In the fine art section, Keith Perelli shows a rare look into Louisiana coastal communities —surrounding and including the New Orleans area. These are not the often stereotypical and over-used scenes from Mardi Gras and Jackson Square. Perelli's scenes emerge from swamps backgrounds; marshes and brushlands are mixed in with elements of cast-off wood, torn fabrics, faded paint on boats— all of these make up his psychological dark, and personally symbolic, visions. Oftentimes his male figures are comprised of different tonal-opacities and collage-like techniques; their facial expressions show characters in limbo, as if awakened from a deep sleep, or hesitating, momentarily frozen with indecision.

In the photography section, this issue displays the work of Canadian Draśko Bogdanović. His mastery of emphasizing and utilizing dark, somber backgrounds reinforces his control of light and color tones. The shadows developed within his camera bring more attention to his subjects with a soft, slightly blurred charcoal edge. A strong sense of the erotic emerges in his photographs, but without overwhelming the viewer with softcore imagery.

And finally, in the words section, we have a short prose piece from Eric Croweson, a resident of south-east Texas. "Hour of the Faun" describes the relationship of two men, both of whom relate their emotive experiences of a particular hour in the morning. The piece exists as two detailed, stream-of-consciousness monologues. Sometimes Croweson's sentences exist as fragments— other times as run-on descriptions. Ultimately Croweson communicates a powerful bond between the two characters.

If interested, request a copy of our writing guidelines for possible inclusion within future issues.

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