ORIGINAL MAGIC TRIAD COMING TO COLLAPSE

By Ron Evans

This October, Collapse Gallery in Wenatchee is hosting a unique and eclectic show featuring three artists (Chynna Jenkins and Emily Hillburg of Los Angeles and Lisa McDonnell of Renton) called The Original Magic Triad. “The concept of the show is in our diverse and eclectic artistic style and content. We each have a voice and a place in the Triad. We are Ying/ Yang and Balance!” says McDonnell

I reached out to all three of the artists about this exhibit, their collaborations and the various mediums they use to find - and perhaps provide - balance in this creative Triad.

First off, give us a little artistic and biographical background on yourselves.

Emily: I live and breathe Long Beach, CA. Chynna is my art wife and I met Lisa when we applied for the first Olympia Zine Fest in 2015. I work mainly with upcycled porcelain pieces and use bloody red paint to paint the destruction and painful demise of the patriarchy.

Chynna: I was born and raised in northeast Los Angeles and have a background in illustration, screen printing and now tufting. Emily was the first person who introduced me to zine-making back in 2014 and I met Lisa, who officially became my spirit animal/twin at our job at an art store. This show is important because being in lockdown during the pandemic was so weird and as a group, we really relished the feeling of being able to show work in a public space and participate in zine fests. Our show truly represents all of our talents and personalities rolled into one. When I reached out to Chad (Yenney - owner/curator) about having a show at Collapse, he was 100% all in. This is our step forward into showing our work again and connecting with new people. We are just great friends who make kick-ass work. We welcome you to feast your eyes on the works of the Original Magic Triad. We hope you enjoy our show!

Lisa: I am a multidisciplinary artist with works including paintings, mixed media, digital prints and comics. My love for characters and the strange and unusual are often the subject of my work. I have lived in Los Angeles and New York and shown various works in both cities. I am currently living in Renton, Washington. Chynna and I met while working in an art supply store in L.A. and have been friends for many years.

Tell us about your history in the zine world and what it is that appeals to you about this creative medium? Will there be zines at this show?

Emily: I love zines and will make zines till I die!

Chynna: I started taking zines seriously back in 2015/2016 (thanks Em!). I really had no idea there was this world of artists from all different backgrounds and mediums literally making zines out of printer paper. I remember getting some at punk rock shows but didn’t expect the scene to be so in-depth. I love that zines are such a tangible itemyou can trade them, gift them, save them and pretty much learn about anything. Honestly, my zine-making is really just me overthinking an idea to the point of insanity (usually about a few days) and then it falls in place. I actually do it all on the computer in Adobe Illustrator and InDesign and either print at home or at Staples. My zines are mostly illustrative but I really love collecting zines printed with the riso, music/perzines and learning about anarchy. As I’m writing this, I’m hoping to have one zine at this show - I mean, you know how it goes. You are dealing with artists, after all.

Lisa: The thing about zines is you have to write them, or have a concept or story that you want to convey. It needs to be blocked out to carry the story from page to page, it has to have a visual rhythm to propel the reader to turn the page. The drawings need to follow the narrative. There is a lot of planning which is not my nature before I ink the artwork. I love the inking process, the India ink lines and the feel of the pen as it flows across the artwork. I have also made single pane cartoons culled from my drawings which is more of an editing task than writing a story. I will have zines at the show.

From the images I have seen, this looks to be a rather eclectic show concerning style and mediums. Talk about the techniques and pieces each artist brings to this show.

Emily: I search for porcelain treasures all over LA to bloody up with my pure feminist rage - my favorites are Princess Diana plates, especially the one with that ding dong Charles, who didn’t deserve her. I use a special porcelain paint that cures with heat, so when they emerge from the oven, they are extra spicy. I’ll be showing some porcelain sculptures, along with some plates and tapestry.

Chynna: This show is me really highlight- ing my ideas with my brand, Psychic Friends (cool kids stuff). I taught myself how to use a tufting gun during the second year of the pandemic from watching people go rug crazy online. A lot of these ideas that you’ll see are repurposed from some older ideas that I’ve changed over the years but in tufted form, so you’ll be seeing lots of surreal, amorphous characters. I love using a range of colors to give my work a fun and odd personality. I’m attracted to objects that are considered cute and absurd, maybe something you would find in a dream. Lots of yarn is involved and I actually think it’s one of the most obnoxious materials ever because it can get very tangled. You can leave the room and it will get tangled on its own, I’m serious. I got a 4’ x 5’ frame made to accommodate my ideas and I use one color at a time. Working on this show has taught me a lot about patience and taking my time - which is a technique on its own!

Lisa: The techniques in my work include painting, drawing, rubbings of objects and my own collagraph pieces, digital prints including reproductions of collage, graph- ics drawings and hand-drawn and inked mini comics.

How do you approach the creative process when starting new works, and how much do you consider the viewer’s (reader’s) experience during the creative phase, if at all?

Emily: I use a lot of found objects for my work so I’m very informed by the random way I find things. It feels kind of like destiny when I see something sitting in a thrift store and I can just picture how I’m gonna transform it instantly.

Lisa: I don’t discuss ideas with anyone. I find that I can talk away all the energy I had for the piece. I generally don’t ask anyone’s opinion along the way because their vision distracts me from my own. Once it is done it belongs to the viewers to see what they can see.

Chynna: There are mostly words and color choices at first, and then I’ll create loose ideas on my iPad. Because I’m self-taught, most of my work flows from a personal perspective of just doing what brings me joy. Obviously, I want the viewer to experience that same sense of joy. But I truly do this work for myself.

Many artists tend to hide in their respective nooks for long periods of time while in the creative phase and then later make a foray out into the world to exhibit new works. How would you describe the importance of that shared communal experience of viewing and discussing art - live and in person?

Emily: Making art can be such a solitary experience. It’s so important to get the opportunity to talk to people that appreciate art and see the work of other artists. It’s such a beautiful, inspirational thing.

Chynna: I feel like one of my biggest downfalls that is very subjective and personal is filming myself working on something. I really don’t like it at all yet, it’s the guideline to potentially making yourself known online. It’s an unspoken pressure that if you’re not posting behind the scenes or showing step-by-steps on self promo- tion, then what are you doing? I just find it very overwhelming personally. However, I do enjoy watching others create but I don’t feel the desire to share constantly. I enjoy showing the finished product and being able to talk to someone at a show or an event because I feel like my personality shines through in the moment and not through a photo or video.

Lisa: The shared communal experience stretches your mind outside of your usual thinking patterns beyond your own vision and brings you into the world of the viewer. What other people see is a revelation to me.

Is this group an ongoing collaboration?

Chynna: I would say it’s on and off since Lisa is in Washington and Emily and I reside in LA and we haven’t tabled at a zine fest since 2019 - aka pre-covid. Maybe it’s time that we get back into the swing of things?

Emily: We are all big admirers of each other’s work (and each other in general) so we love having opportunities to work together and show our art together.

Lisa: I am always open to collaborating with these two women.

What’s up next for you all?

Chynna: The year is coming to end and since Emily and I live in LA, we enjoy applying to makers markets for one last push, and then we will hibernate for a while!

Lisa: Let’s see where this takes us, one thing leads to another.

What’s one studio/creative item you can’t live without:

Emily: My doggie to pet while I work!

Chynna: At this point, my iPad Pro and Procreate.

Lisa: There is no studio/creative items I can’t live without.

Biggest inspiration(s) for creating:

Emily: It’s partially informed by what I find but I’m usually processing big emotions. I’ve been inspired a lot by anger at the crappy state of the world and especially for women in this world! I put it all into my art.

Chynna: I love old Nickelodeon cartoons, 90’s nostalgia, color theory, punk stuff, The Aquabats for sure!

Lisa: Odd people, characters, inventions, obituaries.

Biggest distractions from creating:

Emily: self-doubt SUCKS

Chynna: INSTAGRAM

Lisa: The news of the day. The phone, Netflix, housework.

Favorite Quote and who said it:

Emily: “…to all the devils, lusts, passions, greeds, envies, loves, hates, strange desires, enemies ghostly and real, the army of memories, with which I do battle — may they never give me peace.” Patricia Highsmith Chynna: “Survival never goes out of style.” - “Save Your Generation” by Jawbreaker

Lisa: Can’t think of one.

Social media links:

Lisa: @inkybird2

Chynna: @psychicfriendsclub

Emily: @boytearsllc

Also premiering this First Friday at Collapse, two-person show, ‘Co:Lab’ Michael Caemmerer & Adele Little Caemmerer. C

Dear Moxie Rose, I recently bought those little metal vaginal balls, I think they’re called Kegel balls? But I’m having trouble keeping them in, like they keep slipping out… Am I using them wrong?

S.

Hi S.-

It doesn’t sound like you are using them wrong. But it does sound like you may have started with Kegel balls that are more, for lack of a better word, advanced. It can make things a little confusing when it comes to these because, with any other weight, the general rule of thumb is: the bigger it is, the heavier it is, the harder your muscles are gonna have to work to lift it. Kegel balls are a little different.

The ones that are a little bit bigger are going to have some natural help from your body in being held in place. And that has to do with the fact that the ball itself will be bigger than your vaginal opening. So without even having to flex those muscles, the size difference between the ball and the vaginal opening is helping to keep it in place. When you go down to a smaller size, you get closer to the size of the vaginal opening so your pelvic floor (Kegels) are needing to work a little bit harder, clenched down a little bit more, in order to keep it in.

Now, it doesn’t mean that you can’t work up to using those smaller metal balls but you may want to start with something a little bit bigger. There are also Kegel balls that have two attached in a row. The point to this is - if you have both of them up inside you your muscles are having to flex a little bit to help keep them up (but not as much as they would have to for the little small ones) but if you pull one of them out, because it is still attached in a line to the next ball that’s still inside you, it turns that ball into a free weight. So your body is flexing a little bit more than it needed to and both were “up inside you.” And you can sort of alternate back-and-forth between having both in or letting one hang out like a free weight, building up those pelvic floor muscles that way… Then start to move towards the smaller sizes as those muscles strengthen.

Dear Moxie Rose,

My partner (Cis-male) has recently expressed to me that they would like to try prostate stimulation in the bedroom. I’m 100% down for this but I don’t really know much about what type of products to look for. Is there really a difference between prostate stimulators and other type of anal products?

-A.L

Hello A.L.-

Yes and no. There are products that are specifically designed to stimulate the prostate but it doesn’t mean that other anal products, that are not specific to the prostate, can’t be used as well. What sets prostate stimulators apart from other anal products is a lot like what sets G-spot stimulators apart from other vaginal toys. It all has to do with the angle, the upturn, that the product can have. Because the prostate, like the G spot, should be worked a little like a pressure point. This is the reason that with the G spot you’re told to do an ‘in and up’ sort of a “come hither” motion with your fingers. Because you’re going for that upturn. This is the same for the prostate. So if they are laying on their back on the bed you would want to go in and up (you should be able to feel a slight difference in texture (many describe the prostate as feeling like a soft, squishy walnut). For that reason many of the “prostate specific” products will have a little bit of an up turn to them (regardless of what else they may do or have incorporated into that toy – vibrations, thrusting movements, etc.). This also means that if you are going for a prostate specific toy you want to make sure that that upturn is not super flexible. Meaning that if you pressed against the upturn it’s not going to bend away easily when you press on it. You do want it to have a little bit of rigidity so that it stays pressed up towards the prostate regardless of what other movements may be happening. Now that being said… using “regular” anal products – for example anal plugs that don’t have any specific upturn to them –can still stimulate the prostate area. This is because, even without that specific upturn, enough pressure from just anything being in the anal cavity, is still going to push outwards towards the prostate. So for some people that’s just enough stimulation and some people want there to be a little bit more direct stimulation. And that will come down to a matter of personal preference so that may require you both to try different products. I would maybe start with one prostate specific product and one general anal product. I would also highly suggest going into an adult store and speaking with the employees about what you are looking for so that they can help customize their recommendations to you and your partner specifically.

A small sidenote: I would like to mention from personal experience: being familiar with what your/your partner’s prostate normally feels like (whether that’s physical touch or what it feels like being stimulated) can alert you if something is changing or wrong with your prostate. Prostate cancer alone affects over 3 million people per year just in the United States. So in the same way that people are told to do breast exams and familiarize themselves with how their breasts normally feel and look, to spot potential changes that could be red flags early on, being familiar with the feel of the prostate can alert you (or alert your partner) that some thing is happening and possibly deserves a trip to the doctor.

Dear Moxie Rose-

What is “sounding?” I kind of have a general idea but it doesn’t really make sense to me and I can’t figure out what the appeal would be or how that’s supposed to work? Help!

D.

Hi D.-

You are definitely not the only person to be confused by sounding. And believe it or not this is going to be another prostate question!

But I would like to point out, before I answer this, that my answer about what it is and what it’s used for should not be taken as the only “directions” you need to experiment with this. Sounding is definitely more of an “advanced” (again, for lack of a better word) act. And it requires a lot of research into products and materials and lubrication and anatomy – so for anybody that is interested in trying this, I strongly recommend doing some research about sounding and safe practices, and I strongly recommend going into a trusted adult store to talk to the employees about products and materials and lubrication.

Now that being said – sounding is the act of inserting some thing down inside the urethra, through the shaft of a penis, most often with the intention of stimulating the prostate.

I say “most often” because there are people that wish to do this because they genuinely enjoy the feel of it regardless of the prostate stimulation.

I know there are many people who just read what I wrote and cringed very hard but let me assure you… this is not meant to be a torturous, painful act (aside from those, who are well-versed in kink, using pain as a form of stimulation). Like anal, the potential for feeling pleasure versus feeling pain is going to completely come down to how it is being used and what is being used.

The reason that this is used for prostate stimulation is because it offers more direct stimulation to the prostate than going through the anal cavity. Because, while you can stimulate the prostate very well from inside the anal cavity, the prostate is not actually INSIDE The anal cavity. There is just a very thin wall of tissue between you inside the anal cavity and the prostate, allowing you to feel it and stimulate it through the wall of the anal cavity. But the urethra actually travels directly through the prostate. So going down the urethra allows you to stimulate the prostate more directly than going the anal route.

Moxie Rose: (sex and kink advice/education) from For The Love Of It in Wenatchee, WA.

The information provided in this column is for educational purposes only, and does not substitute for professional medical advice. C

This summer we ran the first ever Comet Flash Fiction Contest sponsored by Inner Grove Tea - tasking local writers to craft original short stories (1000 words or less) and we were thrilled to have so many great submissions! Our judges (Holly Thorpe, Michael Lee Miller and Ron Evans) were fairly simpatico on the Top 3 but they had a tougher time narrowing down the ultimate win- ner. So they re-read them and ordered another round and discussed. Finally a winner was named. Along with an honorable mention because it was just too damn charming (as well as seasonally appropriate) to not be included.

Thanks to all our sprinters for sharing your works with us and we hope to do this again next year so start writing! We also really want to thank our sponsor, Inner Grove Tea, for providing the swell prizes! We agree that few things pair better with writing than a fine cup of tea. Or three. Or seven. Be sure to stop by Inner Grove Tea at 1 S Wenatchee Ave, Suite 101. in Downtown Wenatchee for the tea, teapots, mugs and accessories to stay fueled for all your upcoming writing projects. Anyone doing NaNoWriMo? 3000 words a day with no tea? Psh. GOOD LUCK!

First place (and the honorable mention) are on the facing page - the 2nd place writing will run next month and 3rd place will run in December’s issue.