On Being Cultureless
A woman stands in a room filled with heavy perfume. The aroma is sweet, regal, and composed of different branches of scents that all stem from the same tree. Her own branch is soaked into her fabric and is cut in a design that has been worn by several mothers before her. Gold accompanies this […]
Joan d’Arc
Creative Director/Photographer/Stylist: Selah Pennington Assistant Stylist: Beaux Reeder Bijoux BTS Photographer: Kobi McCray Production/Lighting Assistant: Caleb Goss Model: Olivia Christie
Splice
Sampling: In the best cases, it reworks a musical element in a creative way. In the worst cases, it’s a cheap gimmick meant to garner more streams. A great sample can effortlessly blend with the original content of a track, making for a novel creative work that pushes the boundaries of sonic expectation. A mediocre […]
Our Weekly Roundup: One for the Ladies! (and Walker)
Hassam: I finished rewatching “The Nanny” around a week ago and I literally haven’t been able to stop thinking about the Moschino piano dress she wore as a skirt in the last season like it’s actually so perfect. Walker: Since this semester has decided to overwhelm me with schoolwork, I’ve had to lock in at […]
‘Touch Tank’ and Societal Misogyny
The song “Touch Tank” was released by alternative artist Quinnie in 2023. The song describes the speaker’s experience of receiving oral sex from a man, while also falling deeper into love with him because of the unconditionally accepting and gentle nature of their relationship. The song details the sexual experiences the two have together through […]
The Paradoxical Rousing Banality of Donald Trump; or, Why I No Longer Feel Civil War is Imminent
Last year, over winter break, an originator of 23 of my chromosomes told me, with slow, earnest head-shaking, I’d been “brainwashed” by the “liberal media.” If you haven’t guessed, this same individual has supported, and continues to support, Donald J. Trump, née Drumpf. It’s a bit of a tradition for us to enter into a […]
VCUarts Reuse Library
The environmental impact of an artistic practice has been a longstanding concern for VCUArts students and faculty. As artists, we take on the environmental burden of working with non-renewable materials. The community acknowledges the substantial carbon-footprint and is riddled with concern and anxiety for our global environmental crisis. Addressing this issue, students and faculty have […]
Two Sentence Reviews of Best Picture
A night of the stars, one that produces a best-worst-dressed list, a new cascade of memes, and occasionally an iconic celebrity-studded selfie. It’s a night where many work hard to get recognized for their efforts to help elevate the world of cinema. Every year, the Academy Awards, also known as the Oscars, nominate ten movies […]
Let’s Swap Meet
Mark your calendars and get your tickets for the next swap meet! SwapMeet RVA is an all-inclusive market, whether you want to get out of the house on Sunday, or just to shop till you drop. This community space was created by the small business owners Cameron and Deja Hadnot to support other local vendors […]
Our Weekly Roundup: Ethel Cain Distracts Us From the AI Apocalypse
Naomi: Pluto is entering Aquarius and the next 20 years will be ruled by global themes of technology; the world feels like it’s on the brink of collapse and the AI takeover is impending. This has spurred on my obsession with big skinny robots. In the film “Castle in the Sky,” robots tenderly care for […]
Empathy Everywhere All At Once
I witness the material sins of my father in the form of a dripping flame while I’m parked near the corner of Broad and Gilmer. He’d assured me that my true blue 2006 Mitsubishi Lancer — a car that’s a beater in every universe — had just passed a safety inspection. Regardless, when I crack […]
Yanking The Ribbons From My Hair
When you search the word “coquette” on Pinterest, you’ll be bombarded by a million different images. Women in hairbows; lacy dresses; skinned kneecaps; submachine guns laid on pale pillowcases. It’s a visual language that is vaguely French and Lolita-esque, an indescribable dream that simultaneously celebrates girlhood and twists it into something acrid. It rose out […]