by algorithms.
Insulting is not strong enough. Yet, this is only the beginning. Past the horizon, past the excitement of new technology and possibility, is the end of creativity. Not the end of our creation, but of its visibility. If we don’t distinguish between what is real and what is not, it will take up the space we curated. The implications allude to erasure.
To erase centuries of cultivation is impossible, but that won’t stop anyone from trying. Erasure is not always eradication; it can be a sneaky, sly replacement with a version more palatable to the audience—all for the goal of becoming accessible to all, at the risk of devaluing significance to some. However, some are less than many, so perhaps the greater good has prevailed.
I
’ve heard imitation is the greatest form of flattery, so erasure must be the highest praise. To see so much value in a culture, you just have to replace it—to replicate it and rename it as your own. That must be the most adorned accolade, to which we have been awarded often by both humans and AI.
Our music is made with soul and honor, provoking deep revelation from lyrics and rhythms able to move mountains, boxed up and input to generate generic hip-hop. Our physical art, mixed with memories of love and triumph, painted with precision and passion, is processed by bots to become a template for something packaged as urban swag. The style we have grown over generations, shining with diamonds and gold, inspiring a fresh new sneaker ad.
It’s the relabeling, repackaging, and reimagining of culture that erases it. Is there any integrity in that? Is it the cheap, mass-produced waste that we are meant to relate to? Relate to what exactly? To the programmers who chose the places from which art would be pulled? Maybe the billionaires who profit from its production? Or possibly the loading sign as we wait to see our culture simplified on screen?
So let it be precedent that I am outraged. I return to my anger—not to be confused with an overreaction, but as a rational response. I am insulted by this digital mockery. It is a corrupted file. We need to build a boundary between AI and art to prevent the overtaking of the artificial. A firewall I will tend, and fan the flame with my outrage.
Lasting Impressions Lasting Impressions Lasting Impressions
By: Lisabriela Calleros
“When I who
Inever realized how much of my life is built on impressions until I started looking back at the little things that have stayed with me. When I think about art, I don’t just think about paintings, music, or literature, I think about every person who has shaped me. The people who made me playlists, who shared their favorites with me, or the conversations that changed the way I see theworld today.
“When I think about art,... think about every person who has shaped me.” “When I think about art,... I think about every person who has shaped me.”
“When I think about art,... I think about every person who has shaped me.”
People leave their own creations in the lives they touch. It’s not just the big moments that leave a mark; sometimes it’s the values passed down through family, the habits we pick up without noticing, or even a simple phrase someone once said that still lingers years later. All of these little pieces become part of me, part of the way I move through the world.
Styling by: Audrey Flood and Gretchen Teigen
Photography by: Reagan Downs Layout by: Kayla Gross
These small, everyday things weave into our identities, blending together until we hardly notice their influence. It’s like brushstrokes on a painting layer by layer, adding depth and meaning. When I look at myself, I see the collective work of everyone who has influenced me.
“My identity isn’t a single, finished painting.
It’s a living, layered masterpiece-” “My identity isn’t a single, finished painting. It’s a living, layered masterpiece-”
“My identity isn’t a single, finished painting. It’s a living, layered masterpiece-”
My identity isn’t a single, finished painting. It’s a living, layered masterpiece made up of impressions that continue to evolve. That’s the most beautiful part knowing that we’re not only shaped by the world, but we also leave our own brushstrokes behind in the lives of others.
Golden Golden
Syling: Riley Kirkman
Layout: Loren Rogers
Photography: Loren Rogers
Reverie
Chaos one controls Chaos one controls
By: Brooklyn Taylor-Talbert
There’s a lot that happens in everyone's day-today. We normalize it because there’s a lot we have to carry, like our daily responsibilities, family, work, and other things that we are expected to perform on a regular.
Some of us survive but forget to live. Surviving looks like pushing through the day by doing only the bare minimum and just trying to get by. Living, on the other hand, is noticing small joys, being present in moments, and giving yourself permission to relax. Often, we forget that surviving on a day-to-day basis is only a temporary place and that we shouldn’t linger in it for too long.
Styling by: Sarah Even Mitchell
Photography by: Hannah Cozens
Layout by: Kayla Gross
You could go out and interview a bunch of people and ask what superpowers they want, and most, if not all, people avoid reading minds. Because to a lot of us, it would be one of the worst superpowers. Why? Because people’s minds are complex. They’re littered with to-do lists,worries, past regrets, future anxieties, and the unspoken feelings we bury to keep moving forward. And most of us agree that it’s better to ask someone what’s going on in their mind rather than forcing it.
At the end of the day, chaos will always be a part of our lives, but how we choose to manage it makes the difference. There will be times when we can’t control everything around us, and that’s okay. We should learn to give ourselves more grace because the most we can do in this life is try our best and find peace within that.
“Chaos will always be apart of our lives”
We push through a lot of things and fight a lot of silent battles almost every day. And because those battles are invisible, we sometimes assume we’re alone in them. The truth is, almost everyone you meet is carrying something you can’t see. Not everyone's situation is the same, but there are people who can relate. That’s why sometimes pausing what you're doing and taking a break matters. Taking a moment to check in with yourself is crucial because you have to ground yourself before you lose yourself.
Photography: Loren Rogers Syling: Reese Ehrhart
Layout: Madison McMaster
The void that consumes
Creativity is something that drives us all. It’s something that keeps us all grounded in our reality. It allows us to express what we can’t find the words for. There are days when the ideas don’t come. When inspiration dries up and the page looks like an empty slate. On those days, the pressure is on to do something, especially when there are deadlines involved. It makes every small choice feel like a test, like someone is judging your every move, except that the only judge is you. It makes us measure our worth by output instead of by what we can do when we can’t offer up our best.
Do the little things when you can not because someone will applaud, but because motion itself loosens the block. Creativity shouldn’t always be a performance, sometimes it should be kept for personal use or reflection. The miracle is not always in the finished work. It’s in the doing the journey it took to get there, which is why some handcrafted items are worth a lot more. Doing, even without an audience, teaches your mind how to find the spark again.
Sometimes we are consumed by silence when we feel we’ve lost our spark. That silence can be terrifying. But sometimes it’s okay to lean slowly into it. Creativity often returns with patience. Everyone creates; we just go about it in different ways. Some are into Cooking, making art, and writing. Comparing your work to someone else’s isn’t always bad because there’s nothing wrong with wanting to improve. But sometimes it can cause us to be consumed in a state of “am I even any good?”.
Sometimes we are consumed by silence when we feel we’ve lost our spark.
Writing: Brooklyn Taylor-Talbert
Photography: Cosette Branstetter
Syling: Aubrey Wanger
Layout: Triere Nikel
Creativity is something that takes time. Finding your creative touch is not an event but a slow, satisfying journey with yourself. Be kind to your unfinished pieces. Keep collecting what interests you, however small. Over time, the routine of caring for your curiosity will feel less like an obligation and more like a home that you’ve slowly been decorating.
Photography: Reagan Downs
Syling: Payton Durbin and Zoe Hoffman
Layout: Madison McMaster
With
Modmuze
Love, Executive Staff