The Advocate - Issue 12 - May 28, 2021

Volume 55, Issue 12 May 28, 2021 advocate-online.net

FOR THE STUDENTS BY THE STUDENTS

Reopening plans for Fall Term PAGE 2

St. Vincent's new album PAGE 3

MHCC ART STUDENTS SHARE THEIR WORK PAGE 4

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Meet our graphic designer

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NEWS

A D V O C AT E-O N L I N E.N E T

MHCC WEIGHS REOPENING PLANS FOR FALL Daniella Young The Advocate

MHCC is currently weighing options for the 2021 Fall Term, and many faculty members and employees have different perspectives on what the school should do.

With online student registration for classes set to open June 1, MHCC expects to offer a blend of online, in-person and hybrid (partially in-person) courses this fall.

The Advocate reached out to leaders of Mt. Hood’s three main employee groups – full-time and part-time instructors, and classified support staff – for their thoughts.

Marilyn Pitts, president of the MHCC Part-time Faculty and Tutor Association, said she’s “looking forward to our lives returning to normal – or, as normal as possible.

If both students and employees are vaccinated and reasonable precautions are taken, participating in face-to-face classes can be safe.

“Hopefully, everyone will get vaccinated, and MHCC employees will work hard to create a safe environment,” she said.

Pitts has served on the college’s Reopening Team for almost a year. In order for a class to be held face-to-face, reopening plans have been created and then reviewed by members of the Reopening Team before being approved by President Lisa Skari’s executive team.

“So far, that approach seems to have created a safe environment for students and employees who have come on campus,” Pitts said.

Recently Pitts and her group’s leadership met with Skari and the executive team on May 14, with the main topic of discussion the fall reopening plans.

“We learned that the college

June 2 work session, she said. At the same recent meeting, the PFTA leadership stressed the importance of continuing to follow Mt. Hood’s COVID cleaning protocols and maintaining air quality, “and we encouraged the college to spell out some of these details for our students and employees,” Pitts said.

Among those protocols are removing furniture in order to provide for sufficient social distancing and scheduling classes at least 15 minutes apart so that high-touch areas can be sanitized.

“We mentioned that the college might need to hire some additional personnel in order to stay on top of these protocols,” said Pitts.

And since COVID appears to be most easily transmitted through the air, “We brought up the importance of the air quality being checked in each of the classrooms before they’re used,” she said.

Pitts has worked a few days on campus in the PTFA office, but still expects to do most work from home and via Zoom through Fall Term, she added.

Few specifics were mentioned by the leaders of the other two employee groups, whose focus remains on overall safety.

“We want the college to keep the health and safety of all students and

“PITTS HAS SERVED ON THE COLLEGE’S REOPENING TEAM FOR ALMOST A YEAR. IN ORDER FOR A CLASS TO BE HELD FACETO-FACE, REOPENING PLANS HAVE BEEN CREATED AND THEN REVIEWED BY MEMBERS OF THE REOPENING TEAM BEFORE BEING APPROVED BY PRESIDENT LISA SKARI’S EXECUTIVE TEAM.” is looking into whether a vaccine mandate might be the right approach to take,” said Pitts.

This topic will be discussed by the MHCC District Board at its

Graphic by Mae Cossu|The Advocate.

employees as a top priority,” said Kim Sharer, Classified Association president.

“I think returning to campus should be a choice for all employee groups and students, said Jeanna Hunt, program director for Respiratory Care in MHCC’s allied health program and president of the Full-time Faculty Association.

“I cannot speak about any specific plans, but the conversations are

active and hopefully we will get everything set for a safe return.”

for the students by the students Co Editors-in-Chief Daniella Young Brad Le News Editor Brad Le Opinion Editor Omar Carrillo Assistant News Editor Marin Thorsen

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Assistant Opinion Editor Brianne Burgess

Broadcast Producer Naethaniel Lile

Graphic Design Editors Hannah Hart Mariah Johnson Mae Cossu

Broadcast A.D. [Position Open]

Copy Editor Chris Barney Web Editor Daniella Young

Broadcast Hosts [Positions Open] Photo Team [Positions Open]

Ad Manager [Position Open]

Social Media Manager [Position Open]

Staff Writers Ash Espinoza Marin Thorsen Omar Carrillo Brianne Burgess

Distribution Specialist [Position Open] Advisers Dan Ernst Howard Buck

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

MAY 28, 2021

SIXTH ALBUM BY ST. VINCENT MAKES GREAT IMPACT Omar Carrillo The Advocate

A product of its influences in a particularly wondrous way, reverent homage combined with a powerful aesthetic elevate “Daddy’s Home” to not only an enjoyable work, as is, but also a fascinating study on how contemporary artistic adaptations allow older genres and styles to

continue to flourish in a new way under a new hand.

Respect is a key aspect of the sixth album by St. Vincent (born Annie Clark, an American musician), evidently an ever-important value in terms of what

concepts she desires to bring attention to. Early 1970s funk, soul, folk, and classic psychedelic rock are shown to have been mastered here, and it is with a passionate adoration that she embraces them to diversify her vision.

Indeed, musically and lyrically, “Daddy’s Home” expresses a great competency as a loving dedication to ideas, places, artforms, and even people worth reremembering forever.

Lyrically, the latter category is particularly present – the titular track celebrating the return of her father (whose favorite genres make up the compositional direction of the album) into her everyday life after his release from prison, and a later piece serving as a eulogy for iconic trans artist Candy Darling.

With considerable input from legendary producer Jack Antonoff, one must also mention how, though “Daddy’s Home” shows deep admiration for the musical decision-making of the past, St. Vincent welcomes modern structural intricacies. She features just the right amount of technologically enabling instrumental touch previously impossible for these more aged sonic forms, never straying too far from her more important intent to keep the attention on the styles being paid tribute.

In fact, if there is anything one may have wanted more of from “Daddy’s Home,” it would have been a bit

more exploration from St. Vincent herself. Though one could easily argue this wasn’t her purpose for the album’s creation in the first place, it is fascinating to ponder an alternate reality where she used her incredible harnessing to propel the work further into uniquely her territory – though this very well could have come at the cost of its critical central statement.

“RESPECT IS A KEY ASPECT OF THE SIXTH ALBUM BY ST. VINCENT (BORN ANNIE CLARK, AN AMERICAN MUSICIAN), EVIDENTLY AN EVERIMPORTANT VALUE IN TERMS OF WHAT CONCEPTS SHE DESIRES TO BRING ATTENTION TO.” Point taken, then.

Representing not only the immense influence these genres have granted music culture, but the great hunger and adoration for them still, St. Vincent rather impressively manages to provide here a masterful framing of entire movements for what they were: Impossible-toreplace worlds, worth remembering.

GET TO KNOW THE ADVOCATE

Cover by: Advocate Staff On the cover: Artwork by MHCC Student Audrey Latouche.

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E-mail: advocatt@mhcc.edu Website: advocate-online.net Mt. Hood Community College Room 1369 26000 SE Stark Street Gresham OR 97030

Mae Cossu Graphic Designer The Advocate encourages readers to share their opinion by letters to the editor and guest columns for publication. All submissions must be typed and include the writer’s name and contact information. Contact information will not be printed unless requested. Original copies will not be returned to the author. The Advocate will not print any unsigned submission.

Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and guest columns should not exceed 600. The decision to publish is at the discretion of the editorial board. The Advocate reserves the right to edit for style, punctuation, grammar and length. Please bring submissions to The Advocate in Room 1369, or e-mail them to advocatt@mhcc.edu. Submissions must be received by 5 p.m. Monday the week of publication to be considered for print. Opinions expressed in columns, letters to the editor or advertisements are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The Advocate or MHCC.

Mae is finishing their first year at MHCC in the graphic design program. They were lucky enough to get a position on The Advocate and have been doing rebranding work in the past few months, as well. Using the brand name “Samhayn,” they are a nonbinary person creating designs and illustrations reflective of Y2K aesthetics, video games, music, and more.

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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

A D V O C AT E-O N L I N E.N E T

ARTISTS CARVING THEIR WAY INTO THE WORLD Brad Le

The Advocate There’s a cruel joke that is thrown at people who are pursuing a career as an artist: “Engineers ask, ‘How is it done?’

she is open to any artistic approach. While artists, in Latouche’s words, are often portrayed in media as either the “struggling artist” or a “wealthy snob,” her approach to art is also pragmatic, noting that artists are “not always going to be able to do art they love.

“A lot of artists are critical of their work and don’t like it because they’ll find something wrong about their piece,”

“Scientists ask, ‘Why is it done?’

“Economists ask, ‘How much does it cost?’

“And artists ask, ‘Would you like fries with that?’ ” While the artistic community doesn’t have the reverence it may once have had, especially in the days of the Renaissance, art remains a respectable craft that is genuinely difficult for many to thrive in. That, and the competitive marketplace, actually says much about the

character of those artists who persist: That while they may face ridicule, they still have the spine to hold their head high and continue to carve their place in the cutthroat world of art.

Included in this group are a pair of Mt. Hood Community College art students.

After last year’s forest fires, Audrey Latouche found herself and her family having to relocate frequently following their previous home’s smoke damage. The second-year MHCC student, 18, is currently settled in Estacada, after bouncing to her family’s RV, staying at a friend’s home and a hotel.

While she has gone through the tribulations to find steady housing, she still managed to maintain her interest in art, as she finds it to not only be a therapeutic process but also her lifelong dream, as she hopes to be accepted at the Pratt Institute of Art in New York City.

While Latouche says that she is inspired by all mediums of art, she finds herself to be particularly fond of water coloring, which is infamous for its fluid and unforgiving nature. She professes that she is not talented at acrylic art but that she is not against any forms. She has expressed her love for oil paintings, citing their beauty, but admits that it is a difficult medium to work with in a cramped space, especially when some materials are flammable. She has also taken classes in printmaking and ceramics at Mt. Hood and found the experience to be pleasant.

Ultimately, Latouche says that while she has preferences, PA G E 4

MHCC Art student Cameron-Dunbar Yamaguchi poses with his work.

related to his mother who was also an artist, having drawn a lot of Jewish-themed works and having contributed to the world of art through acrylics and ceramics. Her pieces have even been selected for showing in the Chicago Art Museum, he says.

Dunbar-Yamaguchi’s father, while not imparting any artistic influence onto him, gave him a sense of good work ethic and discipline which he says affected his approach, in that discipline is among an artist’s most invaluable traits. After starting art classes at Mt. Hood in 2020,

MHCC Art student Audrey Latouche holds up one of her art pieces.

she says. As she points out, it is not uncommon for artists to take unwanted commissions, out of financial necessity.

Regardless, she stresses that personally she’d rather be happy than having a different job she doesn’t enjoy.

Latouche directs attention to her Instagram account – “Audrey_latouche6” – for anyone who wishes to see more of her work.

Military and fine art are terms that are seldom combined. But U.S. Army veteran Cameron DunbarYamaguchi is quick to point out that there are great examples of American soldiers who became exemplary artists, such as Steven Pressfield from the Marines who wrote “The War of Art” and most famously art icon Bob Ross, who served in the U.S. Air Force.

Dubar-Yamaguchi, like many artists, always had an interest in the subject but delayed ever pursuing it until he finally began in 2019 after retiring from the Army.

Dunbar-Yamaguchi joined the Army for what would become 14 years to “grow a backbone,” where he became a frontline trauma surgeon. He also has instructed many members of the military, including special forces. The 38-year-old Portlander says he found art to be the best way for him to handle his experiences after suffering combat PTSD as “a form of therapy and coping” and shares his belief in the benefits art therapy has for others who suffer from PTSD. He describes his artistic upbringing as very closely

he says he would very much enjoy attending the Watts Atelier of the Arts (offering courses online and in-person near San Diego), which he calls an institution known for its emphasis on the fine arts and “heavy focus on study of anatomy that would impress medical students.” This ambition, he concedes, would be a logistical nightmare for his wife and children. Regardless, he also is thankful for his family for being very supportive of his pursuit to draw and his desire to become a concept artist for game development professionals.

Dunbar-Yamaguchi encourages all artists to seriously pursue their love for art.

“For anybody who is afraid of drawing, just go for it,” he says. “Fear stops people from doing most things in life. In drawing, the fear is in making mistakes.” He instead urges that no one should be afraid to make a mistake and instead take any as a challenge to improve.

To view more of his drawings, Dunbar-Yamaguchi directs people to his Instagram account, “Tocharaeh.”