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CENTER OF VISION
Cover art by Joanne Ruan, Illustration '18
Issue #13 May 2016 May 2016 / 1
MassArt Center of Vision Issue #13 621 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115 massartstudentnews.com | facebook.com/MassArtStudentNews
ABOUT US
EDITORIAL & ONLINE STAFF
MassArt’s Center of Vision serves as a forum for the MassArt student community. We publish a range of mediums, both written and visual, continuously online and monthly in print. Center of Vision is a place for our college community to explore its creative output, express diverging opinions, and discover what’s happening on campus and beyond. We believe the sustainability of this publication comes from allowing each new generation of students to make their mark. As a place where every student can have their say, Center of Vision belongs wholly to the MassArt community. New members are always welcome to join. Here are some positions we’re currently looking for: Online Editor Print Editor Art/Music Reviewer
Columnists Photojournalists Event Reporters
Interim Editor-in-Chief David Gorelik Executive Editor / Photographer Jennifer Smith Lead Designer Nikki Chan General Editor Tommy Ouk
CONTRIBUTORS SGA Representative Iman Louise-Jeune Music Review Column Clio Berta
If any of these interest you, email us at snews@massart.edu and we can help get you started.
Writers Dylan McCusker
SUBMISSIONS
Faculty Advisor Maura Smyth
We are always looking for student artwork, designs and writing to feature in our monthly issues and on our website. We accept all kinds of work, in any type of media. If you would like to submit your work, follow the submission guidelines on our website and send your images and writing to snews@massart.edu.
2 / May 2016
Publisher TCI Press Inc. 21 Industrial Ct Seekonk, MA 02771 tcipress.com
POEMS An American Poem
Liking You
My hometown is Atlanta, Georgia Up here I get asked Where the “y’all”s and the “sweetheart”s And the “darlin’”s are
Sometimes I want to tell you that I like you But I am afraid to because what we have is casual In its basic sense. We have never talked about What we are, it’s been locked in a vault behind Our lips which are sealed with each others’.
Where is my Southern Hospitality and Charm? They ask how does an Asian end up In the South “But where are you really from?” When they see my tan, yellow skin, And dark, almond eyes They see my youth and Wonder which parent Had theirs Stolen away “Well, I don’t believe you’re fully Asian, Maybe half – are you sure – That you’re really adopted?” As if the it is a dirty word, something tainted “What happened to your parents’ other children? Are they much older?” They say when they see my dad’s white-grey hair When they see my mother’s laughter and worry lines They’re surprised when I pull out my driver’s license They’re expecting a visa or a passport They make a remark about Asian stereotypes and driving It’s only a bonus that I’m also female
Like giddy school girls we try to be quiet while Having our fun, hiding under the blankets and Creating our own world. I lean into your space heater body And my arms wrap around you, like flowers that Grow towards the sunlight, I cannot help the attraction. Maybe one day I can retrieve the key and let the Flowing words spill out of my mouth like honey and you can be the bear. Honey, I like you a lot but I am unaware of where we stand but I know I want To stand next to you. Anne E. Harney
A Post-Wisdom Teeth Poem Today, joy tasted like blood My smile so intense The tension from the stitches Yielded a warm red Czarina Shartle
“You’ve been really American-ized.” Emma M. Kayhart
May 2016 / 3
An International Night
O
n the evening of April 19th, MassArt students gathered in the Tower lobby to attend the first ever International Cultural Night. A line of curious and hungry students stretched out into the main lobby, which moved slowly through the hallway towards the DMC entrance. Past the doors, a row of long tables lined the brightly decorated hallway, with string lights and various cultural ornaments hanging from the walls. Each table featured traditional food from a different country. These included India, China, Japan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Puerto Rico, Colombia and South Korea. In addition to the buffet of delicious food, traditional crafts and informational posters were also displayed at each table. Besides eating, students could also learn about and participate in several cultural activities, such as Chinese calligraphy, origami making, and Henna tattoos. The event gathered a large crowd, with many students stopping by each table to try the food and speak with the international students about their country’s history and traditions. Within less than an hour, most of the food was already gone. This event, hosted by the Multicultural Arts Association club (MAA), was the first of its kind to be held at MassArt. The club collaborated with other international MassArt students to put together the event and bring this fun, new experience to the college. “It's about that time of the year when everyone is ready to go home for the summer, especially
4 / May 2016
for us international students,” said Jonaki Guha, Graphic Design ’18. “We planned this event to share our experiences of home with our friends and family in our second home — MassArt.” Jonaki, along with the other MAA club members, wanted to share her country’s traditions with the MassArt community in hopes of countering the lack of cultural events at the school, especially those events aimed at and organized for international students. Aditi Lakhtakia, Jewelry and Metals ’18, describes the lack of culturally diverse events at MassArt: “Unfortunately there are too few of us international students here to make too many events possible. The MAA is one of the only few groups that provides such culturally diverse events,” she explains. “Events at MassArt try to involve a variety of cultures but they are neither big enough to involve many, nor are they as authentic as we would want them to be.” But after seeing the overwhelmingly positive response from other students, Aditi and Jonaki are excited about hosting more events like this with MAA in the future. They agree that sharing different cultures plays an important role in both building and enriching a strong community. “It's important for people to experience cultures beyond food at multicultural restaurants. And it's exciting for us to share a part of ourselves that we've left behind across the globe,” says Aditi. “Moreover, it’s about celebrating these cultures for what they are and what more they can offer.”
Photos by Anna Fujii
by David Gorelik
May 2016 / 5
THE GALLERY Student Work
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9 Wanna see your art here too? Email your work to snews@massart.edu and include your name, major, year of graduation, and the title of your piece.
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12 1 "Dekhte Raho", Aditi Lakhtakia, Jewelry and Metals '18 2 "Mako Portrait", Haley Jepson, Illustration '18 3 "Interior Space", Crystal Araiza, Illustration '18 4 "Untitled", Emily Muller, Illustration '17 5 "Rain", Dora Wang, Illustration '18 6 "Wearied", Emily Muller, Illustration '17 7 "Drumpf", Emily Muller, Illustration '17 8 "Observation: Acrylic ", Brianna Florio, Illustration '17 9 "Red Glow", Kalynn Denton, Photo '17 10 "Porcupillo", Aditi Lakhtakia, Jewelry and Metals '18 11 "Alisa", Sunny Chen, Painting and SIM '19 12 "Burano, Venice", Brianna Florio, Illustration '17
May 2016 / 9
PLAYLIST RECIPES
Recipe: Jo urnaling A lone In You When Eve r Bedroom ryone Else Is Asleep Ingredients
by Clio Berta Here are a few playlist recipes for certain (often very relatable) moments. Stir well and enjoy!
Your Number To Recipe: Giving Ingredients
* I Can’t S ee
m To Make You Mine, * Blue Mo The Cliente on, Beck le * My Only Swerving, El Ten Eleve n * Slower Than Gold , Smoosh * Stephan e Visite Ap part, Jean -Michel Be * Both W rnard orlds, Joha nna Warre n * Death W ith Dignity, Sufjan Ste vens
A Stranger
Santigold * I’m A Lady, ris Hilton This World, Pa * Nothing In omez yself, Selena G * Hands To M n, Le Tigre * Deceptaco uses on, Throwing M * Not Too So u, JoJo * Baby It’s Yo e in Heights * Ghosts, Mad
Recipe : Stres s Danc Of Com ing Af mitme ter A L nts ong, F Ingred ull Day ients * Mak in
g Cert
* Be R ig
iew
terv Stakes In h ig H A alking To Recipe: W ts Ingredien he The ,T The Day * This Is a k, Matom vent hing Bac e Toxic E * Old T rn o b ir A he g Well, T * Wishin Bowie ve, David o L ash rn e d e, Kate N * Mo her Plan ig H A o eT * Take M od Mac , Fleetwo * Gypsy
* Mod e
ain, Th
ht The
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re, Dip
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rn Lov e, Dav * G.O id Bow .M.D., ie J. Cole * F**c kin’ Pr oblem s, A$A * Bell P Rock y Of T y he Bea t, Grim * I Ca es n’t Be With Y ou, Th * Our e Cran Time, berrie Lily All s en
y Recipe: Getting Dumped By A Hook-Up Budd For You Were Never Supposed To Catch Feelings Ingredients * Since You Been Gone, Kelly Clarkson * All The Things She Said, t.A.T.u. * Kill V. Maim, Grimes * Complicated, Avril Lavigne * Modern Girl, Sleater-Kinney * Romance Is Boring, Los Campesinos! * Lover’s Spit, Broken Social Scene * Oh Well, Fiona Apple * Long December, Counting Crows
10 / May 2016
MOVIE REVIEW: The Jungle Book by Dylan McCusker
The Jungle Book (2016) Director: Jon Favreau Cast: Neel Sethi, Bill Murray, Idris Elba Synopsis: A young boy raised by wolves and a panther doesn’t want to leave the jungle to escape the claws of a dangerous tiger. He befriends a bear, meets a host of new creatures, and learns a lot about life along the way.
IMAGE COURTESY OF WALT DISNEY STUDIOS
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went into this one truly not knowing what to expect. On the one hand, I was really intrigued by the trailers and the aesthetic of the film, but on the other hand I was apprehensive about how well the story would translate from a cartoon (and book) into live-action. Luckily 95% of the movie was CGI so it translated pretty well! This is actually one of the few instances where a ton of CGI worked well instead of detracting from the film (I’m looking at you, The Hobbit trilogy). The Jungle Book was an absolutely gorgeous film. The designs of the animals were beautifully rendered, and fluid enough to remain believable. I was particularly blown away by how cool and intimidating Shere Khan (voiced by Idris Elba) looked. There were also several notable sequences that stuck out as being particularly intriguing, such as the visual sequence during the hypnosis of Mowgli by Kaa the snake (voiced by Scarlett Johansson). Unfortunately, the realism of the CGI animals did occasionally weaken the connection between the voice acting and the characters being portrayed. The concept of realistic-looking animals talking with human voices was not the problem; the problem was some of the characters' awkward anatomy. For example, while animals like the tiger or the apes looked great when talking, the long and rigid muzzles of the wolves made for clunky and awkward speech animation.
Another aspect of the talking animals that really brought me out of the film was how recognizable some of the voice actors were. I love me some Bill Murray and Christopher Walken as much as the next guy, but damn did their voices distract me. There were plenty of other well-known actors and actresses who voiced animals in the movie, but these two actors stuck out because of their particularly distinct voices. I would have vastly preferred some lesser known voice actors who would have done as good of a job but have been far less distracting. Aside from those two things, I was very impressed with the film. Its pacing was great. I wasn’t bored by slow moments, nor was I overwhelmed with the action. Despite some of the familiar voices being distracting, all of the actors played their roles wonderfully, and Neel Sethi as Mowgli did an amazing job. I imagine for such a young and inexperienced actor, doing everything on a blue screen by himself had to have been pretty tough, but he really pulled it off. Idris Elba also stood out as a particularly threatening and wicked character. I could listen to him give villainous monologues all night. The Jungle Book did a great job at instilling nostalgia in the viewer while also keeping the film fresh enough to maintain my interest. And it looked great while doing it. I would definitely recommend checking it out while it is still in theaters!
May 2016 / 11
"Bird Lover's Mix" Haley Jepson, Illustration '18