Digital
Volume 6 | Issue 6
who’s on staff? editorial EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Alana Valko CREATIVE DIRECTOR Kenzie King FEATURES EDITOR Sophie Cloherty PRINT FASHION EDITORS Nick Farrugia Jenny Ruan DIGITAL FASHION EDITOR Alexa DeFord
business PUBLISHER Claire Dickerson ACCOUNTS DIRECTOR Colleen Jones
DESIGN EDITORS Mackenzie Schwedt Manda Villarreal
MARKETING DIRECTOR Molly Shulan
PRINT PHOTO EDITORS Katie Corbett Evan Parness
FINANCE COORDINATORS Kate Burns Drisha Gwalani
DIGITAL PHOTO EDITOR Francesca Romano
EVENTS COORDINATORS Paige Dobies Courtney O’Beirne
STREET STYLE EDITORS Lucy Carpenter Ryan Little MANAGING PHOTO EDITOR Natalie Guisinger
OUTREACH COORDINATOR Ellery Benson
VIDEO EDITOR Hayley Danke
SALES COORDINATORS Julia Barofsky Maya Jerath Kira Mintzer Julia Napiewocki
DIGITAL CONTENT EDITORS Alice Huth Alex Sterchele
SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATORS Liz Haley Jacob Ward
ILLUSTRATOR MANDA VILLARREAL
SHEI /’sh(ay)/ Magazine was founded in 1999 as an Asian Pop Culture Magazine and became affiliated with University of Michigan Student Publications in 2013. Our Digital Magazine, known as SHIFT at the time, was launched in 2015. Since then, SHEI has grown to campus wide recognition as a publication that students can come to for fashion, art, and culture commentary and inspiration.
who’s on staff?
contributing members STYLISTS Sophie Alphonso Rosalie Comte Isabelle Fisher Tavleen Gill Hannah Leonard Karly Madey Heba Malik Natalie Marshall Juan Marquez Natalia Nowicka Sarah Ory Alexandra Plosch Jacob Ward Caroline White WRITERS Sophia Layton William Neumaier Melina Schaefer
PHOTOGRAPHERS Alex Andersen Lauren Berman Gabriella Ceritano Nicole Kim Mihir Kothari Anders Lundin Gabrielle Mack Gwen McCartney Emma McKillip Eva Russa Fern Sirapa Vickaikul Vera Tikhonova Rita Vega Alvin Yao GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Julia Dean Maddie Fox Tung Tung Lin Halley Luby Gabrielle Mechaber VIDEOGRAPHERS Sara Cooper Miranda Felty Francisca Lee
in this issue
MASTHEAD 0 LETTER FR CO ME A HOME I WESTERN
02 ROM THE EDITOR 06 OME CLEAN 10 FREE THE ODALISQUE 16 AND MY SHADOW 20 THE VINYL RENAISSANCE 28 HEIR 30 IS A FUNNY THING 34 DIVINE FEMININE 36 RENAISSANCE 38
letter from the editor
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We began this issue over a month ago with the intention of unearthing what rebirth has meant in our lives. It feels a bit unsettling to be talking about a rebirth now in the midst of a pandemic, when the threat of a virus has upset every aspect of human life, unfolding continuous uncertainty for our present and future livelihood. When we talk about rebirth, we imagine regeneration, or a transcendence of self or life, after distressing disarray. Implicit in the idea of a rebirth exists the presumption that things will come back better than before. It feels quite ignorant and naive to think this way when assessing the reality of this virus. In some ways, despair feels like the only outcome—people will die, businesses will shut down, jobs will be lost, and mass quantities of people will be displaced. It’s hard to believe that anything positive can coexist with feelings of fear and uncertainty we are all experiencing right now. This issue cannot combat the pain and panic we are all living through at this moment, but it can remind us that chaos births recovery. Recovery is painful, lengthy, and uncertain, yet at the same time provides a space for reflection and growth.
This issue’s creators divulge in their curiosities around rebirth: our writers explore the rebirth, and reclaiming of women’s nipples in fine art (pg 16), the resurgence of vinyl records (pg 28), and how “home,” as in the place we came before college, can fade from a place of comfort to a place of distance (pg 34). Our fashion team and photographers visualize rebirth in the following assortment: as a sun-drenched golden hour (Come Clean, pg 10), as a personal journey to uncovering identity (Me and My Shadow, pg 20), as an ode to the renaissance (Heir, pg 30), as a divine woman (Divine Feminine, pg 36), and lastly, as a rethinking of western aesthetics (Western Renaissance, pg 38). Certainly coming out of a pandemic will not come with instant healing—many parts of us and our world will need time and thoughtful efforts to heal. Our actions, whether that be social distancing or being mindful of our vulnerable populations, give us immense agency over the outcome of this situation. With our actions in mind, and maybe a little bit of hope from our final digital issue of the school year, we can remind ourselves that with pain comes growth.
Alana Valko Editor-In-Chief
E M CO N A E L C
DIREC TO JACOB R W STYLIS ARD TS SOPHIE A TAVLEE LPHONSO N GILL HEBA MA PHOTO LIK G ANDER RAPHERS S LUN DIN FERN S IR GRAPH APA VICKAIK U IC DES IGNER L MADD IE FOX MODE L ZACHA RY MO RRIS
Free the Odalisque #freetheodalisque Interview with Art Instagram, @titsfromthepast When the Guerilla Girls first lambasted the Western art canon with Guerilla Girls Talk Back in 1989, the museum and art world was a boys-only club. The Guerilla Girls produced a 50 edition poster of a reclining nude wearing their trademark gorilla mask that effectively inducted Jean-August-Dominique Ingres’s La Grand Odalisque into their girls-only club. The poster says, “Do women have to be naked to get into the Met. Museum? Less than 5% of the artists in the Modern Art sections are women, but 76% of the nudes are women.” This gender imbalance has since been continually discussed, but the Instagram account, @titsfromthepast shows it is not yet exhausted. With the bio “we share fine art nipples” their account exclusively posts a range of cropped images of breasts from paintings of the past. Like a virtual museum, this account has transcended the possibilities of the Instagram interface and despite all of the nudity still adheres to Instagram’s community guidelines. @titsfromthepast claims inspiration
from the free the nipple movement but sources from an assemblage of images of female objectification. Inadvertently, the account becomes a catalog representative of the female nude’s exorbitant saturation of the Western art canon. With a twist of irony, the account has roped the various male artists they feature into a modernist feminist dialogue. Wanting to know more about their inspiration, I asked @titsfromthepast a few questions. What inspired you to make this account? For example, do you have an art historical background or is this for a specific cause? It was mostly a joke about the Instagram nipple ban and the reason beneath it. Twitter for example, allows nipples and honestly that freedom could be used better than it has. So we started wondering about how it was used, where and by whom and what was represented before collecting images.
What is your opinion about the sexualization of women in art? Do you think your posts are sexualizing the art that you are featuring? TFTP is not creating new content in the history of images and icons we just report how a key symbol of femininity has been used by mostly male painters across centuries. We don’t want to sexualize anything that wasn’t before. In art history, the female breasts have been a topos represented in different scenarios depending on the historical period during which it was painted.
WRITER SOPHIA LAYTON DESIGNER HALLEY LUBY
How quickly did your f why do you think peop the content you post?
We gained 20k followers I think people are encha We try to put a lot of effo and use high-quality imag to see the brush sign, t little cracks over the figu age more tangible and hig with it a lot of history.
following grow, and ple are interested in
in less than one year. anted by the details. ort to stay consistent ges. I personally love the paint, and some ure. It makes the imghlights that it brings
Is it hard to represent diverse cultures being only limited to artwork with nudity? Yes, it is. We are definitely not experts in Asian art or African etc. It is quite complicated to include everything so please excuse us if you see less black, Latino, or Asian women but that is because we found so few. From the perspective of the free the nipple movement, it’s interesting that Instagram allows hyper-realistic paintings of breasts but often removes nude photographs. Instagram’s community guidelines say “nudity in photos of paintings and sculptures is OK.” Within the context of fine art, is the nude form permitted because of its supposed heightened cultural value? Where is the line drawn between artistic expression and objectification and can they happen simultaneously? @titsfromthepast could be satirically implicating the male artists they source from in a larger feminist narrative or they could be perpetuating their historical processes of objectification. Although they claim their followers are “enchanted by the details,” is this a capitulation? Regardless @titsfromthepast presents us with a valuable tool to evaluate the trends and statistics of the role of the female nude in art history, and we know what the Guerilla Girls would say about those statistics.
ME AND MY SHAD
ME AND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SHADOW
Blazer - H&M White Pants - Collusion
DOW
DIRECTOR JUAN MARQUEZ STYLISTS SARAH ORY CAROLINE WHITE PHOTOGRAPHERS GABRIELLA CERITANO RITA VEGA ALVIN YAO VIDEOGRAPHER MIRANDA FELTY GRAPHIC DESIGNER MACKENZIE SCHWEDT MODEL CHLOE BENNETT
ME AND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SHADOW
ME AND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SHADOW
Jumpsuit - Nasty Gal
ME AND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SHADOW
ME AND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SHADOW
Dress - Akira
ME AND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SHADOW
Gown - Juan Marquez Gloves - Dolls Kill
ND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SHADOW ME AND MY SH
THE V RENAIS Whether by browsing the ‘New Arrivals’ section at Urban Outfitters, or walking the streets of Ann Arbor and seeing the various hopping record stores, you have probably noticed that vinyl records are back. What caused this sudden renewed interest? I bought my first vinyl record my sophomore year of high school, after coming across my uncle’s old turntable and a couple Bose bookshelf speakers in our basement. If I remember correctly, it was the soundtrack to Straight Outta Compton, as this was right around my big hip-hop stage. Since then my obsession has only continued to grow and vinyl has allowed me to think and listen to music in a completely different way (while also cleaning out my wallet I might add). In 1867, American Inventor Emile Berliner invented the first ever vinyl record player, the gramophone. The machine had to be operated by hand and it specialized in playing seven-inch rubber discs. Fast forward 81 years to 1948 when Columbia Records crafted the very first 33 1/3 RPM record, phasing out the previously used ten-inch 78 RPM vinyl that was extremely popular pre-1950. Then Sony brought the CD and with it the sharp decline of the vinyl market. CDs were considered much easier to transport and made listening to artists such as The Rolling Stones and
Diana Ross a hell-of-a-lot easier, outselling vinyl records by 1986, according to the RIAA. Vinyl was almost entirely obsolete throughout the 90s and early 2000s, generating only $14m in the United States during 2005. However, record sales began a surprising comeback in 2007, earning $224.1 million in the first half of 2019 alone, according to the RIAA. Many companies began repressing highly sought-after classic vinyl, such as The Beatles and Pink Floyd, generating massive revenue. A copy of Dark Side of the Moon or Abbey Road became considered staples of a modern collection, the former of which I’ll admit can be found on my shelf currently. This is The Vinyl Renaissance. There is no universally agreed upon answer to why vinyl has made such a comeback, however there are a few suspected main reasons for the recent surge in sales. People often ask me, “Why do you collect vinyl?” or “What’s so special about it?”, and I think the most common response to that question is simply, “It’s an experience.” As cheesy as that may sound, there is certain ly something special and ritualistic about picking out a record, whether it be Carole King’s Tapestry or Enter the Wu-Tang, dropping the needle, and hearing those faint crackles before the track kicks in. In an age of mobile music and streaming services, the change of pace that vinyl brings is in-
VINYL SSANCE comparable. There is most definitely a certain tangibility to the format, something that isn’t quite as prominent when streaming. Being able to hold the vinyl and see all of your records lined up on a shelf or in a crate, it adds an even more personal aspect to the music. Lastly, vinyl records truly do bring a sound quality that is unparalleled by most streaming services. The compressed digital files found on most services often lose a lot of the original sound quality and detail, while vinyl is playing back the original music straight from the grooves into which it was pressed. I feel that vinyl is also helping to bring back a focus on album appreciation and listening, within a streaming community that is so dominated by hits and singles and less-so on streaming a complete album and appreciating it in its entirety, as it was created. I’m much more likely to spin my ‘75 original pressing of A Night at the Opera all the way through, rather than simply streaming “Bohemian Rhapsody” for the millionth time. This isn’t to say that vinyl is likely to surpass streaming services, as companies such as Spotify and Apple Music continue to dominate the music industry. Although it is extremely interesting to think about the comeback that records have made in light of these services.
Yet the art of collecting vinyl can be almost just as exhilarating as spinning them. It’s the never-ending cycle of spending hours flipping through crates at your local record store, finding new stores in new cities, and of course, finding that gem pressing that’s been on your want list for months. When looking at other older formats, such as CDs, we aren’t seeing much of a rebirth at all. Whether it’s due to their tendency to scratch or the sheer lack of experience and nostalgia compared to that which vinyl shopping, collecting, and spinning brings, compact disc sales were declining three times faster than vinyl sales were growing in 2019, according to the RIAA’s 2019 mid-year report. While I am in no way advocating against CDs or streaming services (I too was dying to check out my Spotify wrapped and see just how much I listened to The Strokes), I think it’s important that we take time to appreciate these art forms of the past.
WRITER WILLIAM NEUMAIER GRAPHIC DESIGNER GABI MECHABER
DIRE HANN STYL ALEX NATA ROSA PHOT EMM LAUR NICO GRA TUNG MOD LUCY MAE LOCA THE A
Gold Necklaces - Nasty Gal Lion Earrings - SHEIN Red Lace Bodysuit - Fashion Nova Red Pants - Forever 21
HE I R
ECTOR NAH LEONARD LISTS XANDRA PLOSCH ALIE MARSHALL ALIE COMTE TOGRAPHERS MA MCKILLIP REN BERMAN OLE KIM APHIC DESIGNER G TUNG LIN DELS Y RAPP EVE O’BRIEN ATION ARB
Red Jumpsuit and Corset - Lulus
HOME
The back seat is a funny thing. It’s the same car, the same driver. The same midwestern road, scrolling under tires and metal. But I’m a giant, cramped into this little pickup. I feel huge with newness, I don’t fit in here. The speed makes me sick. I’m frustrated with this car, this leather, the pile of seemingly useless things that perpetually exists on the folded seat beside me. I’m frustrated with the drone of the highway and the whirl of the fan and the sound of my mother’s voice. I’m frustrated they don’t see my newness, my shininess. They’re presumptuous with their memories, of family road trips, drives to school on snowy days and runs to the grocery store. Those memories aren’t mine, I don’t even know her. “It’s so good to have you home for a few days!” My mother says, turning in her seat ahead to smile at me. I hate the words that sit bitterly on my tongue. Something about where home is and where it isn’t. I feel vicious. A lived-in kitchen is a funny thing. You can see a family’s habits, in the snacks on top of the fridge and the unwashed dishes. I hate the smell and the feel of the less than clean tiles beneath my feet. I hate the crushing smallness, the crowd of memories pouring from the cabinets, the pantry, the table. There was always so many things on it, and we barely ever ate there. It’s a shoe that doesn’t fit, full of a lifestyle I left behind. “We bought some foods I know you like!” My mom says, gesturing to the shopping bags on the counter. I can see the ghostly outline of a bag of Doritos. I want to cry. I want to shout. Something about that not being me, me not being them. Not anymore. I feel hurt.
A childhood room is a funny thing. It’s full of little pockets of magic, where you left it years ago. In my closet corner, under a dresser. Normal places that became somewhere else, a world all your own. Fascinating you, because they were yours. And you fascinated yourself. It’s so funny, this little yellow room. The decor, so offensively teenage. Unabashed tackiness, uniqueness, safeness. I can’t help but feel like a tourist here. This is where she used to sit and write her silly stories, gesturing to the desk in the dimly lit corner. My typewriter sat angry in disuse. I could hear the clack of its keys, remember how the sound made me smile. My language was punctuated into existence. This is her closet, and if you look here you can see her favorite sweater. A salvation army find, time and history woven into its cable knit. Funny how I never remember it being in style, yet I wore it so often. It’s crackling with meaning, a memory of a first date, of a meeting with friends, a trip to the art museum. It hangs there in my closet like a comfortable ghost. My things are staring back at me with disdain. They can see the stranger in me, even if my mom can’t, or my dad can’t, or my house or kitchen or car. It’s looking at me and judging me, reminding me of those habits and passions I thought I did away with. I wonder why I don’t feel proud here. I feel the strange parts of myself, the new parts of myself, like plaster on my skin. It’s heavy in a place where I could always be myself. My typewriter wonders what I’ve been writing lately, and my green sweater questions my basic attire. I want to bite back, to yell. Something about being proud of how far I’ve come, away from this tiny little room and this tiny little life. But they die on my lips when I see this room, cold where it used to be warm. My
passions left to cobwebs and my peace just an illusion. All I can do is cry, something about having lost my way and fooling myself into thinking I was better when I was really just fake. I cry, and I feel at home again. WRITER MELINA SCHAEFER GRAPHIC DESIGNER MANDA VILLARREAL
DIVINE FEMININE
DIRECTORS ISABELLE FISHER KARLY MADEY STYLIST NATALIA NOWICKA PHOTOGRAPHERS EVA RUSSA GABRIELLE MACK VERA TIKHONOVA VIDEOGRAPHER SARA COOPER GRAPHIC DESIGNER JULIA DEAN MODEL ANNA KREINER
Curtain - Salvation Army Shorts - Target Butterflies - Amazon Tank top - Target
WESTERN RENAISSANCE
DIRECTOR ANTHONY HUYNH STYLISTS JOSIE BURK CATHERINE SMALL PHOTOGRAPHERS ALEX ANDERSEN MIHIR KOTHARI GWEN MCCARTNEY VIDEOGRAPHER FRANCISCA LEE GRAPHIC DESIGNER MANDA VILLARREAL MODELS YEAGER EDWARDS YOUMNA KHAN
Brown Jacket - Thrifted White Pants - Thrifted Leather Jacket - Thrifted Earrings - Vitaly
Brown Boots - ASOS Grey Suit - Thrifted White Boots - Thrifted Gold Chain - Givenchy
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