VISION (Spring 2020) by iNKBLOT

VISION

CARY ACADEMY SPRING 2020

WRITERS

EDITORS

Mary Kate Englehardt Haley McGuire Finn Kerns

Vibhav Nandagiri Arul Gundam Brandon Yi

Margalit Mermelstein Cindy Li Amy Han Addie Esposito

PHOTOSHOOT CONTRIBUTORS Jaya Winemiller Leah Bezuayehu Vicky Jin Linda Trinh Niki Vilas Boas Chioma Modilim Elena Huang Carson Baker Hannah Ward

FACULTY CONSULTANT Cayce Lee

CONTENTS CONTENTS FASHION 8 / GOLF // Finn Kerns 49 / A and C Customized // Cindy Li

ART // FILM 15 / The Show Must Go On // Mary Kate Englehardt 29 / Carrie // Margalit Mermelstein 31 / Psycho // Haley McGuire

MUSIC 37 / Fine Line // Haley McGuire 55 / A Year in Review // Vibhav Nandagiri and Arul Gundam

CULTURE 11 / The Great Debate // Brandon Yi 43 / Strawberry Jam // Addie Esposito

DEDICATED TO KARA CACCUITTO

Ms. Caccuitto, Thank you for everything these past four years of high school. You have been a role model, a supportive shoulder when we needed any help, and most of all one of the best teachers anyone could have asked for. Your presence can brighten any room, and your wisdom and guidance has shaped all of us as both students and people. We will miss you so much, and the class of 2020 thanks you greatly for everything you have done for us. MK, Haley, and Finn

V IS ION

20/20

We originally chose VISION to thematically capture a class who perceives the world through 20/20 lenses. Initially, admittedly naively, we believed true vision was discovered through remembering the past with greater appreciation and seeking the future with unrelenting hope. However, after all of the chaos that has ensued so far this year, the title of this issue has taken on an entirely different meaning. Despite the trials of a pandemic and tribulations of political polarization, we must maintain our steadfast vision of the present. For this year’s photoshoot we explored aspects of daily life, both natural and manmade, that either obstruct or clarify our sense of sight. Utilizing colored lenses during our studio session, we were able to emphasize the vibrancy of the subject being photographed. Glass also enabled us to manipulate images by distorting the face of our subjects, dramatizing their features almost creating a living caricature. During our urban session, we experimented with the use of sunspots and exposure to illuminate and intensify the models’ attributes. The use of the sun’s intensity casts a harsh yet warm glow directly contrasting the cool icy glares of the studio images. With a shifted perspective, we have examined the visionary artistic feats that act as an inspiration for our generation. Through Finn Kern’s GOLF and Haley McGuire’s Fine Line we see the undeniable impact of music and its domino effect on other industries such as fashion. Additionally, in A Year in Review, the authors exemplify how similar to our point of view, art is ever evolving and changing. Even within our own community, Amy and Cindy are visionaries, transforming their art into a successful entrepreneurial project. Although there have been many cancellations the past few months including the CA art show, we were determined to feature the wonderful work of these artists in The Show Must Go On. We hope that you enjoy this issue of iNKBLOT and that it helps you to view the world around you in a new light.

This is iNKBLOT. This is VISION.

GOLF

BY FINN KERNS

Throughout history, the worlds of fashion and music have been intertwined with each other. The most famous musicians represent the hottest brands and without these popular brands musicians wouldn’t be as popular. When fans idolize their favorite musician, not only do they revere their musical talents, but also their unique style that distinguishes them from the crowd. Tyler, the Creator has become a household name in both fields, dominating the music industry and earning a Grammy for best rap album, while also starting his own brand called GOLF that has quickly become hot within the fashion world. Tyler has changed throughout his career in the limelight, but the two things that have remained constant for him are his undeniable presence in both the music and fashion industry. Tyler, the Creator originally became famous when he and his group of edgy skater creatives came together to form the rap group known as Odd Future. Odd Future became famous due to their desire to push the envelope of what was accepted in rap and fashion during the early 2010’s. They created crude, simple music that didn’t reflect a depth of musical talent, but rather a willingness to speak vulgarly, giving them a level of both fame and infamy among music listeners. Their music was not impressive or necessarily the most sonically pleasing, but gained a cult following of individuals who respected the confidence with which they rapped. Simply put, their music was lazy, but groundbreaking at the same time. Not only was their music this way, but Odd Future’s fashion reflected these same concepts. Tyler, the Creator and his partners were pioneers of fashion in the early 2010’s. Not only is Odd Future a successful brand of clothing as well as a rap group, but the members of Odd Future are credited with bringing the popular brand Supreme into the eye of the public. Supreme, one of the most popular brands in the world right now, was relatively unknown to the public back in 2011 when Odd Future was becoming increasingly famous, but Tyler, the Creator brought them fame using his own style. Tyler’s music video for his song “Yonkers”(which I highly advise against viewing) has racked up 123 million views since it was posted and clearly shows Tyler in a labeled Supreme hat. This video, although filled with disturbing images and riddled with distasteful lyrics, was known to be Supreme’s first entry into the public light. During the early phases of his career, Tyler, the Creator had formed a reputation in both the music and fashion industry, but his reputation changed the further along into his career he went.

As Tyler aged and matured, his music and running his own fashion company simply fashion matured with him. In 2015 the Odd called GOLF. Although Tyler’s fashion early Future group officially split up as each in his life simply displayed simple, basic demember began to explore the world in their signs, GOLF revolutionized Tyler’s style and own ways. As a music and fashion lover his became an immediate hit in the fashion whole life, Tyler sought to elevate the quality world. Brightly designed sweaters, multicolof the music he put out and the clothes he ored pants, and designed converse have represented as he got older. When listening been just some of the products available for to Tyler’s music, that change is clearly sale at GOLF. GOLF’s converse became so demonstrated in each album he puts out. popular that when they released new pairs His original music of shoes, they would be“Ultimately, Tyler’s unique was defined by simcome sold out almost ple beats and harsh style has shown that he immediately and resell doesn’t follow music and fash- for higher prices. Tyler is lyrics, but his later music saw Tyler sing- ion trends, fashion and music often seen out sporting ing quite often and sweaters and bright puffy follow him, making him the also composing intrijackets that demonstrate embodiment of a trendsetter.” cate and wellhis sense of fashion has developed beats for all of his songs. All of grown from when he was a young man. TyTyler’s growth on his many albums resulted ler’s development as a musician and his abilin the clear pinnacle of his music career ity to operate two separate brands have cewhen he released the album IGOR in 2019. mented him as a respected icon in both the The album won best rap album at the fashion and music worlds, demonstrating his Grammy’s (although it sounded nothing like growth as an individual in the recent years. traditional rap) and vaulted Tyler to a new Tyler, the Creator has clearly changed level of fame. While touring for this album, since his early days as a young Odd Future Tyler created a persona for himself named rapper. His style of music has changed, his fashion taste has changed, and his personaliIgor that he would always appear on stage dressed as. Igor wore a bleached blonde wig ty has changed; however, no matter how and donned bright mixed color suits as well much he seems to change society seems to change with him. Ultimately, Tyler’s unique as dark sunglasses. Igor’s style became instyle has shown that he doesn’t follow music credibly admired and demonstrates Tyler’s and fashion trends, fashion and music folpresence in the fashion world. Not only did low him, making him the embodiment of a Tyler win a Grammy, but he did so while trendsetter.

THE GREAT DEBATE By: Brandon Yi 93 years ago, an unforgettable clash of genius between two titans of physics led to one of the most successful scientific theories today: Quantum Theory. Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr challenged the laws of Physics, walking the tightrope between theory and the nature of reality. This disagreement occurred at a meeting between 29 of the greatest minds of their time, 17 of which were Nobel Prize winners. There, Bohr, along with Werner Heisenberg, proposed a theory that the tiniest particles in are universe exist as wave functions until they are observed. These wave functions encompass our entire reality, and the particles do not have material meaning until we observe their existence. Bohr proposed that subatomic particles, such as electrons, exist only in a state of probability before being measured. Now that might seem like a lot of jargon, but to put it simply, think about the Peek-A-Boo game that babies enjoy. When the baby cannot see your face, to them, you do not exist, however once they are able to observe your face again, you pop back into reality and gain meaning. Bohr thought that the act of observation caused existence, and particles were not independent from the observer. When Einstein heard this, he thought it was crazy. Einstein believed in an objective reality, where the universe existed independent from our observation of it. An electron was an electron, whether you were looking at it or not. Later, during the conference, Einstein would challenge Bohrâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s proposal, saying that these entities existed independently from the observer, and the notion of these particles living in a state of probability and uncertainty when they are no longer observed would destroy all past and future experiments in the physics world.

12 The premise of this debate revolves around two very embedded assumptions in science. The first being object permanence, which states that objects cannot go in and out of existence. The second being realism, which in physics suggests that the universe continues to exist even if we cease to observe it. These two assumptions are very fundamental to classical physics, and scientists and physicians rely heavily on these assumptions when making discoveries, or any claims about our universe. However, as ridiculous as it may have sounded, Bohr’s Theory has many Physicians today wondering of these two assumptions should have existed in the first place. Bohr’s Theory, which is referred to as the Copenhagen Interpretation, eventually led to many more phenomena in Quantum Physics, such as waveparticle duality, Quantum uncertainty, and Quantum Entanglement. It won over many young and rising physicists, and continued to gather support in the physics community, but Einstein insisted that the Copenhagen Interpretation was incomplete. He stated that there might be hidden variables inside this Quantum Phenomena that was not accounted for. However, this was a reach, and in 1932, mathematician John von Neumann created a proof that proved there were no hidden variables in quantum mechanics. While Einstein did propose a few alternative solutions, the debate had already been decided. Bohr had won. This debate provided the world with a surplus of evidence, which helped this this phenomenon become an accepted part of the physics world. Now, Quantum Physics has grown to be arguably one of the most successful and established scientific theories to this day, helping us develop many new technologies like computers, LED screens, lasers, and nuclear power plants. That being said, Quantum physics itself seems to exist in two different states, being both the most and least understood topic in Physics today. In the classic words of Richard Feynmann, who won the Nobel prize for his work in Quantum Electrodynamics,

“If you think you understand quantum physics, then you don’t.”

15 THE SHOW MUST GO ON

Due to the global pandemic devastating the U.S. many important events across the nation have been cancelled. In this case, the Cary Academy Advanced art students have worked diligently all year to create a finished product for an art show that can no longer happen. Rather than letting their talent go to waste, we have decided to feature them here.

WE PRESENT

THE ARTISTS OF CA

3D ART KHABUKI MASK by Dane Fekete You never know you're in the good old days until you leave them. Only then do we compare our pervious highs to our current lows. By depicting humanity's ancient arts against what we have created today, I wish to show the human abolishment of culture and disregard for our world, showing how we're sitting in our lowest low.

WONTONS by Elijah Weinstein My work Is driven by a desire to understand what causes a person to become enamored with an object, the theory that has informed much of my creative process is that objects are an abstractive reflection of their makers, their enjoyers, and especially their users. This reflective quality enables anthropomorphism which allows objects to take on human qualities like character and motion. Initially my work focused on giving my creations human expressiveness and personality by imprinting it with my own imperfect humanity. This took the form of works textured with chattering, stamping, and combing. Recently I have discovered that I unknowingly imprinted many pieces with character by making elements of them to imply motion. My recent work has experimented with gesture and whimsy.

DAYDREAMER by Lauren Hsu During Ceramics, I explored the expression of emotion through both wheel-thrown pieces and sculpture. Emotions are something I wanted to explore as theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re something everybody shares and therefore something that can connect us. With sculpture, I explored the expression of emotion several large busts capturing facial expressions and full body sculptures expressing emotion through posture. With my wheel-thrown pieces I often made sculptural alterations to the piece after throwing it on the wheel to give it character and then combined this with glazes emphasizing whatever emotion the piece embodied. In the end, I explored the ways emotion can be expressed in both literal and abstract ways to widen my skill set of expressing ideas.

18 SEA ANIMALS by Adam Cervanka My artistic style is centered around using vibrant colors that incorporate movement on top of darker bases to create interesting contrasts and lighting. I take pieces with more standard body shapes and incorporate nontraditional aspects like chattering and carved feet. A theme I have focused on is the contrast between fire and ice, illustrated through my three-piece flame set and three-piece hand-built arctic animal set. As I progressed in my ceramic career, I began to create thrown pieces with additional hand built or sculpted aspects, as shown in my fire set and *sea animal exhibit plate*.

SQUID by Lexi Lierman I think that it is important to incorporate every aspect that ceramics has to offer, because it can tell a story. I show this by utilizing both the wheel and off the wheel processes. My creative process is centered around nature and different environments Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve been in. Most of my pieces are oceanic themed and are vessels so they can hold water and in that, mimic the ocean. By using different glazes and shapes to emphasize the beauty of the outdoors, I strive to emphasize the importance of keeping Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s waters clean and to spread awareness of extinction of several species.

2D ART ANNA CHENG I explore the feeling of intimate and intermediate spaces in my artwork through the usage of lines and shape. Through my work I've found that I have a tendency to create pieces that are often full of explosions of color. I'm fascinated by the idea of liminal spaces, something intermediate that you're "just passing through", like phases. As our spaces reconfigure and become different through both internal and external change, our perception of the world around us changes as well.

CINDY LI My sustained investigation follows the relationship and connection between nature. My traditional work has always been best executed through watercolor, fine lines, and clean colors; most of my works will be presented through such a medium. My art pieces draw in varieties of medium to study the interaction between people, animals, and the environment. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve always enjoyed observing and feeling the world around me, but I often forget to take the time to do so when my days get hectic or busy, so this focus for my art junior and senior year was to inspire me and others to slow life down a bit. I feel through thin ink lines, soft colors, or majestic paintings.

AMY HAN

My art is mainly inspired by my perception of the world and visualizing the effects of different kinds of environment. For example, some of my works focus on environmental issues and political events. I like creating a piece of artwork that can tell a story and hopefully inspire change. Some of my other pieces illustrate psychological environments and how they affect the mind. I used to always use acrylic as my go-to medium, but as I have grown as an artist, I have started to experiment with more mediums such as oil, photo transfers, collages, and printmaking. Specifically, I started to focus on how to combine different mediums into a cohesive art piece to successfully express the sentiment I intended. I look forward to not only growing as an artist but as a person as I go through the walks of life and learn more about the world and my place in it.

ELLY KIM

Most people share their coming-of-age, youth exploration through talking and writing, but I express mine with paintbrushes. I build unique narratives through the subjects of my work to illustrate facets of my identity. As I reflect, I journey through an adventure of self-discovery, constantly learning new things about my own emotions and identity. Creating these art pieces gives me space to reflect on the important people, objects, and events that have affected me; through this process, the emotions and thoughts that arise add depth to my art.

Whether it is with purpose when you meet someone new or subconscious when you have yet to meet yourself, everyone puts up some version of an external front. Through the exploration of the portrayal of emotion using facial expressions and color, visual freedom of expression and creativity, and the concept breaking of barriers, my pieces explore the contrast of external portrayal versus internal reality.

ESTELLA ESTELLA MULTARI MULTARI

WORLD OF

Into The

29 Carrie White Burns in Hell A Film Review by Margalit Mermelstein Based on Stephen King’s novel, “Carrie” tells the story of tremendously tortured high school student Carrie White. Growing up under the care of a religiously fanatic mother, Carrie finds herself the target of often malicious jokes. Navigating her high school life, Carrie soon realizes that she possesses telekinetic and telepathic powers, powers she won’t hesitate to utilize as she becomes the

victim of even more cruel pranks. As Carrie heeds her mother’s admonitions, she finds herself, a social outcast, at the prom with one of the most popular boys in school, Tommy Ross. To Carrie’s delight, she is met at the prom with smiles, friends, magic. However, a school bully, Chris Hargensen, has orchestrated an elaborately barbaric stunt, with Carrie as its victim.

Sissy Spacek shines as she takes on the role of the tortured Carrie White. Carrie is a product of her mother’s abuse - a socially awkward outcast - never given the chance to be truly happy. However, when at the prom, she is finally allowed her moment. While joking around with her date, angelic string music permeates the score. Carrie’s smile radiates as she and Tommy get closer. However,

the music quickly takes on an ominous tone as the camera cuts to the cruel surprise awaiting her, foreshadowing the mayhem to come. Once Carrie and Tommy are named prom King and Queen, a terrifying silence reigns as Chris’s prank is unleashed. Visions of classmates laughing are displayed in a collage-like manner; however, the silence remains.

30 “They’re all going to laugh at you” After seconds that feel like hours, the silence is finally broken by the repeated promise of Carrie’s mother, “They’re all going to laugh at you”. Slow, menacing music begins to play once again, the beats keeping time with Carrie’s vicious acts of revenge. “Carrie” heralds the onset of graphic realism in the genre of American horror films. Not only had horror movies previously been exercises in smirking camp or suspenseful visions of half-seen horrors best left to the audience's imagination, but these stories were never able to truly connect with the audience. Suddenly the horror film was wrenched with blood-soaked contemporary realism, with a paranormal reality, with an ending that leaves the audience thinking, what if this happens to me? King captures the world of a typical, lonely teenage outcast, bullied, scorned, and powerless, yet combines it seamlessly with the contrasting world of the paranormal. He unerringly depicts the revenge fantasy that every teenager secretly harbors. King introduces a timeless story-line: one of retaliation and vengeance, victory and triumph . Unrelenting mistreatment and abuse by peers is what eventually pushes Carrie to her breaking point. The only times her powers are put on display are when others cause her harm. “Carrie” highlights the effect bullying can have on a teenage soul. Carrie begs for the audience's sympathy, as her actions are an uncontrollable product of her classmates’ cruelty. Through its theme of paranormal vengeance, “Carrie” contrasts the erroneous optimism of a happy ending and the crushing reality of life, while simultaneously commenting on the systematic issues present within our American high schools.

33 Putting the “Psycho” in A Film Review by Haley McGuire In the ominous 1960’s production of the psychological thriller “Psycho”, Janet Leigh stars as Marion Crane, who steals $40,000 in hopes of using it to run away with her boyfriend. While on the run, she encounters a few challenges, and ultimately finds herself in an eerie motel run by an extremely eccentric man – Norman Bates. Played by Anthony Perkins, Norman – peculiar, bizarre, erratic - goes on to explain his interesting relationship with his deranged mother. In this classic Alfred Hitchcock film, Marion’s plans go downhill when Norman’s

troubled mother takes malevolent action and murders Marion, leaving Norman in a distressed state. The film not only explores the mystery behind this brutal act, but also the life of Norman and his mother. In all, Hitchcock analyzes the complex relationships in families while also touching on the idea of internal battles and becoming a victim of your own mind and actions. One of the most famous scenes in movie history takes place while Marion is staying in the motel and decides to take a shower after her stressful day. Marion portrays her anxiety and restlessness by shredding the piece of paper she just wrote on and flushing it down the toilet. As far as character development, Marion has become increasingly tense throughout the movie, and her quick movements illustrate that well. A look of relief appears on her face as she turns on the shower, as the water washes away her worries in addition to the dirt accumulated throughout her journey. The acting soon becomes almost comical, though, as Marion is violently stabbed by Norman’s mother. The screaming and facial expressions, as well as the unrelenting harsh movements by Norma may have been frightening for the 60’s, but now appear very staged and drawn out. While the physical murder was laughable, Janet Leigh does provide a very dramatic, heartfelt, and saddening goodbye, as she slides down the shower wall with a look of pure anguish.

34 Psychological Thriller The variety of camera shots that this scene provides pairs well with the iconic screeching score that goes along with the murder. This scene builds the most suspense with the para-

lyzing shot of a blurred figure through the shower curtain while Marion stands under the water, oblivious. In the murder scene alone, there are at least 20 different angles of Marion being stabbed. While some of the angles can act as a cinematic enhancement, such as the shot of blood mixing with the shower water, other angles create a more comical affect, almost overwhelming the audience. For some, these angles may add to the thriller experience; for others, they’re just annoying. Norma remains blurred, to add more mystery to her character, while images of Marion being stabbed over and over again play to the shrieking musical score. Although the overflow of camera angles may come across as overdramatic, they accentuate the intensity needed for such a pivotal scene.

“This scene builds the most suspense with the paralyz-

ing shot of a blurred figure through the shower curtain while Marion stands under the water, oblivious.” In all, Hitchcock has captivated America with one of the most iconic thriller movies of all time while also breaking into the psychological aspects and deeper meanings behind these

classic slasher films. The familial messages and concepts found in “Psycho” leave a lasting impression on the audience and bring up many questions involving internal conflict. To conclude, “Psycho” will remain an American classic for many years to come, continuing to provide viewers with a fascinating look inside the mind of Hitchcock.

Fine Line:

By: Haley McGuire

Christmas came early for Harry Styles fans this past year, as he released his second solocareer album “Fine Line” in mid-December, gifting the world with a diverse collection of songs not long before his world tour beginning in 2020. Over the past few years, this former One Direction band member has discovered his own version of success outside of the world of radio pop and mainstream music after releasing his debut solo album “Harry Styles” in 2017 and following with “Fine Line” in late 2019. Fine Line kicks off with one of his more upbeat songs entitled “Golden”, immediately

giving the album a welcoming and nostalgic feeling. Harry himself describes this track as something to listen to as “you drive down the coast in Malibu”. This summer-like tone continues in his next three tracks, which also happen to be his singles from this album that he released prior to December 13th. “Watermelon Sugar”, “Adore You”, and “Lights Up”, while being completely different and unique tracks, all fabricate a sense of freedom within the lyrics, soft guitar, and the beautiful backup vocals from his band. The overall tone of the album changes course within his next few tracks, beginning with “Cherry”. A gently sung number matched with the delicate sounds of various string instruments, Cherry is a melancholy yet angelic song of heartbreak. He includes sounds of anguish at the end as well as a personal voicemail from his past girlfriend Camille Rowe to signify his feeling of grief after losing someone special in his life. This feeling continues into his next track “Falling”, arguably the saddest song on his album due to his fluid piano melody accompanied by cries of desperation and longing for something in his life he feels he has lost. The idea of “Falling” signifies his fear of returning to a very low point in his mental health and not being able to catch himself before he hits the bottom. The chorus has repetition of himself asking questions such as “What am I now?” and “What if I’m someone you don’t want around?”, illustrating his path of doubt and questioning himself until he has driven himself into a dark place.

The Review

Fine Line:

The Review Escaping from the feelings of self-despair and desperation, his next tracks “To Be so Lonely” and “She” bring the audience into a different phase of his emotions; he continues to

pick himself back up, but he has not regained that sense of optimism he had within the first few tracks of his album. “To Be So Lonely” portrays someone who is done being manipulated and taken advantage of, while “She” incorporates electric guitar and drums to talk about a feminine side of a man that stays hidden as much as possible. This section of Fine Line is about the struggle of independence and really knowing who you are, connecting back to “Lights Up” as one of the main repeated lyrics is “do you know who you are?”. Entering the final tracks of Fine Line, his last four songs bring back the original sense of happiness and lighthearted feelings of love that he once felt before. “Sunflower, Vol. 6” brings back the ideas of giddiness and the beginning stages of love, or the honeymoon phase. “Canyon Moon” and “Treat People With Kindness” continue the upbeat melodies and emphasize Harry’s idea of happiness and how to rebuild when you hit a low point, as he did in “Falling”. His final song on Fine Line, entitled “Fine Line” concludes the album beautifully. It is a softer song, beginning with guitar and somber lyrics, but as you near closer to the end, he begins to repeat “We’ll be alright” and ends his album with those words. It can be difficult to review an artist and remove senses of bias, but I can confidently say that Fine Line is one of my favorite albums ever released. A combination of beautiful vocals alongside his journey of love and picking himself back up again creates an authentic sound

that is both comforting and uplifting to listen to. His lyrics and melodies encompass what it feels like to go through these emotions and deal with the everchanging realities of love. Overall, I strongly recommend giving Fine Line a listen if you haven’t already; Harry Styles only continues to grow, and with the stunning variety of songs produced on Fine Line, it’s clear he has no sign of stopping.

STRAWBERRY JAM BY ADDIE ESPOSITO it’s springtime the world blossoms in its vernal glory baby deer on knobby knees and hesitant daffodils scared of chill they’ve been hurt before, you know

it’s Mother’s Day time to celebrate architects of stardust babies breakfast in bed and construction paper cards but it’s not all leisure

it’s strawberry season time for tiny palms stained red with bright juice faces sticky with sunscreen and sparkly sweat pigtails blonde in the sunshine

eternal rows entice like fingers of spring goddesses inviting toddlers to frolic among rows of plush green fountains

the lull of our voices on the breeze sneaking berries into stained mouths sleepily satiated by forbidden fruit little Mary lays down to snooze

bees protect their ruby troves but our fingers are too nimble plop plop plop into plastic buckets there’s bliss in the methodical

the air a drug of lulling reveries sweet with the decay of warm fruit productivity contends with lethargy wait why does Emma keep picking green berries? it’s time to go when the wagon is full buckets bursting with berries ice cream rewards in our tummies it’s jam season sleeves rolled to mash fruit in metal bowls unwieldy navy pots and Mason jars rummaging for lids playing hide-and-seek the fret: who gets jam, who doesn’t always thrilling, elucidative, revealing you really learn who counts, who doesn’t when a jar of jam is on the line no matter how big I get the sweet smell of strawberries in the sunshine the back aches of the spring harvest and the rich color of fresh jam still help me blossom with the daffodils

A and C Incredible Art from Cindy Li and Amy Han, Class of 2020 How did you two originally decide to start your business? Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve had a few people like Victor and Kenneth come up to us and talk about how we would be really popular as a shoe designing business and that people would pay good money for good art- we figured since it is senior year and we in theory should have more time to do stuff after tri 1, that we would start a small thing for CA students, friends, and family! What is the process like from a customer first placing an order to giving them the final product? Basically, our advertisement is word of mouth, where people would hear about it and DM us or text us about what they were thinking. Usually once we have the plan consolidated, they give us the shoes whenever they can, and I start the designing stage. I use an iPad to draw out what I want everything to look like, and then send to the customer for approval. Once everything has been approved, we start sketching and painting the shoe. This process can take up to 2-4 weeks depending on our schedules and the complexity of their design. Afterward, we spray it and seal the paint, and meet the customer in person to record the reaction! What is your favorite design that you two have done?

Customized

What is the most challenging/unexpected aspect of your business thus far? I certainly didn’t expect our little business idea to blow up so much- we’ve had over 10 orders so far, with plenty more to do, and we’ve actually expanded our demographic to other nearby schools like Durham Academy! The hardest part about gaining a bigger exposure is being able to balance our school work with our painting business. It is certainly testing our time management skills. What is the process like of applying to an art school? Lots and lots of art. You need to be able to find time to create enough portfolio pieces that 1, you are happy with, and 2, represent your more recent development of skills. Specifically, you must create pieces that tune to the area of study you want to pursue. So for example you would see more digital work and animation in my portfolio where as in Amy’s you would see more architectural and still life work. On top of that, most schools still require the essay writing portions, so everything must be worked on. It is a stressful time, but it is also still creating art. In the end, I love it and I love spending my time working on these things. How do you see yourself pursuing art and design later on? I want to be able to create animation for movies, TV shows, short films, advertisements, games, you name it! All my work right now is focused on trying to build my detail and precision works so I can develop characters or designs more skillfully- hence why I do most of the character art on the shoes! Seeing so many people amazed or happy by our work is exactly the reason I’ve always loved art and known that I’ve wanted to do this for the rest of my life.

A YEAR IN REVIEW VIBHAV AND ARUL The following article includes excerpts from a conversation that took place on Friday, January 3, 2020. On either side of this semi-impromptu conversation were longtime friends Vibhav Nandagiri [Cary Academy] and Arul Gundam [Enloe High School]. They were brought together that day due to a desire to take a closer look at albums that shaped 2019 and, in some cases, shaped the decade that preceded. Some albums were commercial successes, some were critically acclaimed, some were both, and some were neither. In a time where musicâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s impact is more accessible and diverse than ever before, these two found it necessary to pause and make sense of how far the music industry has come, while identifying what has yet to be explored in the coming ones.

V: ---You know [laughs] - when I asked for a good indie album, I was expecting something vibey with recycled beats and repetitive lyrics...but Titanic Rising is not that at all. The longest song is - what - six minutes long?

Titanic Rising

by Weyes Blood

A: 6:09. That really shows you how bold Weyes Blood was when creating this really slow BPM music, 60s/70s inspired music in the age of streaming. I still think it’s pop music, though. V: Really? A: I mean it’s some weird corner of pop - chamber pop or baroque pop; whatever you wanna call it. V: I don’t think it fits in the realm of pop. Can you imagine people at a sold-out concert listening to this stuff ? A: I think her music has some of the same appeals as an Adele, to be honest. V: Maybe for some people. But the main reason this album stood out to me was because of its unique sound. There are very few artists who do what she does. A: You’re right. Amongst her contemporaries, Julia Holter is one of the few artists that comes to mind who does this sort of stuff nowadays. But other than that, it’s Joni Mitchell and a bunch of soft rock from the 70s. Natalie certainly looked back for inspiration when creating this album. V: I still can’t get over her voice, though. Personally, I think it’s her biggest asset. Her voice sounds like it was taken from the 50s. When you look at a lot of the chart-topping female artists – Ariana Grande, Lorde, Billie Eilish – they deliberately make an effort to sing in this whispery range of their voice, but if you listen to Weyes Blood, her voice sounds more grounded. It creates this really distinct aura from other albums. A: I get that. And the production elements really highlight her singing voice, which in turn create some really poignant moments. V: 100%. I really felt it at the ending of “Everyday” and midway through “Movies”. It’s like where that whimsical yet sad drums revealed a clear and pure sound.

IGOR

A: ---you think we should turn this over to IGOR? V: Yeah, probably [laughs].

A: So, I think Tyler, the Creator is a great product of this Internet age. I mean, his inTyler, The Creator fluences probably came before the Internet with whatever random jazz music he listened to from the 70s and 80s. But he’s obviously discovered stuff past 2007 as well, and IGOR is a great amalgamation of all of those influences. V: And this album is also weird because it’s sort of this culmination of a growth we’ve seen from him throughout this decade.

A: He’s had one of the weirdest career trajectories of the decade. Even though he’s still making hip-hop, compare Goblin to this – I mean Goblin is horrorcore through and through. Wolf got a bit more jazzy and subdued. Cherry Bomb is noisy as hell V: Flower Boy is nearly entirely melody-driven. A: And then there’s IGOR, which really basks in this concept of excess and overall has a really frantic energy to it. Five albums, one every two years, each one with its own distinct sound - Tyler’s given us quite the career arc to explore. V: Could we say he’s matured through it all? A: Of course. IGOR is about a crisis in his life, or what feels like a crisis. It’s a relationship, but the maturity with which he deals with the subject where the last song of the album is called “Are We Still Friends?”. If you compare that with the Tyler from Goblin and how passive aggressive… V: Not passive aggressive, just aggressive [laughs]. A: [laughs] Just blatantly aggressive, and how in your face that album is about personal relationships and wanting to get back at people - it’s juvenile, honestly.

58 V: But that’s what makes his story so compelling. I mean what would you say if I came to you ten years ago – six-year old me [laughs] – and told you that this gay, Black dude from a horror-core skating and rapping cult would end up debuting at number one on Billboard. A: I’d say you were crazy [laughs]. But what I think really gives this album character is the sense that Tyler knew his limitations from the start. He knew that he couldn’t sing - he always hated how deep his voice was. He knew he would need smart features to pull this thing off. Both he and his collaborators knew what needed to be done, whether it was Solange, Kanye, or even Uzi [laughs]. V: Don’t forget Carti [laughs] – A: True [laughs]. But IGOR becomes all the more impressive when you realize that Tyler produced the album himself. I mean, this is the only rap album to go Number One where the main artist produces everything by himself – even Kanye has co-producers [laughs]. It’s an incredible mark of his talent, but he’s still aware that there are limitations to what he can do. V: And I think those limitations force him to be more creative, to experiment. The example with his voice, where he’s essentially like – I don’t have a good voice; what can I do to change that? I can be creative with pitch shifting. He doesn’t mask his shortcomings; he projects them...but in the most pleasing way possible, if that makes sense. A: Of course. And another interesting thing: this album is his shortest yet. 12 songs, 40 minutes. V: That’s true. He’s getting right to the point. A: Exactly. If albums like this can come out and succeed, as weird as they are, I think the future of pop albums isn’t as monolithic as it may have seemed a decade ago.. V: I think we both stand firm in saying that IGOR is our favorite Tyler album thus far. Some people debated whether the album was mixed properly, some people found the album too loud, but through all the craziness, he was able to create this strange, clunky, Tyler-esque balance that portrays his grief perfectly.

59 V: ---The Internet Age brought with it a distinct set of problems. One of these major problems that we see is the anxiety that comes from having this virtual presence out in the world. You suggested All My Heroes Are Cornballs to me because it deals with internet age anxiety, and I was wondering if you could elaborate on this connection.

A: The anxiety JPEGmafia talks about is plainly apparent in the music itself. The album feels disconnected - there are random pauses, breaks in the lyrics, strange sound effects but it’s different from his previous music. His last album, Veteran, is a through and through rap album which talks about the same theme, but if you look at this one, the album is like 65% singing. I can’t remember a rapped hook on this album. It’s almost like, for people who have heard his previous music, this is weirder, but for people who haven’t heard his music, this album is much more accessible. V: Now that you mention it, the album did feel broken. Kind of glitchy if I’m being honest. Come to think of it: glitchy, internet age anxiety - it can’t be a coincidence, right? A: [laughs] It seems a bit too perfect right? That glitchiness you mentioned kind of makes the album sound like it’s withering and dying [laughs], but all of that adds to its character.

ALL MY HEROES ARE CORNBALLS BY JPEGMAFIA

V: And then you get to the lyrics which are incredibly confrontational. JPEGMafia really hones in on the concept of haters...which certainly isn’t the newest concept in music...but he kind of takes the haters discussion a step further by calling people’s bluff. A: I mean you’re right [laughs]. We’re all familiar with the “oh, I don’t care about my haters” trope. Well, by mentioning them, you do. You cared enough about them to mention them in the song. JPEGMafia kind of exposes the hypocrisy between words and intentions through the album. It’s the simple idea: if your hero is someone who directly confronts their haters, that’s pretty hypocritical, and therefore pretty corny. V: It’s pretty in-line with a large chunk of his career’s work: criticizing the hypocrisy of others.

CHARLI BY CHARLI CXC

A: ---For someone whose roots are in rave music, I certainly wasn’t expecting an album like Charli. When looking at her career, it’s clear she’s passed the EDM-pop hype. What it’s transformed into though is really intriguing. She’s at the forefront of a hyperpop movement. V: That’s a real name [laughs]? I mean, I guess it fits. It’s maximalism kind of makes it seem like traditional radio pop on steroids. Yet for such intense and - I don’t know - glaring music, it’s weirdly easy to get into. A: I totally agree. Despite all the weird and noisy moments this album brings, it is still a pop album. But it takes itself seriously. It is dedicated to the idea of this futuristic vision of what music on the radio could be like. V: I mean - it’s just so bold and innovative. The first minute and a half of “Next Level Charli” was nothing short of musical ecstasy - I was definitely in some sort of trance [laughs].

A: I totally get that. Charli really gave listeners of traditional pop the perfect gateway drug into this new genre. Pop is all about gratification, but Charli transforms it into an almost instantaneous gratification. And this gratification envelopes you in a comforting blanket of techno and autotuned singing. V: And geez - can we talk about that contrast? A: Yes we most certainly can. V: I mean, to go from a song like “1999”, which has this nice dance pop feel to it to “Click” took me by surprise for a quick second. “Click” just assaults you with this wall of sound and flow, yet nevertheless Charli always sounds in control of the album’s sound. A: I can’t agree more. I’d like to say the contrasts are like peaks and valleys, but that’s not true because the transition between each song is like jumping from peak to peak - like you’re on this crazy joyride to the future almost. V: Would you say Charli has discovered her sound? A: I think she has, without a doubt. This album was by far my favorite of 2019. It’s a serious pop album, it’s experimental in its sound, and it straight up slaps. That’s a deadly trifecta. If this album truly is a glimpse of the future of pop, I’d have to say I’m pretty excited for the next decade.

CARVANA By WOS V: ---Let’s get one thing straight: I think we can both agree that CARAVANA is less an album and more a collection of songs. A: It does feel very loose...which isn’t necessarily the worst thing. V: You’re right, especially if you look at the genre. It’s rap-rock. A: Major Eminem vibes [laughs]. V: Yeah [laughs], exactly. When I first listened to the album, what caught me by surprise was how different this music was from reggaeton and trap, both of which are hip-hop based art forms that are taking over Latin America. A: Not just Latin America - they’re taking over the world. Just look at J Balvin, Bad Bunny, Ozuna. V: This is true. With reggaeton, you have this formula with a preassigned beat and the catchiest hooks. It’s hard to really set yourself apart from such an intoxicating style. A: But when people do, it’s a statement. Looking at albums like this really shows the global influence rap has had over the past few decades as an art form. For rap to succeed in so many avenues is truly a testament to its ability to connect with all kinds of people.

62 V: You’re exactly right. WOS’s story is truly unique. The man first gained fame as a freestyle rapper. He won the 2018 Batalla de Los Gallos, the biggest freestyle competition in all of Latin America, and that sort of catapulted him into this recording gig he’s got going on right now A: Which is already a departure from a lot of artists today whose craft is heavily melody-driven and relies a lot on talent in the recording booth rather than onstage. This guy just walks up and is like: nah I’m just gonna rap

V: Then he proceeds to pair these intense verses with rock music - just bold all around. His delivery is really choppy, in-your-face, and no matter how you feel about the album, you have to admit that the pairing makes the songs all the more memorable. I can still hear the album’s sound in my head. A: True. And it all sort of starts with CARAVANA’s title track: Canguro, which not only shows off his artistry as a rapper, it kind of gives a glimpse into his artistry. That song slaps [laughs]. It’s really good. V: Exactly [laughs]. He also plays around with tempo during the song there’s that middle section that sounds entirely distinct from the rest of the song. A: Overall, though he’s still heavily involved with the freestyle community, it’s cool to see an artist manifest in front of the global community. This album is kind of like an announcement to the world.