CANVAS
February 21, 2015 Issue #1
February 21, 2015
Behold your canvas, paint with caution.
P editor
Patrick Kiel @patrickkiel
P head
writer Precious Kirby @preciouskirby
D curator
W
Danny Kataw @dannykataw website canvasmagazine.tk
T tumblr
tumblr
I instagram
C
contact info@canvasmagazine.tk
thanks for making this issue possible: kyle ohlson, sherry w., angie si’mone,
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By our founder Patrick Kiel. Check out his work at patrickkiel.tk
Writors Notes
Hello Canvas readers, my name is Precious Kirby and I am the head writer for Canvas Magazine. I have been writing short stories and things of that sort since I was about eight years old. As I have gotten older, I have explored my passion for writing and sharing my thoughts with others. Writing has been my best friend and therapist, due to the fact that I am an introvert. Canvas is a place where anyone can express their ideas and I am truly grateful for the opportunity I was given to share my writing with all of you. I plan on giving our readers the best true and inspirational stories I can find. Remember that Canvas is ours, so tell me what you would like me to write about. Canvas also extends this opportunity to you, the reader, to become part of our team and fill this magazine with great content. Thank you for reading Canvas, and please share with everyone you know.
- Precious Kirby, head writer
About Project Canvas
We are the kids our parents warned us about. We’re self-reliant, ambitious, and a whole new breed of doers. We are the generation of experiments, losses and tragedies. We live in a time where change is needed, and we are the change. We have too much ambition, too much pride, too many opinions. This magazine is for us to share our ideas and thoughts about what’s going on around is. Here at Canvas our mission is to bolster and intertwine knowledge and creativity into a single format that young adults will enjoy. This magazine is written by teens, for teens, and is free of adult suppression. This magazine is our place to vent, this is our canvas. Let’s paint it with stories of tragedy, triumph and happiness. Behold your canvas, paint with caution.
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Contents 06
Welcome to Canvas Magazine
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A Chat with Kyle Ohlson
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Cyber Bulling: Does it Exist?
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Angie Si’mone: You’ve Heard This One Before
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Artists to Watch: George Ezra
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March ‘15 Playlist
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A 21st Century Creator: A Self Made Musician
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Reader’s Corner
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Teen Art: A Place for Your Art
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Voice Your Opinion: LGB(T): Transgenders
u We are a collective of creators who want to showcase teenage creativity
t WELCOME TO CANVAS W
elcome to Canvas Magazine. We are a new digital publishing brand that pushes and showcases creativity of teenagers from around the world. At Canvas Magazine, we believe that this new digital age provides one large canvas for the world to paint upon. Be it our singing on Soundcloud, our short films on Vimeo, our writing on platforms such Medium, or a plethora of other creative and problem solving skills, there is a medium for every type of our art. 窶イanvas loves to showcase this art while simultaneously inspiring a whole new generation of creators. In this magazine, you will find interviews of teenagers who have found success in their specific field as well as beginners
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“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.” ~ Scott Adams
who are just starting their long road of being a creator. Someone once said that when you start creating you suck. But you have a taste and an appreciation of what you create that makes you keep working at your craft. This passion keeps pushing you to do better and better your whole life. We hope to push you along this stage to help you become a better creator through inspiring you by showcasing the work of other creators. We also love to showcase your work. If you are interested in having your work showcased in this magazine, please contact us.
Canvas magazine is made for and by teenagers with the goal of creating the best content together as a unified community. Read through this and subsequent issues to see well versed poems, cinematic films, beautiful photos, lovely short narratives, and a plethora of other great content and read the story of its respective creator. This is yours, mine, and our Canvas. Let’s fill it with great content and show the world what young adults can make.
A chat with kyle ohlsen
 Kyle Ohlson is a young photographer and filmmaker hailing from Oregon who can be caught high up in the mountains pow slashing or in the surf catching waves. Kyle has created a beautiful portfolio of pictures and films that incorporates the outdoors that the Pacific Northwest has to offer. His work has taken him on adventures from BASE jumping off of cliffs and helicopters to the X-Games and the Dew Tour. And Kyle is only 19.You can check out his work on his Instagram page, his website, or his Youtube channel. We had the opportunity to talk to Kyle about his young media creation career
Q&A: At what age were you introduced to photography? Did someone introduce you or did you find photography through the internet? What did you start with: photography or cinematography?  I was 12 years old when I got my first camera. My dad introduced me to photography,and he has been taking photos since he was my age. When my dad would go to work I would sneak into his camera bag and use his camera because it had more buttons and was bigger than my little FinePix camera. I would take photos of the most random things around the house. When my dad would come home from work he would see all the photos I took and after awhile of me doing that he decided to buy me a Canon 10D from eBay, which was step below his Canon 20D.
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What is your favorite subject to capture? Why? I really enjoy capturing new subjects or sports. Its always fun to work with different people and film different sports from Matthias Giraud BASE jumping to filming friends surfing on small days. Skiing and BASE jumping are pretty fun to film. With skiing you have so many options of what to do, the whole mountain is your playground. Plus snow makes everything better! Filming a BASE Jump is super fun too. It takes a lot of planning and hard work to make it happen like waking up and hiking before the sun is up. But filming someone run off a cliff is pretty rad to capture.
Kyle’s links kyleohlson.com instagram.com/kyleohlson youtube.com/Kyleohlson95 facebook.com/kyle.ohlson What’s a photograph/film you are really proud about? My most recent favorite photo is of a US Coast Guard Helicopter at sunset. It was a very memorable evening, an amazing sunset and a sad moment. During spring break last year, a few of my friends went on a little surf trip to the Oregon Coast. The weather was windy and rainy like always, so we left the town and tried to escape the weather, but had no luck. When we got back to town we saw lots of emergency vehicles on the beach, so out of curiosity we asked what was going on and supposedly a teenager was playing on a bluff too close to the water and fell in. Randy and I grabbed our cameras and our big lenses to see if we could find something in the water. While we were hiking and looking around a Coast Guard helicopter came over to search, they circled the area for a few hours. As the sun was slowly went down, the clouds broke
up and the rain stopped. The sun was turning yellow and getting closer to the horizon. Just before it went down the helicopter flew right in front of the sunset and lined up perfectly with it. It was one of the most incredible sunsets I have ever seen. Once the sun went down, the helicopter left and we hiked back to our cabin. Sadly they didn’t find the missing person. It was sad that this had to happen, but it reminded us to always respect the ocean and to never turn your back on it. You are well known for your surfing videos and photos shot with Gopro. Did you learn photography with Gopros and other simple tools like smartphones first? I learned how to shoot photos from a DSLR and then was introduced to GoPro cameras when they only had the HD HERO in 2010. I was in Tahoe working as a behind-the-scenes photographer for a project with pro snowboarder Andy Finch. One of the filmers (Zak Shelhamer) for this project also worked for GoPro as a filmmaker, he let me borrow a beat up HD HERO camera and I quickly found out how much fun GoPros are. Now I use GoPros more than the DSLR. What are your content creation goals? Working for the GoPro Media Team would be super fun. I have done a few gigs with GoPro and its always fun to work with them. Plus, lots of cool people work there and they all work hard to create next level content and products. It would be super fun to film How does a shooting day go? Do you have a picture or a scene in mind and search for it, or do you just go somewhere and observe and photograph the scene as you feel it? Just depends on what I’m going out to shoot. Sometimes I bring my GoPro to the mountain to film my friends doing pow slashes but end up taking photos of the chair in front that you can barely see because it’s so snowy. Sometimes when I’m on a senior photo shoot I step away and snap some photos of the
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sunset on the mountains. I usually don’t plan my photos, although I plan my video shoots often. Most of my videos that I shot are planned in some way, like thinking of certain shots to get and packing the right equipment. What’s an editing process like? Go with gut feeling or do you tinker around for a while until something clicks? I usually just start a video off by going with a feeling and once I get it started I kinda plan it out and sometimes I go back to the intro/beginning and change it up but often things just fall into the perfect place at the beginning and it all works out. When I’m filming, I usually have something in mind as far as how I want the video to look, or give a certain feel to the viewers. I normally don’t film unless I have a plan for that footage. What was the transition like from DSLR to Gopro? Are the photographic and creative concepts the same? I started with a DSLR then transitioned to GoPros. The creative concepts are definitely the same. They both allow the user different ways to be creative. GoPros allow the user to capture point of view shots and other angles that you wouldn’t want to use your DSLR for like that on a pow day or in the park. But with DSLRs you have more control over it: more settings, different lenses that give you different focal lengths, the amount of light, etc. Plus GoPros produce amazing videos/photos for their size, and since they are so small its really fun to put them in a place where most DSLRs can’t go like your helmet, chest, end of your ski pole, etc. They both are really fun to use and capture whatever is going on. Lots of people think that professionals only use DSLRs but I can think of lots of professionals who use GoPros and love them - Chris Ray, Robbie Crawford, Clark Little, and Devin Super Tramp. Having a DSLR camera won’t make you better at taking
photos, neither will a GoPro. But a GoPro is cheaper and its almost just as powerful as most DSLRs. As a multimedia artist, both photography and cinematography, what is your favorite medium? Why? I like photos a lot. I started out taking photos and it’s something I’ve been doing for awhile now. You might think since I’ve been doing it for so long that it might get boring but I enjoy it more and more. Its really fun to capture a moment that’s a part of life in a photograph and be able to share it. Filming is fun too, I’ve been taking photos longer than filming so filming is kinda new to me. Its way different than shooting photos. I’m slowly starting to like filming more than photography, its a different way of seeing things and being able to show other people a moment. I’ve told myself to take less photos and film more to create more videos. When and how did your professional career start? What advice do you have for a fellow teenager who wants to start a career? I’m not sure when it really started, I think it started in 2010 - 2011. In 2010/2011 I got a good amount of jobs - covered X-Games, Dew Tour, Enter The Dragon Ski/Snowboard Series. Since then I’ve been able to keep myself busy with some projects, just finished editing a video for GoPro/Kirby Chambliss. For me it started by taking a lot of photos and getting my name out there, and that’s how it still is. My advice for anyone who wants to start a career in media, is to take lots of photos/videos and share them on social media. These days that’s one of the best ways to showcase your work. Practice makes perfect, take a lot of photos or videos and you’ll get better over time. Just stick with it and show your work. Who or where do you draw inspiration from? A lot of things inspire me: the movie Chasing Mavericks, Abe Kislevtiz, Zak Shelhamer, Tyler Johnson, Bob Hurley and Nick Woodman. Bob and Nick really inspire me, they both have started with absolutely nothing and have done nothing but incredible things. Nick started off by surfing with friends and wanted a camera to use while doing so. He created GoPro and has now taken GoPro to become a very popular camera company that allows you to capture special moments that no other cameras can capture. Bob started off as a surfboard shaper in California and has built up one of the coolest surf brands, Hurley. And Abe, Zak, and Tyler create some amazing videos/photos that are always outstanding. How do you stand out of the crowd with your work? That’s kind of a hard one to answer. I like to think that what I capture/create is different than what most people see and do, I try to look at things in a different way. Like, most photographers say shoot with the sun to your back or don’t shoot into the sun, but I think shooting into the sun can give some sweet results. Also, the adventures are a big part; I try to always do new stuff and find new places to hike, areas to surf, etc. and while I’m in search, I capture it all.
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CYBER BULLYING: DOES IT EXIST? Precious Kirby explores the reality of cyber bullying and
its intangible effects as the first issue in our series of teen issues.
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t’s all over social media and the news, cases of it are popping up everywhere. The pink elephant in the room is called Cyberbullying. Is it real? And if it is, than what is it? According to StopBullying.org, cyberbullying is, “bullying that takes place using electronic technology.” This seems like a valid definition, right? But what most people would say to this is, “if you can’t see the person and they can’t hurt you physically, then how is it real?” To get deeper into the issue, I went to the land of information, aka social media. I posed the question, “Is cyberbullying real?” ”. Most of the participants said it exists, but to a certain extent. They simply stated the big question, why can’t the person who is being bullied simply just block or report the person? That is a very plausible solution, but another participate stated that “words are forever”. I’ve never heard a more true statement. Although the person being bullied can just simply block the bully, those words will always be there. Words hurt, and you simply cannot erase them by hitting the block button. In 2014, the world saw just how brutal social media can be. A 16-year old teenager living in Houston, who was identified as Jada, was allegedly invited to a party, given punch that was drugged and subsequently was raped. She was not aware of the rape, until she went on social media and saw vulgar pictures of herself on the internet. Not only did these pictures go viral, but a popular hashtag was created named “Jada’s Pose”. For weeks, pictures of people impersonating the vulgar photo of Jada were spread across social media. Jada left her school and she is now being homeschooled. This horrific event validates the existence of cyber bullying, and cyberbullying is certainly being treated as a real crime. All over the country, state legislatures have implanted laws that protect victims of cyberbullying. Although some teenagers say cyberbullying is not real, it is certainly real according to the government. Several states have added cyber bullying clauses to their laws which have protected children for years. Whether you believe in cyberbullying or not, the victims of it are real. Be careful of what you post on social media; although the words you use are not verbal, their
Opposing Views
WORDS ARE FOREVER
WORDS HURT, BUT THERE’S BLOCK
YOU CAN JUST WALK
AWAY
lasting, harmful effects are most certainly real. How can you stop online bullying ? What is the solution to it? The first step, is telling children not to do it. However, children never listen, so the second step would be to tell the victim to speak up. The same way that person had a voice to hurt you, you also have a voice to get them to stop. You can simply block the person and report their account for abusive behavior. Social media giants such as Tumblr and twitter do take those reports seriously. If that doesn’t work then tell someone, don’t suffer in silence. Inform your parent or a trusted adult, or make your story public. Believe it or not there are a lot of young people who do not condone senseless abuse. This negative attention on the attacker may stop them from bullying. Cyberbullying can be stopped. As young adults we need to be mindful of what we post, because it can come back to haunt us. Spread positivity and love wherever you go.
Be careful of what you post on social media; although the words you use are not verbal, their lasting, harmful effects are most certainly real.
This one is called Next Generation Black Woman, you’ve read it before. Why is it that every black woman has to go to something to get somewhere I want a next generation black woman, one i made I want her to know the definition of struggle but to never have gone through it No bottom will be her start No ashes will she rise from Black woman is the key word, Privileged is the lock phrase Kinky locks of promise, eyes of chocolate bliss Ebony skin is not an epidemic treat it not like homelessness For this next generation black wom an has a home among a modern society Let her in, she’s been knocking for a while The glare from your pretentious jewlery glitters through the windowpain and shines a light on your bloodstained hands Damn right you killed her Murdered her innocence, her individuality, her fight But don’t be fooled, she will still fight Until the day when she is more than the name written on her certificate of authenticity
~ Angie Si’mone
George Ezra
Artist To Watch
The young English singer-songwriter from Hertford, has finally released his debut album “Wanted on Voyage” in the U.S. The 21 year old has only 2 albums out at the moment, but with the success we see with his newest album, we can expect to see more hits coming from George. His single “Budapest”, has been at Italy’s Top 20 and was certified Platinum. George’s album has reached number one in the UK charts and top ten in seven other countries. Ezra is a young artist with a passion for music that drives him. We are expecting to see more good music from Ezra in future.
March ‘15 Playlist Spotify: canvasmagazine
1. Smoke and Mirrors - Imagine Dragons 2. Pumpin Blood -NONONO 3. Firestone - Kygo 4. Different Colors - Walk the Moon 5. Runaway - Ed Sheeran 6. Shake, Shake, Shake - Bronze Radio Return 7. Drop the Game - Flume, Chet Faker 8. Another Love - Tom Odell 9. High Hopes - Kodaline 10. See me now - The Kooks 11. Warm Foothills - Alt-J 12. Lost & Found - Lianne La Havas To listen to this playlist and the rest of the songs on this playlist, please check out this Spotify playlist.
l INTRODUCING A NEW SERIES DETAILING THE CREATIVE PROCESS OF A 21ST CENTURY CREATOR
21 CENTURY CREATORS: SHERRY W. st
W
e live in the digital age. This age is marked by computers and machines taking our jobs, whole libraries and music stores in our pockets, and a wealth of information at our fingertips. Yet humans, especially us young adults, are needed more than ever. Our creative minds use these technological tools to become more efficient and productive than ever before. At Canvas Magazine, we would like to introduce a new series that highlights teenagers who embrace this millennia and use tools at their disposal to create the best content they can create. This week we would like to introduce Sherry W. who uses her laptop to record, produce, and distribute her music. Sherry W is a singer/songwriter who has been classically trained in piano for over 7 years. A classically trained pianist generally does not write new music, but something changed her life. She said, “I moved to
Hong Kong in 8th grade where I shifted my focus to songwriting. My sister stayed behind in California to finish high school while the rest of my family moved to Hong Kong. My sister and I have such a close relationship that I felt I lost a part of me when I moved. I slowly started writing music as a way to cope with the sadness and to keep a spiritual sense of her with me.” This longing for her sister - a missing a piece of herself - changed the rest of Sherry’s life.
Sherry soon began writing music and lyrics of her own. In eighth grade, Sherry learned to play guitar and has since added the ukulele to her repertoire. She writes the lyrics and the music at the same time so that the two aspects combine into one heartfelt song. She typically writes about people she meets everyday. One of her more popular songs, Runaways, is about her experience of walk-
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“My music is reflective of my own life experiences. I’m influenced by people that I meet everyday, and it inspires a lot of my music.”
“Being a teenager in the digital age makes sharing music a lot easier than it was before. The internet and tools like Soundcloud have made everything more convenient and accessible, which I’m quite thankful for.”
ing around her city at night. Sherry says its the simple experiences that impact her the most. What sets Sherry W. and other modern day teen musicians apart is their roles as a musician. Instead of just writing and performing, musicians now have to record, produce, and promote their own music. Although this has increased the workload on artists, musicians now have more opportunities than ever to be discovered. Sherry described her music recording as an evolution as she learned the quirks of recording music. “I record my music in the corner of my room or in a closet because they have the best acoustics. I have a Blue Yeti microphone, and I use Garageband. I honestly don’t have the fanciest setup, and everything’s pretty makeshift, but it works.” Sherry’s work shows that you can create beautiful music without expensive equipment. Sherry tackles promotion by putting her work out on Soundcloud and Youtube. Her work has been featured on the popular Youtube cooking channel “Sorted Food”. She has had thousands of views of her music due to those two platforms. Sherry hopes to push her music even farther and reach a broader audience. Sherry is a story of true determination and success, but she isn’t the only teen who can achieve excellence in their talents. If you want to be known, make yourself known. Anything is possible, you are holding the paint brush.
You can check Sherry’s music out at the following links: Soundcloud Youtube Facebook
Top Three’s: Top 3 books: (no particular order) 1) The Help - Kathryn Stockett 2) The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern 3) The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin Top 3 songs: (no particular order) 1) Barcelona - George Ezra 2) Bloom - The Paper Kites 3) Bright Blue - Daniela Andrade Top 3 Bands: (no particular order) 1) The Lumineers 2) The Paper Kites 3) Vampire Weekend
Reader’s Corner
1) The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky : I have been religiously reading this book since I was in 7th grade; I learn something new from it every time. This book is truly a work of art and anyone in high school should read it. 2) Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold : I’m pretty sure everyone has heard of or at least watched the movie, but the book is even better. The beautiful novel inspires a sense of forgiveness in us all. 3) Looking for Alaska by John Green : Everyone has to read at least one of John Green’s books. It’s kind of a tradition. This book happens to be one of my favorites since the ending is truly a mind twister. This book is full of tears, stories and lots of drama. 4) Crank by Ellen Hopkins: This book is intense, from the first sentence till the last sentence. Read with caution, but please read, please. 5) The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides : The name kind of sounds a bit sad, and, well, it is a very sad book, No details but you’re going to be speechless by the end of the book.
Teen Art: A Place For Your Art Canvas Magazine would love to showcase our readers work. Within the next couple of pages are various pieces of art work that were made by teenagers. If you would like your work featured within these pages, please contact us here.
Photo by Kyle Ohlson - kyleohlson.com
Photos by Patrick Kiel - patrickkiel.tk
VOICE YOUR OPINION
We welcome you to write your own opinion about anything: social issues, art, life, love, etc. If you are interested submit your article, please contact us here.
LGB(T) : TRANSGENDERS O
An estimated 2 to 5% of the population is transgender. Transgenderlaw.org
n wikipedia, transgender is defined as “the state of one’s gender identity or gender expression not matching one’s assigned sex.” But what is a transgender ; is it a state of being or an actual label ? According to Transgender 101, transgender is a term that applies to a person whose gender identity differs from their birth sex. This is a fancy way of saying that a person was born with the wrong hormones and genitals. Transgenders are all around us, they are real. Some of these people choose to go through a sex change surgery, which includes the physical and mental changes the person will endure. Although these people may seem like ordinary people, they still struggle for equality.
L G B T j WHEN WE DON’T UNDERSTAND SOMETHING, WE RUN FROM IT OR DESTROY IT JPRECIOUS KIRBYI
In 2012 it was reported that 53% of anti-LGBT homicide victims were transgender women. Those are truly shocking statistics, so why do they exist in the first place ? It comes down to one human nature ideal: When we don’t understand something, we run from it or destroy it. Does that mean just because you don’t understand the dynamics of transgenders, that you should be violent towards them ? Absolutely not. We may not
understand it, but the least we can do is respect it. We should learn to accept transgender people, just as we should learn to accept all members of the LGBT community.
Canvas Magazine February 21, 2015 Issue#1
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