APRIL 2014
VOLUME 3 ISSUE 8
TO HAVE AND TO HOLD
Learn all about lasting love.
THE RIGHT TO FASHION
THE DEAL ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Women in the pursuit of style
Puff puff pass
SHE’S A WILD FLOWER
‘TO BOSTON WITH LOVE’
Say hello to spring
Support for Boston shown at the MFA
STAFF PICKS: ARTISTS Shack up in a museum this month to stay out of the rain! DANNY LEMAR Editor-in-Chief
Tyler Shields
CLAUDIA MAK Editor-in-Chief
Hieronymus Bosch
ELIJAH CLARK GINSBERG Creative Director
Francis Danby
OLIVIA JACOBINI Editor-at-Large
Vincent Van Gogh
MATTHEW MULLEN Managing Editor
Barbara Kruger
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR March snow showers bring even more April snow showers? UGH! I am so over this weather! But rejoice readers, we bring you April flowers in this issue with our beauty editorial shot on film by the lovely Michael Thorpe. This is the first editorial we have shot on film and I am so glad that we are able to showcase the work of such talented photographers with our magazine. We will definitely continue incorporating different styles of photography and turn up the creativity with our editorials. Getting to work with flowers on such a sunny (but still cold) day let me fantasize about what is to come. In this awkwardly cold transition month of April we get to dream of the fastapproaching summer. So I hope this issue gives you a little vacation away from the stress of the closing semester. As always, much love and thanks for reading.
CLAUDIA MAK Editor-in-Chief
When deciding on the Let It Rain editorial shoot for this issue, our executive staff could not have been more excited. Each member owned and loved certain items to use on a rainy day. Each member, that is, except for me. As an Eagle Scout who spent many a summer at camp in New England, I’ve been through over my fair share of stormy weather. I survived with a plastic neon poncho that folds up in my pocket or a trash bag with holes cut out for my arms and head. It seemed unnecessary to wear something that was just going to get wet. However, upon seeing the photos, I realized that I’ve been missing out on something big. In issues of GQ and Burberry ads, I never payed attention to the coats, umbrellas, and boots being showcased to combat anything from a drizzle to a downpour. Thankfully, I have found a new appreciation for fashion that’s as wonderful as it is waterproof. In the month of April, my wardrobe is going to be stylish, sophisticated, and sealed off from any showers.
DANNY LEMAR Asst. Editor-in-Chief
YOUR MAGAZINE Volume 3 Issue 8 • April 2014
CLAUDIA MAK Editor-in-Chief
DANNY LEMAR Asst. Editor-in-Chief
OLIVIA JACOBINI Editor-at-Large
ELIJAH CLARK GINSBERG Creative Director
CHEN XU & ASHLEY JURANICH YMtv Directors
MATTHEW MULLEN Managing Editor
KELLY GROGLIO Design Director
MEGAN TRIPP & MADELINE BILIS Blog Editors
KATHY COLLINS Photo Director
ANDREA PALAGI Style Editor
KAREN MORALES Asst. Blog Editor
MADELINE BILIS Living Editor
CAITLYN BUDNICK Head Copy Editor
ABBY WOODMAN & PEYTON DIX Head Stylists
CHELSEA TREMBLAY Romance Editor
LEIGHA MORRIS Marketing Director
HALEY SHARIF Talent Manager
MICHAEL MAHIN A&E Editor
Copyeditors DEVAN NORMAN, MORGAN METZ, JANELLA ANGELES, MEGAN TRIPP, JACQUELYN MARR, MOLLY
LEGROW, CHRISTABEL FRYE, ELISE SABBAG, OLIVIA JACOBINI, PAULINA PASCUAL, KELSEY PERKINS, JASMINE TAYLOR, ASHLEY HOWARD, JAMIE KRAVITZ
Marketing ELISE MESA, JAMIE IANNACE, KINSEY MINSCHKE, REBECCA FLUHR, KELSEY JOHNSON, TRACY PARCO, LIA BROUILLARD, CAMILA ORIOL, BRIANNA MARTINIELLI, LEIGHA MORRIS, ESTHER GLASIONOV, MAX CHERRY, NATALIE BENJAMIN, STELLA SANGUANSIN, NIKOLAI JACKOWSKI
YMtv AMANDA GOMEZ, LINDSAY GUALTIERI, TERRENA SCANNELL, MEGHIN HEWITT, RORY MCCANN, WILLIAM VICKROY, STEPHANIE PUMILIA, JAIME TOSCANO, ALEXANRDA JAMES, TATIANA OCHOA, ANDY KEYS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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16
ROMANCE
6 Making The Move by Anonymous 8 Anal-ysis by Anonymous 10 Mrs. Beyonce Feminist Carter by Cabot Lee Petoia 12 Sexcessories by Kelsey Conner 13 To Have and To Hold by Cabot Lee Petoia
STYLE
24 Midnight Excursions of A Sharply Dressed Man by Brian Thomas 26 Beauty is Forever by Antonia DePace 28 Spring Trends: Here Comes the Sun(dresses) by Megan Cathey 29 Spring Trends: April Showers by Andrea Palagi
LIVING
36 Travel Redefined: Air BnB by Riana Odin 38 Bridging the Bap Between Athletics and Academic: SAAC by Wendy Eaton 40 The Deal on Medical Marijuana in Massachusetts by Jamie Kravitz 43 Growing Up Is Hard To Do by Chantelle Bacigalupo 44 Road Trip Ready by Ashley Howard 46 Nuturing Your Green Thumb by Antonia DePace
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
51 Not by Bread Alone by Christabel Frye 53 The Heat of The Kitchen by Claudia Mak 54 The Face Behind Faces on Film by Julia Ferragamo 56 Music Festivals by Kelsey Conner 58 April Playlist
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46
FEATURED
16 THE RIGHT TO FASHION by Andrea Palagi
20 SHE’S A WILDFLOWER 43 GROWING UP IS HARD TO DO by Chantelle Bacigalupo
48 TO BOSTON WITH LOVE by Pimploy Phongsirivech
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MAKING THE MOVE text by anonymous photos by john swords and coliril
Repeat after me: “You are not crazy for taking the next step in your relationship at the tender age of undergraduate.” I am famously a love-crazy female who has serial dated like it is her job since the age of 12. Teagan and Sara accurately portrayed my love life with the lyrics, “I’m not unfaithful but I’ll stray.” So, 30 something “flings” later I return from study abroad with a new boyfriend. My best friend from home scolds me, “Wifed up again eh?” “This time it’s different!” I protest.
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“Yeah, yeah that’s what you always say,” she replies, still unconvinced, but with reason. Next year I am moving in with my favorite European souvenir, my beautiful blue-eyed king. But it turns out that the hardest part of moving in with my boyfriend is convincing everyone around me that it is a good decision.
1. But my family won’t approve!
My family has seen many a loser at Thanksgiving dinner. Every year it never surprises them that I have a new boyfriend. My grandmother thinks I’m the girl who cried “love!” So what was my strongest argument in convincing my family to accept my situation? Well, many women in my family met their future husbands during their undergrad, so they are unlikely to believe that maybe I can find someone solid in college. But the ultimate method of convincing my traditional family was telling them that having this year to see if we could cohabitate could save me from doom. This will make me more confident in taking the next step after graduation: moving to a new city together, maybe getting engaged? Who knows! All I know is that having a year together while there’s room for error is comforting.
2. My friends will think I’m insane!
Many of my peers agree, moving in with your significant other will ultimately result in heated arguments, a mediocre sex life, and a financially burdening break up. There is something so painfully bleak about how we sometimes associate commitment with imminent doom. Why are we so obsessed with expiration dates of relationships even before they truly blossom? Certain friends will agree, some will disagree: but the decision is ultimately yours. Hear you friends out because they offer pretty reliable third-party opinions on your relationship. My best friend is so terrified of commitment that she was freaked out by what I wanted to do. Eventually, she cast her bias aside and told me how happy she is for me. Be selective in what you take as advice, because many of your friends might just be expressing how they would feel rather than offering how they feel about you and your SO.
3. You have to poop in the same bathroom? The romance will die!
For those still caught up in this theory, um, you get to go shopping together for all the furniture from IKEA that best suits your favorite sex positions. Also, nude cooking?! Movie and a cuddle date every single night after a long day? You are easily capable of letting a relationship fizzle without living together, if you think your loved one is worth the effort then it won’t feel like a burden to try to rev up your romantic life together. ROMANCE
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ANAL-YSIS text by anonymous photo by andrew
What What in the butt?? I’m a gay male. I’m in my 20s. I’m physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy. And I’m terrified of anal sex. I know I’m one of many. When talking to a lot of other gay guys around Emerson’s LGBTQ-friendly campus, I’ve heard many different opinions. Some guys love it. Some can’t get enough. Some others share my butt-sexphobia. “I’m not doing that,” one junior told me. “I’m not a top but I don’t want to do that. I mean, it’s gross.” A sophomore told me, “I only top. I bottomed once and it really hurt.” The more guys I asked, the more I found how common this “Not In My Backyard” school of thought is. And these discussions about anal sex between young gay men ultimately turned into a discussion of virginity. The million-dollar question that a handful of us keep asking: Because we’re abstaining from having anal sex, are we going to be virgins forever? I have no traumatizing backstory. I never walked in on my parents having sex or accidentally stuck something up my butt that I shouldn’t have. And I’ve watched enough ABC Family to know that I will be smart enough to use every method of protection when it (if it?) comes time to actually let something/ someone in there. However, no contraception in the world can alleviate the sheer terror and heart-poundingfear that I feel when I imagine letting a guy, for lack of a better term, fuck me. I went through four years of high school and my freshman year of college so influenced by television, movies, and pop culture that waiting for the right moment felt like appropriate foreplay. By those rules, I was supposed to light a lot of candles, put on some indie-rock, and then... Well, I didn’t actually know what came after that because all of the guys and the girls I saw on screen would just disappear beneath the blankets and then the scene would cut to the snuggle after-party. Eventually I realized that there’s much more involved than just being in bed with another person (thank you high school health classes), but I only had a vague idea about how a man has sex with a woman. Still trying to understand how a man has sex with another man, and not the moan and groans of gay porn, but to get a full grasp on the process so that APRIL 2014
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there’s no need for questions or fear... Well, that’s where I find myself today. And I’m a little lost. I can remember the first time this became a fullfledged thought. One night in some bathroom at some party (where these things usually happen), I was sitting in the bathtub while my two straight girlfriends alternated their time on the toilet. They were talking about who they lost their virginities to and I was giggling from the jungle juice and from hearing the word “hymen.” Then the conversation was directed at me in a clear, sharply posed question: “Are you a top or a bottom?” To say that I had never thought about it would have been a bald-faced lie because I obviously had. But to say that I knew in that moment the answer would have been a bigger lie. So I said something silly about knowing how to rock the cock by just looking at it and hoped that would suffice. That has always been a haunting question. Not only because I still don’t honestly know the answer as I’ve never allowed myself to go that far to find out, but also because it was such a meaningless question from my friends. No, this is not the point in the article when I bemoan how straight people will never understand us gays. However, I think it is valid for everyone, regardless of sexual preference, to be aware that gay sex is different from straight sex (if you need more clarity, get on Google). And while I think my friends understood the surface value of television-friendly-Gleegay sex, they didn’t comprehend that, conventionally, it’s anal sex. And standing in that bathtub, tipsy on Mr. Boston, I was not prepared to have that conversation. A phrase that seems to get thrown around a lot is, “Your ‘first time’ only counts when you want it to.” By this definition, virginity is becoming popularized into a state of mind rather than a force beyond our control. As nice as it sounds – and by no means am I saying that my opinion is the only opinion – for me, the first time is when someone else’s body part (that rhymes with venus) enters a private body part (that rhymes with nut-bowl). I would love to believe that I have already done everything there is to do and now I can relax with my cherry popped.
There are some guys who are fine just running bases one through three. “Oral sex is enough for me,” a senior told me. “I’m good at it and I feel like it’s enough. I haven’t had any complaints.” For me, there’s a nagging feeling that by doing everything but(t), I’m missing out on something, a rite of passage that fills an emptiness (pun intended). And I can’t figure out which is more anxiety-inducing: staying a virgin forever and wondering what I’m missing out on, or taking the leap and letting someone enter my bed and my body. It’s the great debate that we all struggle with in our romantic lives: do you risk something for a chance to have everything, or do nothing and be stuck in the same place? As kids, we ran around saying that everyone else had
cooties. In high school, we were told not to have sex because we would get pregnant and die. In the beginning of college, we were told to take as many free condoms as we could get our hands on because it’s better to be safe than sorry. But now, as some of us get ready to enter the “Real World,” a lot of us lowered our expectations to find “the one” and lost our virginities to someone unremarkable. Some of us got lucky and had a really special first time. But if you’re like me, and I know there are a lot of us, you’re still looking for someone who will make you feel safe so that you might be comfortable enough to open yourself up and experience something that, one day, might not be that scary.
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MRS. BEYONCÉ FEMINIST CARTER text by cabot lee petoia
Don’t think Beyoncé has lost her touch just because he put a ring on it. Beyoncé, arguably the most beloved, most respected, and sexiest pop star in the world, is currently performing on “The Mrs. Carter World Show Tour.” Beyoncé is known for her individuality and incredible power both as a woman and as an artist, so using her husband’s name in her tour and excluding her own seemed to disappoint a lot of fans. Aisha Harris of Slate wrote an article entitled “Who Runs the World? Husbands?” which expressed confusion about Beyoncé’s tour name by referring to Beyoncé’s hit song “Run the World (Girls).” Ann Powers, an NPR music critic, applauded Beyoncé for her influence as a powerful role model, but still called her tour name “retrograde.” Emma Mills, an author for Metro Blogs was “disappointed at [Beyoncé’s] choice,” that she “backtracked on this declaration of equality,” and that she is “...a woman defining herself by the man she married.” In response to the abundant criticism, Beyoncé dropped a visual album without warning entitled BEYONCÉ. The title alone, containing only her first name in capital letters on the album cover, is an immediate declaration that she is still an individual - and a loud, emphatic, proud one at that. The fact that she was able to drop a surprise album without advertisement, preview, or leakage beforehand, and, according to Billboard Biz, still sell over 80,000 copies in a matter of three hours, is also a reminder of her established APRIL 2014
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power and influence as an artist. Beyoncé’s self-titled album contains songs with a variety of messages. The music video for the song “Drunk in Love” features her husband, Jay-Z Knowles-Carter, and shows extremely intimate scenes between the two of them. In this song, Beyoncé emphasizes the powerful relationship she shares with her husband, in sharp contrast to other artists such as Chris Brown and Rihanna, who produce music containing themes of a dysfunctional relationship: heartbreak, betrayal, and promiscuity. Beyoncé uses the “Drunk in Love” music video to show off the chemistry that exists between her and her husband. Their rare bond, as portrayed by the video and by the song’s lyrics, is much more impressive than angry sex scenes or dramatic fights, and certainly is a better example of what it means to be in love than someone being tied to a bed in a burning house. By broadcasting her successful marriage, Beyoncé is making a strong feminist point. She has a husband who treats her well, who makes her happy, and to whom she is sexually attracted. They have a balanced, equal relationship. They are both extremely successful artists. This is clearly a representation of a female’s power to choose a partner who treats her with respect. And Beyoncé didn’t just take JayZ’s last name - they share the surname Knowles-Carter, a combination of their “maiden” names. If this isn’t an ode to
equality, then what is? Another song on BEYONCÉ entitled “Flawless” emphasizes that she is still an individual, despite the open pride she has in her marriage, and that women can be empowered through their successful relationships. It contains the lyric, “Don’t think I’m just his little wife/ Don’t get it twisted/ Bow down bitches,” and “This MY shit” which are clearly rebuttals to the criticism she received for her choice of tour name. During the song, a sample from Nigerian feminist icon Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s speech “Everyone Should Be a Feminist” is played. The selection talks about society’s expectation of women, and why it needs to change. Adichie complains about how “we teach girls that they cannot be sexual beings” as Beyoncé dances provocatively in the music video, clearly defying society’s expectation. The speaker says that “we say to girls... You should aim to be successful, but not too successful. Otherwise you will threaten the man” yet, Beyoncé has a net worth similar to her husband’s and, as pointed out by her music, still manages to have a healthy relationship with him. By pointing out that she is defying all the societal issues that Adichie says we should be combatting, Beyoncé supports Adichie’s message and emphasizes her own power as a woman. And by pointing out that her husband is not threatened by her success, she also suggests that he is perpetrating the feminist ideal of a man. Later in “Flawless,” Beyoncé talks about the support and encouragement her father, mother, and sister give her, ending with “My man makes me feel so goddamn fine,” alluding that her husband supports her just as much as her parents and sister do. She also says, “This rock/ Flawless/ My rock/ Flawless,” referring to her ring and her husband, respectively, being perfect, and by referring to Jay-Z as her “rock” emphasizes again how supportive he is. She goes onto say, “I woke up like this [flawless]” referring to herself as a separate yet equally “flawless” being. The Shriver Report, a website run by Maria Shriver, featured a report called “A Woman’s Nation Pushes Back from the Brink.” In the report, Beyoncé discusses the issue of unequal pay for women. She discusses how both men and women need to say that this standard is unacceptable in order for things to change. She goes on to say “...We have to teach our boys the rules of equality and respect, so that as they grow up, gender equality becomes a natural way of
life. And we have to teach our girls that they can reach as high as humanly possible.” While Jay-Z is less vocal about his relationship with Beyoncé, he has made some remarkable comments. In his blog, Glory, he posted a track about the birth of their daughter, Blue Ivy. The lyrics included: “The most wonderful feeling I feel/ Words can’t describe the feeling, for real/ Baby I’ll paint the sky blue/ My most greatest creation was you.” The expression of Jay-Z’s emotions about the birth of his first child is touching and unusual to hear in the hip hop world, especially for men, and illustrates the unique connection he shares with Beyoncé as the mother of his child. Jay-Z appeared on Johnathan Ross’s show on BBC One, and talked about how he and his wife attend each other’s concerts “all of the time,” that Beyoncé is “a wonderful performer,” which demonstrates the support the two have for each other despite their busy professional lives. While Jay-Z’s comments about their marriage are more subtle and less frequent than Beyoncé’s, they nevertheless paint a picture of support and equality. Beyoncé’s comments made on the Shriver Report compliment the messages of her songs includved on BEYONCÉ, especially in “Flawless,” and her advocacy for equal rights for women and men are reflected in her own marriage. By being open about her equal relationship with Jay-Z, and especially by celebrating it, she acts as a role model for women everywhere, sets a standard for how relationships should work, and demonstrates how sexy equality is. Beyoncé is a very influential and successful woman. In that, she is certainly an icon for the empowerment of women everywhere. Despite the criticism she received for naming her tour “Mrs. Carter,” and despite the criticism she continues to receive for broadcasting her marriage, in the end it was her choice. Perhaps the most important point is that Beyoncé is already “Queen B.” She was “Sasha Fierce” years before she married Jay-Z. She did not need a man to bring her fame and fortune; her professional success was achieved as a “single lady.” But as a woman, as a human, she has every right to publicly embrace the man she now calls her husband. We can all take something away from the Knowles-Carter example of what a successful relationship looks like, and raise our standards for a romantic partner (in terms of balance and support - we can’t all have a $500 million boyfriend) to Beyoncé’s level. ROMANCE
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SEXCESSORIES text by kelsey conner photo by jasper nance
Thinking about glamming your goodies?
If you walk down Boylston Street in between classes, you see students loudly exclaiming their individuality through clothing choices, hairstyles, and body modifications. Lip, nostril, septum, and eyebrow piercings are visible for everyone to see, but what about the modifications that you can’t see? Though they’ve been around for years (they are mentioned in the ancient Kama Sutra) genital piercings are gaining momentum amongst young people as facial and body piercings are losing some of their negative stigma. So what are your options if you want jewelry for your junk? For females, the most popular genital piercings are Christina (also called Venus) and vertical or horizontal clitoral hood piercings. A Christina piercing is placed where the lips of the outer labia (labia majora) meet and right below the pubic mound. These are considered mainly aesthetic and do not have much of an influence
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on sensation, though it is not unheard of. As with most female genital piercings, it is not too painful. If you are going for something that will increase sexual pleasure, then a clitoral hood piercing may be more your style. Since there is little skin to pierce, it is relatively painless. If you’re pierced by an experienced piercer (such as those at Ancient Arts on Commwealth Avenue, near Boston University) and take proper care of it, this kind of piercing can heal much more quickly than other conventional piercings. Male piercings, contrary to popular belief, also heal very quickly and traditionally do not get infected easily. The Prince Albert piercing is one of the most popular male genital piercings. It consists of a circular barbell speared through the urethra and out of the underside of the penis. Prince Alberts can increase stimulation for the wearer and are also very highly regarded amongst pierced men’s male or female partners. So, if it looks good and feels great, then what is holding people back? In an anonymous survey, the overwhelming answer from Emerson students was “not no, but hell no!” Multiple students cited stories about genital piercings being “hard to heal” and “easily infected,” which goes to show that there are still many misconceptions. Some were enthusiastically supportive, though, saying that they would be willing to “if a partner desired it” or even “just for the experience.” Emerson students are not new to the world of body modification, but it seems that many are still in the dark when it comes to genital piercings. With a skilled, professional piercer and special care, a genital piercing can add something unique to your sex life.
TO HAVE AND TO HOLD text by cabot lee petoia photo courtesy of andy and lyn
Who better to take love advice from than those who have already found the loves of their lives? For some college students, finding love seems impossible and love that lasts is a myth. It is easy to find a hookup for the night, but difficult to find someone you really want to stick around. Fear not! Here are some stories that may give you a new outlook on love. They are the stories of people who stumbled into each other and stayed together. They have beautiful stories to share, and tons of relationship advice for anyone willing to listen. Tarja, who earned her first undergraduate degree from Emerson, has been married to her husband Ken for eight and a half years. However, Tarja emphasizes that, in their 17-year-total relationship, “marriage is irrelevant.” When interviewed together, Tarja and Ken explain what keeps a relationship strong, starting from the first date. Ken is a retired narcotics detective for the Miami Dade police, and Tarja is a former English professor and attorney, currently looking for a job teaching law. In her early 30s, Tarja was not looking for marriage. In fact, she had no intention of ever getting married. She thought of the process as a “social institution that we are forced into,” and was simply looking for a guy to date casually. She asked a friend to set her up and her only specific request was “no psychos.” She was set up with Ken. Tarja and Ken shared dinner, drinks, and great conversation. They went on a successful second date, third date, fourth, and.. you get the idea. After Tarja graduated from law school, they bought a house together. It wasn’t until Ken got sick and they ran into legal visitation and medical decision-making issues that they decided to get married, after eight and a half years together already.
When asked for relationship tips, the couple has a lot to say. Ken thinks that when people enter into relationships, they don’t “probe” each other enough. He says there is an extensive range of specific political, social, and personal issues two people should talk about with each other by the second or third date. This is usually a time right after there is an established physical attraction, but before a couple is seriously dating. Otherwise, these issues come up later and become a major problem. He highlights the importance of discussing these issues from the very beginning, “almost like a standard checklist,” to ensure you end up with a person sharing similar core beliefs and values. Ken also emphasizes the importance of a healthy sexual relationship. He says people have different levels of adventure and different ideas of what is “normal” sex. Those differing levels are important to discern early in a relationship in order to make sure that two people are sexually compatible. He says that it is extremely important to have full trust, so that you will know you won’t be judged by your partner because of what you want in the bedroom. If your partner is uncomfortable with what you want sexually, the relationship should most likely cease. Tarja and Ken agree that since they met in their 30s and were already comfortable and confident sexually as individuals, it was easier to communicate honestly what they both needed. Tarja says, “We can’t read each other’s minds,” which Ken agrees with, saying, “You need to create an environment where you can be completely honest with each other. A good sexual relationship is the key to a happy relationship.” Tarja simply breaks down how to keep a relationship ROMANCE
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healthy in a few steps. She mentions that Ken does an equal, if not greater, share of the housework. This slightly unusual balance is important, because “he does what he says he is going to do.” Something as simple as splitting chores equally can be vital to a relationship because it promotes fairness and does not leave room for bitterness on either partner’s end. As for the core of a relationship, Tarja puts it simply. She says, “Find out what your partner likes, and do that. Find out what your partner does not like, and don’t do that.” For example, since she is not a morning person Ken gets up before her and brings her coffee. Every morning. Ken likes to be “petted” at night, and she likes to be “petted” in the morning, so they both make sure they do that for each other every day. “It’s like having a cat,” she says, “It makes both the petter and the petted happy.” Ken chimes in, saying, “It’s beyond being touched. It’s saying ‘I care for you, I know that you value this, so I will do this for you’.” He says that it is a matter of making an effort, and that if you find yourself to be unhappy while doing things that make your partner happy, there is a problem. Tarja says that this can lead to “a vicious cycle of holding back,” meaning one person avoids doing the dishes at night, so the next morning the other doesn’t feed the cats. She says that this cycle can especially arise when a couple is in a fight, but that this is in fact the worst time to start withholding. She says that even if you’re mad at each other, continue to do the little things that make each other happy. Sooner rather than later, you’ll fall back into the same routine of comfort and happiness only to forget why you were mad in the first place. Otherwise, bitterness and grudges can form, creating a never-ending chain of trivial problems and fingerpointing. Tarja and Ken are “the happiest couple I know,” according to their niece, Kari, a sophomore at Brown University. They have nailed down what it takes to create and maintain a happy, loving relationship, despite their initial reluctance to get married - Tarja even “felt sick” when she thought about marriage in general. Yet here they are, 17 years after they got together and still as happy as can be, proving that marriage isn’t the important part of a romantic relationship. Tarja and Ken are the very embodiment of a supportive couple, so heed their advice if you’re looking for the real thing. Lynn and Andy are another couple with an equally happy relationship, but a very different perspective.
They met as teenagers through mutual friends, and, ironically, Lynn found Andy to be “too arrogant” upon meeting him. Andy, on the other hand, liked Lynn from the start - “She was, and still is, funny and beautiful.” Lynn’s first impression, however, was quickly altered. She says, “I didn’t like him at all at first. Then I heard him playing guitar and singing at a party, and I really liked his voice.” The two began dating soon after, around Lynn’s 19th birthday. When asked about their early relationship, Lynn replies, “My dad always said the most unhappy women he knew were the ones who married young, and he made me promise not to marry until I finished school and got a job.” And that’s exactly what they did. They stayed together as she finished college, then graduate school, and found a job. A year later, they got engaged and married in 1991 after being together for almost seven years. March 2014 marked their 23rd wedding anniversary, adding up to a grand total of nearly 30 years of being together. Lynn says, “I think we worked out a lot of problems before we got married, when we were both free to leave the relationship. That has probably made our marriage happier. Being 24 when we married, I think I had the opportunity to do other things first. I knew myself better.” When asked about what problems they were able to work out in the time before they married, Lynn replied, “How to deal with disagreements, with juggling each other’s schedules, friends, families. How to compromise. How to make plans and stay on track with each other. That kind of thing doesn’t just happen. You have to build it.” Lynn and Andy went on to have four children together. Sarah, the oldest, is a junior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Anna is a freshman at North Carolina State University, and Emily and Will are both students at Polk County High School. Andy and Lynn are both artists. Additionally, Lynn is an art teacher for Hilltop Covenant, a homeschooling group, and Andy plays in a band called “The Lone Derangers.” Sarah describes her parents as “genuinely best friends. They have tickle fights and tell each other dumb jokes. It seems silly, but they honestly just crack each other up! They tell each other everything, and text message constantly when they’re apart. It’s definitely a level of true companionship that I admire, and seek in my own relationships.” According to Andy, the most challenging component of marriage is “Agreeing with each other. And the solution is compromise.” For Lynn, it is
Get to know yourself first. Know what kind of life you want.
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“Stress - from kids, jobs, finances, family, friends, and routine.” To combat these issues, Lynn says, “Andy and I are good friends. We talk a lot,” and that the solution to having a disagreement is “to try to not be emotional, but constructive.” The couple had very similar feelings about the most rewarding parts of marriage. Andy includes,
people in relationships, “Get to know yourself first. Know what kind of life you want. Get the education and skills you need. If your long term goals can stay on the same page through all of that, and if you can keep your personal connection, then you are set.” Lynn, Andy, and their children are the prime example of a happy, successful family. They support
they met young and married fairly young, they still gave themselves enough time to get themselves in the right places individually first, which allowed them to the long lasting, nurturing relationship that they are still cultivating today. These two couples provide us with different angles of what a successful relationship looks like. Their stories are those of mutual
“The way my children turned out. Lynn took on being a mom, and a career, and did a great job. So I love and respect her.” Lynn adds that the same things that cause stress are also the ones that bring the most joy. “Successful kids, a good business, happy friends and family” are the most rewarding parts for her. Lynn gives advice to young
each other morally, and provide each other with an environment conducive to both academics and creativity. Lynn and Andy’s emphasis on the importance of having a strong friendship with one’s partner is advice we should heed, and their admiration for each other’s skills and accomplishments is a notable quality that should be present in all relationships. While
love, friendship, family, and understanding, and can serve to inspire young lovers unsure about what the universe has in store for them. Life may not always be like a fairytale, but, as shown by these couples, with the right person, skills, and practice, we have the power to make our romantic relationships even more fulfilling than the ones we see in films. ROMANCE
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THE RIGHT TO FASHION text by andrea palagi photos by kelsey davis
Bringing democracy to the world of sweetheart necklines, platforms, and lace trims. “We’re focused on improving the fashion industry by increasing the number of fashion designers who stay and succeed in the industry, all while growing United States manufacturing. We give fashion designers the tools that they need to ‘stiletto strap’ their own clothing lines. We do this by providing a virtual portfolio for emerging designers to showcase their work, engage with potential customers, and sell directly to the consumers. We give consumers first access to independent designer fashion made in the U.S.A.” Amanda Curtis exhales, smiles and adds, “That’s our thirty second business model.”
Offline, it’s day two for Curtis and Sole in their new office space at 1 International Place in the heart of Boston’s Financial District. In the building’s lobby, which is connected to the prestigious steakhouse, The Palm, middle-aged men flurry about atop the marble floor in trench coats and navy suits on their way to lunch or a mid-day business meeting. However, things seem to come to life up on the 6th floor above the bustle of the boring business week. It’s free bagel day here in the office as Curtis and Cole sit down with Your Mag for a more personal, relaxed interview without the suits and ties.
Curtis is the CEO under age 30 who is setting the fashion world on fire with her Boston-based online startup, Nineteenth Amendment. With the help of her co-founder and COO, Gemma Sole, she’s made the world of fashion design accessible for both designers and consumers, giving everyone their own voice in the industry. Look out Chanel, here they come.
As it turns out, Curtis began her pursuit of fashion on the very day that she spoke her first word: “pretty.” From that moment, it’s as if she knew she was destined for the world of chiffon, beaded necklines, and pleated pants.
The heart of Curtis and Sole’s business is online at www.19thamendment.co where designers audition to have their lines displayed on the website. After being chosen, the designers have select items featured and presented to the company’s pre-existing market of shoppers. Before anything is manufactured, the buyers provide the designers with direct feedback and critique allowing them to make quick adjustment their designs before production based on the input of buyers. With that foundation, Nineteenth Amendment then steps in and facilitates the manufacturing of the designers’ garments in right in Brooklyn before they are shipped out to customers nationwide. MARCH 2014
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After being exposed to the bridal business as a young girl, Curtis first attended Boston University where she received a degree in advertising. She then chose to supplement this degree and her passion for business with another degree in fashion design from Parsons in New York. This is where the seed for a fashion business liaison in Curtis’ future was planted. After graduation, Curtis watched in awe with girlish excitement as her designs went down the runway at New York Fashion Week in Lincoln Center. Only a short while after graduating, Curtis had landed jobs with renowned designers such as Alistair Archer, Richie Rich and Diane Von Furstenberg. Curtis was also given the opportunity to design a flashy pantsuit for Ellen Degeneres when she walked the runway in the finale of Richie Rich’s show.
Meanwhile, Sole attended the University of Rochester where she honed in on her interest in the global market with a degree in anthropology, economics, English, communications, and international relations. Following her graduation, Sole received a scholarship from the Kauffman Foundation that allowed her to start the UR Consulting Group, a student-run consulting service for businesses. Business is Sole’s blood.
And then she did something that left the fashion industry scratching their heads—Curtis moved from New York, the acclaimed epicenter of all things fashion and settled herself in a studio in Boston’s South End to later launch Nineteenth Amendment. Curtis explains that despite what people may think, Boston couldn’t be a better place to delve into fashion, “You’ve got Harvard, M.I.T—so many college students who are the industry.”
Yet during her post-graduation pursuits, Curtis soon came to the realization that while she was living what appeared to be the life of a high profile designer, she wasn’t making enough money to support herself and all around her fashion design jobs were being outsourced one by one. This is what Curtis refers to as a “cycle” which makes it nearly impossible for young designers to succeed in the fashion industry, resulting in a 60 percent drop out rate in the fashion arena. Curtis herself was caught in this cycle.
Curtis teamed up with Sole who she met while the two were exploring the technological world of startups at Startup Institute Boston. Their goal: to bring the innovation of technology to the realm of fashion, to go from computers to couture. Curtis has coined the term “stiletto strapping” when referring to their business. This phrase is her stylish spin on the business concept of bootstrapping. Allowing designers to stiletto strap their lines means helping them break into the fashion industry with the least amount of time, effort, and money
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possible—doing a lot with a little. But wait. How does any fashion company sustain itself while manufacturing in the United States? Cole explains that the key to their business model is that designers put up samples online to test their products and then consumer pre-purchase the garment before it hits production as opposed to the standard business model where mass amounts of garments are produced and then purchased. This allows the company to give manufacturers a clear idea of how much production they need on each garment which drives the USA. manufacturing costs way down. This unconventional approach to retail production is one of the many things that make Nineteenth Amendment a fierce competitor in the world of American fashion. Beyond a sustainable, made-in-the-USA business model, Curtis has also produced
a company that means something. In 1920, the 19th Amendment gave women an equal voice in democracy with the right to vote; Nineteenth Amendment gives consumers and designers a similar voice in the fashion world. Curtis’ biggest frustration with the fashion industry is how inaccessible it can be for young designers. She notes that it can sometimes cost thousands of dollars to launch a line and that it can take as long as four to six seasons or more to become even remotely recognized on the runways. This fashion industry status quo is something that Curtis and Sole seek to revolutionize with the launch of their website. Working to make every aspect of fashion more accessible to the average person, Curtis and Sole brought Nineteenth Amendment’s fashion to the streets of Boston through a series of flash fashion shows. To mark the launch of their company, the two women made a fashionable entrance by staging impromptu runway shows on Newbury Street, in the center of the Prudential Center, and in Faneuil Hall. Taking fashion to the streets of Boston is Curtis and Sole’s way of “connecting with the consumer.” Since launching the company, Curtis and Sole find it hard these days to define a typical workday. When asked what exactly a normal day is like, the women share a quick, pensive glance and a smile. “Meeting with investors…answering e-mails…interviews...moving into a new office.” Many days, Curtis makes visits to colleges in the area to talk to fashion forward college students about Nineteenth Amendment and her experience in the fashion industry. She’s appeared in front of Boston University’s Fashion Club, Emerson College’s Fashion Society, and has given a lecture at Wellesley College. With an office space that is off limits until it’s been fully decorated, we sit in the conference room on the sixth floor where things begin to get a little personal when Curtis and Sole are asked a few questions about their individual styles. Curtis reveals her addiction to shoes, her go to fashion item. “I do shoe modeling on the side. I have over 120 pairs,” she smirks and shakes her head. Sole hesitates before giving her response. “As much as I don’t want to say this... a good bra. That sounds like something my mom would say,” she says, laughing. Reconsidering that answer, she adds that her go to fashion item is a good jacket because, especially in Boston, a winter coat is like a second skin for nearly six months of the year.
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At the moment, the two women are sporting end-ofthe-winter neutrals but reveal that their personal styles are quite different. To describe her style Curtis, who was shy as a young girl, says that her style has always been very outwardly expressive of how she feels. Today she wears black and promises that in this case it’s no indication of her current mood. In terms of her fashion sense, Curtis also quotes a teacher she had in school who said, “Women are lucky because every day they wake up and decide who they want to be.” Every day when Curtis chooses her outfit, she becomes different shade of herself. To this question, Sole reveals her deep dark style secret: a closet full of prints. “I won’t probably wear most of them but I can’t help buying them,” she shrugs. In terms of inspiration, between the two of them Curtis and Sole admire Zara as a fashion retailer, Diane Von Furstenberg for her design success and benevolence, Natalie Massenet who founded Net-a-Porter, and Sophia Amoruso, the founder of another American-based fashion company, Nasty Gal. Curtis, who spent the earlier years of her life with a needle in hand sewing, stitching, and chasing models around backstage for last minute alterations, has stepped back from the physical design aspect of fashion to put her focus on helping aspiring designers make their way in the industry. However, looking back at some of Curtis’ designs, it’s clear that fashion design is in her blood. Some of her sketches depict garments with impeccable architectural details, a sexy blending of colors, and unusual use of multiple fabrics. Some of her most quirky pieces involve green taffeta, an orange coat with printed lining, yellow floral patterns matched with cranberry velvet, functional fashion with detachable bottoms, and femme fatale inspired cocktail dresses. While these designs are momentarily in Curtis’ past, her future with Sole and the company seems to be heading down a promising runway. On a personal level, Curtis was recently a panelist at the Descience – The Fusion of Fashion and Science event at the Doffie Studio in Cambridge. Curtis is a part of Descience’s global fashion initiative to bring the worlds of fashion and science together. The panelists include, Eduardo Villablanca an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School, Carlos Vallamil the creator of Zero Waste fashion collection, and Claire Jarvis a Massachusetts College of Art and Design graduate with an interest in sustainable fashion.
In the past year, Curtis, Sole, and their company have received a slew of fashion and business awards. They were named one of NYC’s Top 100 Fashion Companies 2013, received the honor of Boston Globe’s “Best of the New” in retail 2014, were Russian Standard’s 2013 National Incredible Pursuits Winners, and appeared on Bostinno’s 50 on Fire 2013 , to name just a few. The online fashion world has also embraced Curtis and Sole who have been featured on blogs such as LoveMoney, The Fabulous Life of A Natural Disaster, and Tripping in Heels. With a company that has grown so quickly since its establishment in 2012, one wonders where these two millennial CEO/COOs of couture see their business in the next few years. Beyond the hopes of opening up their company to designers around the world, Curtis focuses on the buyers: “I want them to think of Nineteenth Amendment when they think to themselves, ‘I want something cool and different.’” Meanwhile, Sole focuses on the big picture when she says what she sees in the company’s future: “World domination.” One thing both Sole and Curtis have the same answer to is the question of who will help their company grow: you. They invite anyone interested in design, fashion, technology, and their business model to apply for summer and fall internships with Nineteenth Amendment where they can learn more about the relationship between fashion and technology. They are also on the lookout for “fashion amenders” to participate in the consumers and collaborators aspect of their business by providing feedback about up-and-coming lines. Curtis notes that they are also open to student designers in the future as they hope to grow their design pool exponentially each year. Nineteenth Amendment’s website offers further details on how to become involved with Curtis and Sole and their pursuit of style. In 2012 by investing in Boston’s tech scene and harboring her longtime love of fashion, Curtis was able to bridge the gap between designers and consumers with an online marketplace like no other, known today as Nineteenth Amendment. Now let the record show that in 2007, Curtis received the Capstone Award for writing a 150-page policy paper and giving a two-hour oral defense on the Iranian Nuclear Crisis. You see, you never know what to expect with Amanda Curtis, but when you find out, you’re always pleasantly and fashionably surprised. So next time you think to yourself, I want something cool and different. Think of Amanda Curtis and Gemma Sole and then think of what they have proved is possible in the ever-evolving world of fashion design.
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She’s a Wildflower
photographer: michael thorpe hair
& makeup: abby woodman
models: carson brakke nyla wissa jessica price gabby balza FEBRUARY 2014
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flower provided by chaba florist
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MIDNIGHT EXCURSIONS OF THE SHARPLY DRESSED MAN text by brain thomas photo by kathy collins
With today’s inescapable social connectivity, it is oddly thrilling to slip on your best suit and step to the city’s midnight rhythms alone where anything is possible. The rain mists the streets while neon lights radiate electric blue through the daunting fog. Dressed in a pristine suit, he walks alone into the city of lights and ambiguity. His sleek, black shoes are polished beyond perfection reflecting the energetic lights, flowing as watercolors. Alone without company, the numerous couples and groups of people dotting the avenue try to piece together who this mysterious figure is. Is he a young entrepreneur? Or perhaps he was in the mob, sold out to the government, and is living it up on his government money? No, he’s just a college kid who knows how to dress and play the part. Delving into the city dressed up and alone can create a stimulating sense of anonymity. When you captivate people’s imaginations they innately try to make sense and label you. Wearing a suit stimulates their sense because it is not commonplace, creating an aura shrouded in mystery. This humanistic tendency causes us to label first impressions based on an overall outward presentation. Therefore, dressing with the confidence to pull your own presentation off is key. Dressing in a way that allows you to stand out from the conventional, boring sea of suits can allow you access to places and people that may never have existed before in your mind. For just this reason, at the beginning of this year, I explored Boston in a new suit with an open, receptive attitude. Wearing a blue sharkskin suit over a light blue shirt topped off with a silver tie and brown shoes, I stumbled upon a little place formerly known as Cigar Masters. Cigar Masters is comprised of a large bar tended by beautiful waitresses along with many leather couches where the locals sat puffing away on large stogies. Upon entering the door, the aroma of strong cigars and conversation hits APRIL 2014
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lea is wearing a calypso st barth jacket
me in the face and I realized that I am in the right place. An assortment of people dressed modestly in dark jeans and partially buttoned up shirts, with and without sport coats, and people in black and navy suits crowded around the bar in deep conversation. Everybody was clothed in form-fitting, tasteful attire. It was a place where dirty sneakers and t-shirts were not welcome. I took my seat at the bar, ordered a cigar, and struck up a conversation with a gentleman in his fifties beside me that uncannily resembled Danny DeVito wearing a black suit and sporting a heavy, gold necklace. I learned soon enough that people knew him as “Big Mike”. We conversed about politics, sports, and cigars. He hesitated, drew from his cigar, and asked, “So are you like 30 or somethin’?” After responding no, he was very surprised and commented that he would have never have guessed because the way I dressed and said, “You know what? You look like Buddy Holly with your glasses.” He slid me a drink, raised his glass and spoke so the whole room could here him, “Here’s to you Buddy Holly, the best-damned dressed 20-something year old.” Handing me his card, it turned out he was a CEO of a large Massachusetts security company. After seeing me in the lounge, he would address me as Buddy Holly and start poking fun at me by singing his songs horribly off key. As I discovered that night, style is not merely something used to show off wealth or simply to look good. It can be functional, meaning that it can be used as a tool in social situations. Since people tend to judge things based on what they see first, dressing well and in a way to exude parts of who you are as a person is central to opening opportunities, whether being with relationships or the professional environment.
In order to pull this off, you need to be familiar with what you look good in. In today’s business and fashion world, more casual approaches to dress, such as the ever popular and versatile sport coat, are what’s “in”. However, the revival of the suit changes the meaning of “going out.” Sporting a suit outside of a wedding or funeral creates a stylistic dichotomy between living the mundane day-today life versus creating a new world that is different and where you are essentially anyone you want to be for a short while. When choosing a suit, the first thing to keep in mind is your body structure. Larger, huskier body types should choose suits with lesser buttons, preferably the onebutton. The reason for this is that less buttons appear less restraining on the body. Thinner body types should look for suits that are labeled “slim fit” to accentuate that thinness. Also in “slim fits”, a thinner body type can usually pull off anything. If you are lankier, go with the two button and taller, maybe more athletic types are suited with the double-breasted jacket, which when pulled off effectively can really add an aura of power. Next is color. Earlier the importance of standing out was mentioned. Do not mistake that for looking garish or cliché. The guy in the all white suit and fedora is not always the assumed effective womanizer as seen in the movies. Sticking out for the sake of sticking out is not a good thing. When you piece together an ensemble, purposely choose what you want to stand out. When wearing of a black suit, you may want to accentuate it with a different colored tie, or with a lighter suit, pair a bright or patterned shirt. On the topic of what colors or
patterns to choose, the rule of thumb is to go with what catches your eye immediately. You are the best judge of what brings out your own personality. Be confident. Along with appropriately choosing what looks best, it is also important to know where you are going. Wearing a suit is not always welcomed in all social situations. In certain resturants that carry a casual flare or dance clubs, you can draw unwanted attention to yourself. The idea is to stand out just enough without being overbearing in comparison to others. Areas that are better fitted to dressing up include pricier restaurants and specialty bars. Cigar bars are a favorite because they attract very interesting people from all over, unlike the normal, local bar. You never know whom you might run into at a place like that. Also, it is important to note that just because you look better than the casual person does not mean you’re automatically Mr. Boston. Over-confidence can blow your cover. Always be polite and open-minded. When you walk into a new place, the first step is to simply observe – really look at what types of people there are, how they dress, and what they are talking about. Observing allows you to easily slide into the situation without looking like an “out-of-towner.” Consciously dressing well and understanding the art of conversation is a skill that can open new opportunities. Being confident and generally open is attractive to people in romantic, professional, and overall social situations. So the next time you don’t feel like accompanying your friends to the usual club, maybe you’ll slip on your best clothes and enjoy the finer things in life.
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BEAUTY IS FOREVER text by antonia depace
“She woke up like this~ she woke up like this~ FLAWLESS.” With the exception of Heidi Klum, who clipped her angel wings at age 40, the average life of a model in the fashion industry ends in the mid-30s. Because of this ever-approaching professional expiration date, models take the saying “your body is a temple” very seriously; their bodies and youth are the core elements of their jobs. For instance, to treat her body as a true temple, Victoria’s Secret Angel Miranda Kerr has an early morning, pre-work routine during which she drinks hot water with lemon and does ten minutes of planks, while the average female worker is lucky to be able to stop and grab coffee and a bagel on their way to work. And while most people show up to work with a briefcase and a stack of papers to read over throughout the day, models carry around headshots, themselves, and their youth. Beauty and youth are the ugly truths of the fashion industry. Jacky O’Shaughnessy, however, challenges this “beauty has an expiration date” philosophy as she continues to model for the American Apparel lingerie collection at age 62. O’Shaughnessy began modeling for American Apparel in 2011 when she was scouted in a New York restaurant. Originally, she appeared in the Advanced “Basics” line that includes various styles of tops and bottoms all in basic colors.
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Now, O’Shaughnessy appears in lacy purple and magenta underwear on the American Apparel website and Instagram. In her shots, she appears in various different poses ranging from confident, sexy, and fun. In one photo, O’Shaughnessy appears smiling, flexibly holding her leg up in the air, while in another she sits and stares straight into the camera. In all of the lingerie photos, O’Shaugnessy’s silver-grey hair drapes over her shoulders, giving them a younger appeal. We would expect to see these frilly, revealing lace undergarments on young models with perfect bodies and not by a 60-year-old model. The poses that O’Shaughnessy takes, especially the one where she stretches her leg high into the air with her arm, are also provocative and sexy, which are not typical characteristics in our society for women who are considered “older.” Despite what society may believe, according to fashionista.com, O’Shaughnessy has a very positive attitude towards her modeling career; she thinks that it is creative and engaging. Known for pushing the envelope when it comes to visual media, American Apparel first released with the lingerie photo of O’Shaughnessy on Facebook and Instagram with a tagline of “sexy has no expiration date.” The photo of O’Shaughnessy
in elegant lace underwear inspired a mixture of responses like, “I can only wish to look this good at that age!” and “she woke up like this~ she woke up like this~ FLAWLESS,” while others disapproved, saying, “Ew that is so gross! I wish I hadn’t seen this.” The photos, overall, showed people the elegance and positivity of age and received mostly inspirational and happy feedback. It also gave many people hope that we would all look like her while in our 60s, as well as a realization that beauty is so much more than what is portrayed in media and fashion. O’Shaughnessy proves that beauty is not about how high your cheek bones are or how skinny your torso is, but how you present yourself and exude confidence. O’Shaughnessy is sexy and elegant in her photos because she is not hiding her age, nor what age has done to her body or looks. Unlike many people, she accepts what she looks like and views herself as beautiful just as she should. She is smiling and happy, not sad and depressed that she has wrinkles. Rather than complaining, O’Shaughnessy embraces how her body is changing with age. Being this way in her photos punches the old ideal of beauty in the face and proves that everyone can be beautiful no matter what age as long as they have confidence and happiness in themselves. Of course
there was some negative feedback, but it did not compare to the positive comments on the photo in which some even thanked O’Shaughnessy for giving a reason to see beauty in themselves once again. Because of this, O’Shaughnessy is the epitome of grace and beauty as she models in the photo, and inspires American Apparel consumers to accept themselves for who they are and what they look like despite the portrayal of beauty that the fashion industry presents. American Apparel has many “older” models that are frequently featured in their catalogues and online images. Recently, one of their models, Tannis, celebrated her 60th birthday during an athletic shoot in which she modeled on top of a roof, showing women that age does not give you limits. Both models are breaking through societal expectations of age expression and life. They are showing us that age doesn’t actually matter, and rather than trying to hide it, that we should embrace it, and that is where true beauty shines through. This month, American Apparel promoted an ad on their website that showed a model wearing an article of their clothing from Advanced Style Online. Advanced Style Online was founded by New Yorker Ari Seth Cohen and features the stylish elderly. In Cohen’s words, “Advanced Style offers proof from the wise and silver-haired set that personal style
advances with age.” Just like American Apparel, Cohen believes that “beauty is forever”. He knows that style and beauty do not die out as you age, but become progressively better. Currently, Cohen is working on a documentary film of stylish older folk’s inspirational opinions on fashion and living life to the fullest. The trailers for the film— up on the Advanced Style website— remind viewers that life is short and that even when you’re old, you should still dress the way you feel and the way you like. In other words, being old does not mean that you have to wear sweats and a baggy sweatshirt that has your grandchild’s school name across the front.
All three women, Jacky O’Shaughnessy, Tannis, and Ilona Royce Smithkin, are empowering and inspirational to both those in and out of the fashion community. They show us that life doesn’t have to die out as you get old, but can become even better, and that becoming old should not be hidden but embraced, because that is when you become the most beautiful. Looking at the accomplishments of these women and their love for colorful fashion proves that style really is forever. Style is never something that leaves a person, and it is a way to compliment one’s beauty no matter what age.
91-year-old fashionista and artist, Ilona Royce Smithkin, one of Cohen’s main features in both his film and on his website, was recently featured on an American Apparel Instagram post. In the photo, Smithkin, who makes her own fake eye lashes out of her fiery-red hair, is proudly wearing a blue American Apparel mesh midlength tee paired with a single black and white striped glove. On the post, American Apparel stated: “We love Ilona’s colorful look including our mesh mid-length tee-spotted in Ari Seth Cohen’s timeless book, Advanced Style. The book serves as a fun and elegant reminder that individuality never gets old.”
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HERE COMES THE SUN(DRESS) text by megan cathey
With the change of the season, it’s time to ditch your parka and snow boots for the breezy, effortless styles of spring. As the temperature rises, sport a stylish and fuss-free sundress. With countless styles and colors, there’s an option for everyone – no mater your skin tone or figure. Satisfy your stylish sweet tooth with a candy-colored dress in mint, peach, or pale pink. Liven up your wardrobe and show some skin with a bold, backless number. Hit up the nearest farmers market in casual chambray on the weekend, and wear a comfortable, flattering fit and flare style to class during the weekday. Florals are a staple for the springtime, but there are other pretty printed sundresses in watercolor and geometric designs. Experiment with different styles of this springtime basic to see what suits you best. Pair your fabulous frock with strappy sandals and chic sunglasses (and don’t forget the SPF!).
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lea is wearing a calypso st. barth jacket
IT’S RAIN CUTE text by andrea palagi
Leather is out and plastic and rubber are in! Rainy day fashion is at the forefront of this spring’s seasonal trends with designers taking a fresh approach to the rain boot, umbrella, and raincoat status quos. A few drops of water don’t have to ruin your warm weather attire; in fact, rain apparel can be a crafty way to accessorize your spring wardrobe. Add a pop of color, lighten up with soft pinks, catch the eye with vibrant patterns, or go neutral with something clear. This April, abandon the hunter green rain boots and khaki rain jacket for florals, transparent plastics, and pastels in unexpected places!
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photographer: carina allen hair
& makeup: abby woodman
models: rachel brunner APRIL 2014
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julian baeza hochmuth
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TRAVEL REDEFINED: AIRBNB text by riana odin photo by michael thorpe
Your portal into unique experiences and cheap lodging around the world. With only a few weeks (and a few finals) standing between you and summer, chances are you have already made plans for your months off. Because of AirBnB, those plans may now include the excitement of travel. Instead of letting hotel corporations decide if you can afford to take a vacation this summer, AirBnB offers a range of unique lodging options at prices that are friendly to even a college student’s budget. The concept is revolutionary and stands to redefine the way you approach travel. All too often, travel is limited by the price of lodging. If the major hotel chains in the area designate prices out of your budget, you can be left with no other option but to cancel your plans. AirBnB relieves you of that worry. The company comes in the form of a revolutionary new website that shows listings of lodging for 34,000 cities in 192 countries and counting. The difference is that these are not hotel rooms. Instead, AirBnB is a way for actual people to rent out part or all of their home. Whether someone is looking to make use of their spare bedroom or profit off of a vacant ski house, they can list the spot on AirBnB for a price they choose, which is usually lower than the cost of a corporate hospitality chain. AirBnB exists even where hotels do not, like deep in the mountains or on a private island in Fiji. The exotic locales feature even more interesting set-ups, from luxurious tree houses and mansions to teepees and APRIL 2014
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boathouses. Detailed neighborhood guides help you choose where to stay in your desired location, and a messaging feature lets you communicate with potential hosts in order to ask more specific questions about the location. Your payment is taken online, and the host decides how to best exchange keys upon arrival and departure. The variety of price and location options makes AirBnB a valuable resource for summer travel. A quick weekend away after putting in your nine to five does not have to cost you your entire paycheck. No matter where you call home, it would appear that AirBnB could offer a reasonably priced place to stay that is within driving distance. Working with more time? Get some friends together for a trip to somewhere beachy. Airlines often advertise cheap flights, and AirBnB is your outlet to a cheap house rental if you pool your funds. There are hundreds of apartments and houses that allow for up to 20 people, which sounds like potential for an unforgettable week away. Brian Hurley ‘16, used the website to attend the Governor’s Ball Festival in New York City during the summer of 2013. The festival itself advertised AirBnB as a way for attendees to find affordable places to stay during the three-day event, which proved to be the best option for Hurley and two of his friends. The group was able to rent an entire Harlem apartment for $150 per night. Prices in New York City have
been known to be more than double that, especially when there is a large attraction in the area. “If I was traveling with a group of friends I would check out AirBnB first. The places are usually more spacious than a hotel room and come with a living room and kitchen,” says Hurley. Because of the amenities, pricing, and location, Hurley says he would use AirBnB for the Governor’s Ball again. AirBnB works in your favor in more ways than one. In addition to searching for a place to stay the night, you can also add your home or apartment to the inventory. Most apartment contracts span a full calendar year, and if you aren’t occupying yours for the full year, someone else could be. Your vacant apartment during the summer months or on school breaks can be an efficient way to boost income, without actually doing anything. When you put your space on AirBnB, you get to personally review any inquiries and choose whom you allow to rent out your place. To help you properly vet potential guests, there are reviews listed by previous hosts about the quality of their guests’ behavior. As added security, AirBnB insures every host’s property up to $1,000,000. This does not include pets, rare artwork, cash, or jewelry, so it is best to store those safely before making your exit. If that doesn’t set you at enough ease, you can require a security deposit to cover any damages your visitors’ stay might incur. One of the problems hosts frequently run into is the issue of pricing. Listing your property for too steep of a price drives away customers, but too low of a price will mean losing money you could have made. As a solution, AirBnB created an algorithm to suggest accurate pricing based on a list of criteria: size, location, privacy, and seasonal timing. If you are interested in subletting your apartment through the site, be sure to check with your landlord to make sure there are no legal regulations against it in your building or city. Also, as a courtesy, check to see if your roommates approve of the situation.
Like any new invention, there are questions, concerns, and skepticism. If you are the one renting, how do you know your host isn’t an axe murderer? Besides previous renter reviews, AirBnB requires each host to verify their identity through “knowledge-based authentication or an ID scan” of their driver’s license and by connecting to their social media profiles. This helps you to check them out via LinkedIn, or put your Facebook stalking skills to better use than keeping tabs on your ex. There are also other, more realistic safety concerns for people choosing to rent out a stranger’s property. In response to those, AirBnB offers free safety cards that list emergency numbers, exit routes, and similar information for United States hosts. The company has also started an initiative to get every listed home equipped with smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. To help do so, they are offering to send a free detector system to anyone with an active listing in the United States for the entire year of 2014. Of course, it is always a good idea to be extra vigilant. Research the neighborhood and city you will be visiting, and decline any guest that you aren’t completely sure about. Even if you do not feel comfortable putting your space out onto the virtual marketplace, that does not mean you can’t take advantage of the homes that are. The types of lodging available on AirBnB are unlike any commercial options available, and have the potential to transform your summer or fulfill an adventurous urge. The experience of sleeping in a tree house in Oregon, a teepee in France, or a penthouse apartment in SoHo, is one that has never before been so readily accessible – even if you do have the means to afford such a trip. Hurley, who will be living off-campus next semester, does not foresee listing his future apartment on the website, but would definitely book through AirBnB again. “AirBnB is my first choice if I want to take a spontaneous trip this summer with my friends. Given that we’re college students working with different budgets, it just makes sense,” says Hurley. LIVING
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BRIDGING THE GAP BETWEEN ATHLETICS AND ACADEMICS: S.A.A.C text by wendy eaton photos provided by emerson college athletic department
A minority group with some major goals. Deep down in the basement of Piano Row lies a set of offices that most Emerson students have never stepped into. These offices are well lit and colorful in design. The walls are covered with team pictures and a glass-walled meeting room lies diagonally across from them. This room of glass, which sits squarely above the Bobbi Brown-Steven Plofker Gym, is called the skybox. It is a popular student-athlete hangout and the meeting spot of the Student-Athlete Advisory Council. This organization, commonly known as SAAC, exists to advocate for studentathletes. If you walked into the skybox during a monthly SAAC meeting you would see an assortment of student-athletes working together. Each sport sends representatives to the meetings so that every team has a voice. The meetings are run by an athletic department advisor and a team of four student-athletes. These student-athletes comprise the roles of president, vice-president, secretary, and treasurer. This organization can be found at every college and university across America. The student-athletes who fill the roles for SAAC include President Annie Jenkins ‘15, Vice-President Jon Goldberg ‘14, Secretary Eli Kell-Abrams ‘15, and Treasurer Elissa Chojnicki ‘14. This group, along with advisor Lindsay DeStefano, make up the core of SAAC. MARCH 2014
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The Division III mission statement for SAAC can be found on the Emerson Lions webpage and conveys the following core principles of the organization; “to enhance the total student-athlete experience by promoting opportunity for all student-athletes; protecting student-athlete welfare; and fostering a positive student-athlete image, while maintaining the tenants of the Division III philosophy.” This mission statement may seem vague but President Annie Jenkins, a journalism major, depicts what the fundamentals of the Emerson SAAC chapter are, “I work closely with our advisor to enhance the student-athlete experience through fundraising, event planning, and community service.” These three tenants make up the foundation of SAAC and its goals as an organization. The 20-25 student-athletes who make up SAAC are striving to create a better experience for all Emerson studentathletes and to make an impact on campus and in the community. SAAC has already employed efforts to get the Emerson community more involved with athletics. These efforts included a White Out Night. This event took place during an Emerson Men’s Basketball game. SAAC provided free white t-shirts for the game in an attempt to make the gym completely white. The goal was to show support for the men’s basketball team as they took the court against a tough NEWMAC opponent. This show of support for the student-athletes was just the beginning of
their efforts. They also hosted an event in the skybox that entreated student-athletes to invite their professors to a game. This event, says SAAC advisor Lindsay DeStefano, was “an attempt to bridge the gap between athletics and academics. Student-athletes at Emerson don’t always feel embraced by the faculty.” A turnout of about six professors was seen as a success by DeStefano. Jenkins shed more light on the breakdown between Emerson faculty and the student-athletes, “On campus, not all professors are on board with people playing sports and don’t really know the effort we put into the court or field and into the classroom. So we’re trying to foster a better relationship with that.” Jenkins described these as “small steps,” which is currently SAAC’s focus as it attempts to build itself into the more well-known and active organization that it wants to be within the Emerson community and the community of Boston. These small steps towards creating a more inclusive Emerson Athletics experience is only one of the ways that SAAC hopes to make an impact. President Jenkins also revealed that SAAC has future plans to reach out to the Greater Boston community. “We are looking to do an equipment drive for the Boys and Girls Club of Boston,” says Jenkins, who looks forward to transforming SAAC into a more well-known organization that serves the community of Boston well. “We need to focus on having more regular meetings and having more consistent help from our student-athletes.” These changes, she says, will allow for SAAC to become a successful organization for our student-athletes, the Emerson community, and the city of Boston. Catherine Cloutier ‘15, a post-production major, is a member of the women’s basketball team. Cloutier does not participate in SAAC and has her own opinion about SAAC’s actions and events this year. “I’ve noticed an improvement in community support, especially at our games, and that the SAAC events with the free t-shirts and the free pizza have definitely gotten people to come out more.” While Cloutier is happy with the new support from the Emerson community, she voiced her concerns about SAAC, “Giving away free stuff seems to be their tactic to get people here and I don’t necessarily know if that’s how I want my team to be supported.” Cloutier had some advice for SAAC: “Find a way to get people here solely based on the pride, and to have people take pride in their team.”
This idea would bring student fans to the games, which have been lacking in attendance these past few years. “Right now most events are focused on basketball and it’s because of their location. They can be broadcasted because they’re in the gym and it’s on-campus,” says Jenkins. With proposed plans to get fans safely to and from the outdoor events, SAAC is expanding its reach. The improvements and hopes for a more intertwined future between Emerson student-athletes and the rest of the Emerson community is fueled by a desire to get more involved. SAAC wants to be known and to be a part of the fabric of the Emerson community. “We have worked on events with the student government,” says DeStefano. As Jenkins puts it, “The effort to try and get the campus more involved is a work-in progress.” In a school known for its theater performances and its robust offering of stages and screenings, SAAC is merely striving for the student-athletes to be seen on their stage. SAAC wants the student-athletes at Emerson College to enjoy their experience here and to be able to do so with voice: a voice that currently calls out for more fan support, more faculty support, and more ways to support their community. SAAC is not looking just to change the way they are viewed by the Emerson community, but also by the world. “We are a school that is not always known for sports, but we want to start creating that notoriety,” says DeStefano. The Emerson College Student-Athlete Advisory Council is unknown. Stop any Emerson student on Boylston Street, athlete or not, and most likely they will have no idea what it is. They probably couldn’t even guess at what the initials stand for. SAAC is small, it is hidden, but it is making quiet strides towards being known. It is working to emerge as an important facet to Emerson College with its student events and community outreach. So, look out for them as they make their voice known outside the quiet confines of the skybox. Look out for them as they make a splash on campus and within the Boston community, look out, SAAC is here and ready to be heard.
SAAC’s attempts to reach out to the Emerson community and instill that much-desired pride have been mainly based within basketball so far, but DeStefano plans to have more events for the spring teams as well. “We want to have walking groups to Rotch (Emerson’s off-campus athletic field) so that our spring teams can get some support.” LIVING
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THE DEAL ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA text by jamie kravitz illustration by pimploy phongsirivech
Will we see a dispensary on Boylston Street this summer?
You may have heard that marijuana is “decriminalized” in Massachusetts. But what exactly does that mean? And what is currently happening with medical marijuana in Massachusetts? The Sensible Marijuana Policy Initiative, or Massachusetts Ballot Question 2, replaced prior criminal penalties with new civil penalties on adults possessing an ounce or less of marijuana. Perhaps the first step toward legalization of marijuana in the state, this measure was passed on Nov. 4, 2008, and became public law on Jan. 2, 2009. There have been more recent developments relating to marijuana reform. In November 2012, voters approved legislation that would allow for 35 medical marijuana dispensaries to open across the Bay State in the first year of the law’s enactment. A state committee reviewed 100 applications and, on Jan. 31, 2014, granted the first 20 licenses to open dispensaries. Out of the 14 counties in Massachusetts, 10 were chosen to hold one or more dispensaries. Two companies were approved for locations in Boston: Green Heart Holistic Health & Pharmaceuticals, Inc. at 70 Southampton Street, and Good Chemistry of Massachusetts, Inc. at 364-368 Boylston Street. APRIL 2014
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These plans are not set in stone, however. The applicants are in no way guaranteed dispensaries – at least not yet. A Verification Phase took place in March of this year, and an Inspection Phase will continue into the spring. This summer, applicants will need to pass a final inspection in order to be issued a Final Certificate of Registration by the Department of Public Health (DPH). Only then will they be allowed to open. The companies must also comply with any local permitting requirements. The DPH will continue to oversee these dispensaries through an annual renewal of certificate, spot checks, and random audits. Karen van Unen is the executive director of the medical marijuana program at the Massachusetts DPH. It is her job to oversee all aspects of the program, “from the inspection of dispensaries to the creation of a patient and caregiver registration database that will be operational later this year,” as she describes it. On Feb. 4, van Unen participated in a live chat on Boston.com. She answered questions from readers about the new industry, which she believes will create hundreds of jobs in the Commonwealth. One important clarification she made was that under the law set by the ballot question, Massachusetts dispensaries can only serve qualified patients who are residents of Massachusetts. Van Unen concluded the chat by expressing that a major goal of the DPH is to “ensure patient access and comply with
the will of voters.” She explained that the DPH “took the necessary time to do this right, for the health and safety of patients and the community.” One concern among some business owners has been the possibility of a rise in crime. According to an article in The Boston Globe, however, most nearby businesses on Boylston Street either “supported or were indifferent to a dispensary setting up” in their vicinity. Other issues that come to mind include the effect on the student population, financial effects on the state, and implications for pharmacies and other businesses. While some fear that the approval of medical marijuana will eventually lead to the legalization of marijuana in Massachusetts, it is important to keep in mind other laws regarding the drug. It is illegal to buy or sell marijuana for recreational use in Massachusetts and people who drive a motor vehicle while under the influence of marijuana can face criminal charges. Your Mag had the opportunity to speak with Boston journalist Chris Faraone. Faraone currently works as the News and Features Editor for DigBoston, an alternative print and online publication. He contributes to the website’s “Blunt Truth” series, which explores the positives of marijuana reform. Here’s what the advocate had to say: Your Mag: What will medical marijuana look like in Massachusetts, beginning this summer? Chris Faraone: My guess is that the first [dispensaries] will open close to the beginning of summer, as initially predicted and promised, but that some municipalities - Boston, for example - will, for no good reason, delay the process to please elderly voters who could, if they were open-minded enough, in many cases benefit from medical marijuana. YM: What is a dispensary? CF: Simple. That’s where you get your weed, whatever form that may come in, from buds, to cookies, to liquids, to you name it. Highly regulated, these places will be safer than banks, as has been proven elsewhere. YM: How does obtaining medical marijuana work? CF: You need a note from a doctor - at this point, most people will likely have to obtain these permissions through specialized cannabis clinics - then register with the state for $50. At this juncture, since there are no dispensaries, the lines are blurred, but many people are obtaining medicine through other means, primarily by way of caregivers.
YM: How much money could companies potentially make from this new law? CF: I have no idea, at least dollar-wise, but I’m guessing that while there were initial complaints that the nonprofit model would be hard to profit off of, I think it’s safe to say, in the wake of so many parties ponying up so much money for provisional licenses, that there’s plenty of money to be made. YM: What financial effects could medical marijuana have on the state? CF: There’s all sorts of money to be made, from licensing fees to taxes. When lawmakers finally grow up, and heed the will of voters, they’ll see just how positive this can all be. YM: What are the implications for pharmacies and other businesses? CF: Pharmacies should watch their asses. Medical marijuana is a safe alternative to all sorts of the garbage they push. As for other businesses, pot dispensaries have, over and over, been shown to have a positive impact on the surrounding community. No hyperbole there – look it up. Study after study validates this claim. YM: Do you think the availability of medical marijuana will have an impact on the student population? CF: No. You will all be paying the same amount for weed. Just like in California, where it was much easier to attain medical. Don’t get your hopes up. YM: What do you think the future is for marijuana in Massachusetts? CF: It will be like gay marriage. When people realize that they’re living among dispensaries, and the sky isn’t falling, and their kids aren’t having pot orgies in the street, the support will only grow. Then, by 2016, we’ll have full legal. Believe that! While Massachusetts may be far off from fully legalizing marijuana, a Suffolk University and Boston Herald Poll released in February 2014 found that 53 percent of Bay State voters support legalization, while 37 percent oppose it and 10 percent are undecided. The Inspection Phase of the medical marijuana review process in the state is still underway.
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IT’S PEANUT BUTTER JELLY TIME text by jenna giannelli photos by claudia mak & olivia jacobini
Do the peanut butter jelly! April 2 marks the day celebrating arguably one of the best edible combinations in American culture: PB&J! Stock up folks, because Your Mag is bringing you the top classic, intriguing, and slightly alternative peanut butter and jelly combinations. We expect you to try them all!
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The Classic
The Alternative
The Intriguing
1) PB&J (and Banana) Waffle Sandwich There’s nothing quite like peanut butter and jelly for breakfast. There is no better way to enrich the concept than to slather it on a beloved breakfast food: waffles!
1) Bacon and Sriracha Burger with PB&J The only thing comparable to a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is a juicy burger. So why not branch out and try something unique that joins the two?
1) PB&J Baked Oatmeal Wake up to a healthy, yet tasty, treat that oatmeal fans are guaranteed to enjoy! Your choice of oatmeal whipped with peanut butter and jelly.
2) PB&J Muffins How could anyone deny a muffin filled with the gooey goodness of peanut butter and jelly? Start the day off right with this melt in your mouth snack.
2) PB&J Poutine Poutine is another dish to experiment with. Smother a plate of fries with peanut butter and jelly. This is could quite possibly be perfect side dish for your peanut butter, jelly, bacon,and sriracha burger!
2) PB&J Ice Cream Sandwich This recipe, inspired by the beautiful mind of Paula Deen, is for those interested in trying a “cooler” way to eat peanut butter and jelly. Make this yummy dessert by smothering jelly, peanut butter chips, and ice cream between two cookies.
GROWING UP IS HARD TO DO text by chantelle bacigalupo
Sometimes a dose of childlike wonder is exactly what you need. “I’ll treat you like an adult when you start acting like one.” It’s an all too familiar phrase we’re sure you’ve heard from bitter parents. College kids are stuck in this awkward phase between childhood and adulthood. We are pushed to start “growing up.” There are pressures to become more realistic, more practical, more mature, and more put together. While this is understandable, don’t climb out of the sandbox just yet. Kids view life in its raw beauty. Their happiness stems from the imagination, wonder, and excitement they see in life’s small pleasures. They hold no inhibitions. They dance like no one is watching whenever and wherever. They’ll smile at a stranger. They’ll even try to eat sand because, well, does there need to be a reason? They live life! Yes, we will soon have bills, loans, mortgages, and a free lifetime supply of responsibilities. Yet every once in a while, it’s okay to become naïve toward the weight of the world on our shoulders, and just...be. The most important thing is to preserve the spirit of your inner kid. Don’t know where to start? Here are a few fun things to do in Boston to shake out your hair and get back in touch with your child spirit. Visit the Fairy Shop Discovered on 272 Newbury Street, the fairy shop is a portal to the world of Alice in Wonderland. To the left of the main entrance door you will find a mini door too small for any normal sized human to fit through. Signs outside the shop sometimes say “Chillin’ with the Gnomes” or “Lost Unicorn, Reward if Found.”
Store owner Michael Selleto founded the store almost 20 years ago. The Fairy Shop is home to boxes of miscellaneous keys, magical eggs, fairies, unicorns, and tons of other fun artisanal trinkets. Just to top off the experience, he sprinkles a little bit of fairy dust on the merchandise his customers purchase. Jump into the fairy world any day from 12:00 p.m. -7:00 p.m. Make a Wish at the Brewer Fountain As a kid, you would make a wish any chance possible; on your birthday, on 11:11, or when you blew an eyelash. Remember when you used to throw a penny into a wishing well or fountain? Well, there is one fountain begging for wishes in the Common: The Brewer Fountain. It might as well be the baby of the Trevi Fountain. So, take a walk to the Brewer and make a wish - any chance you get. Ride the Greenway Carousel Let out your inner child for three minutes at the recently constructed Greenway Carousel, located right across from Faneuil Hall. For only $3, your college kid budget won’t be busted. The carousel features 14 different creatures native to the land of Massachusetts. Some include butterflies, skunks, a whale, and a sea serpent. It’s open daily and costs less than your latte. Let your imagination run wild as you as you take a lap around town in your new ride. So stay in the sandbox! Except this time instead of eating sand, build a magnificent sandcastle. One with a moat...and gargoyles... and windows... and watchmen... and…
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ROAD TRIP READY text by ashley howard photo by madeline bilis
Your guide to the three best routes in the good ‘ol US of A. In this day and age, taking cross-country trips usually involves jumping on a plane and reading a good book for a few hours. Unfortunately, with faster and more convenient travel methods like flying, road trips are much less common. Stopping at middle-of-nowhere diners for a fast bite, visiting breath taking landmarks like the Grand Canyon, and driving along the windy coast are just a few of the wonderful perks of taking a road trip. Instead of opting for an expensive plane ride to a vacation this summer, opt to take one of these three exciting road trips instead! The California Road Trip Picture making your way down the western-most state for some beautiful coastline views and exciting city life. If this sounds perfect, a Route 1 road trip might be in store for you. For the quintessential Cali road trip experience, you will want to be ready for sparkling sunsets and a gorgeous oceanfront drive, all while making your way down the state’s coastal border. The Pacific Coast Highway, better known as Route 1, is perhaps the most classic cruise California has to offer. A trip down the Route 1 allows for stops at some of California’s best cities—San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Don’t forget to stop at the magnificent Redwood National
Forest to see some incredibly old and tall trees. Additionally, Route 1 makes its way through Big Sur, a forest region in central California where the Santa Lucia Mountains rise up from the Pacific Ocean. You can hike through some of the most beautiful trails California has to offer and get some amazing views of the rocky coastal beaches. Take a pit stop at Stanford University in Palo Alto to see one of the USA’s most famous universities, and certainly don’t miss an opportunity to swing through the stunning Napa Valley for a wine tasting or 10. On a California road trip, it seems that there is nothing stopping you from having a blast.
The Blue Ridge Parkway Road Trip If you love the vibrant oranges of autumn, a road trip through Virginia and North Carolina on the Blue Ridge Parkway is a pleasant fall vacation. This road trip holds a 469-mile drive full of scenic natural landmarks. Take a trip through the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests and explore the mesmerizing crests of the North Carolina mountains. The Blue Ridge Parkway is often called a “window” into the region because it provides glimpses into countless towns along the route. The best point to begin your journey is in Charlottesville, Va., and the best place to wind down is in Sylvia, N.C. The Parkway skirts through many mountain ranges before it’s through, including the Blue Ridge and Black Mountains, and the Great Smokey Mountains on the border of Tennessee. Two important detours to take in the North Carolina area are Blowing Rock and the city of Asheville. Asheville is an incredibly beautiful college city that is one of a kind in the fall. It has a thriving cultural scene and a population of interesting inhabitants. Further into Asheville is one of North Carolina’s most famous landmarks—the Biltmore Estate. The Biltmore is an old and lucrative tourist attraction that is famous for being the largest house built in America. Don’t miss a tour at the enormous Biltmore on your Blue Ridge Parkway road trip!
Route 66 Road Trip The Route 66 road trip is perhaps the most famous of the American road trips. This road spans across the United States and is even lined with hundreds of thousands of motels, diners, pit stops, towns, and tourist attractions. Route 66 is said to be the purest form of “the American experience” available to this day. In addition to the stunning and iconic views of the Grand Canyon and other tourist attractions, Route 66 offers beautiful panoramic views throughout the whole duration of the trip. Keep in mind that along the Route 66 journey, all of the sight-seeing won’t be of natural spectacular creations, but also a combination of wacky stops, like large water towers, the Cadillac Ranch, and old theaters. There will certainly be no dull moments as your make your way across the USA!
Route 66 winds through a beautiful compilation of American locations, from the rusty streets of Chicago and St. Louis, through the deserts of the Southwest, and into the beautiful Los Angeles sunshine. If you’re looking for a road trip that will take you through the American Dream, take Route 66. In many ways, taking a road trip can be one of the most rewarding trips possible—you just have to pick the perfect route for you! Whether it’s rolling down the California coast, winding through the North Carolina mountains, or cruising down Route 66, you will take a trip to remember. Next time you decide to take flight, think again and hit the open road!
NURTURING YOUR GREEN THUMB text by antonia depace photos by carina allen
Gardening doesn’t have to be limited to the great outdoors. They pop up in all colors: blue, pink, yellow, and white. Flowers are perfect. They smell good, look pretty, and can brighten up anyone’s day in seconds. Because many of us are used to the flowers that are seen amongst trees and green grass, we might think that it’s impossible to catch a glimpse of spring flowers in the city. Wrong! Everyone deserves a chance to try and find their green thumb, and it’s easy to bring the garden that you love so much about home into your city apartments and dorm rooms. To grow plants in your living space, all you really need is an idea of what kind of plant you want and a pot to put it in. There are many indoor plants that are easy to take care of that will brighten up any space during springtime. African Violets (Saintpaulia ionantha) are good indoor plants to start with. Not only are they very easy to take care of, but bloom year-round in various shades of purple. This plant likes warm conditions and filtered sunlight and should not grow more than eight inches tall and 16 inches wide. To keep it happy, all you have to do is avoid getting water on its fuzzy leaves and keep it in front of a window. You can also share the plant with friends. Once it blooms, all you have to do is cut off a leaf with a root and place it in a moist potting mix. Easy spring present to a friend, right? Easter Cactus (Rhipsalidopsis-sym) is a special and unique plant. It is a prickly cactus as indicated in the name, but also blooms beautiful pink flowers during the springtime that make it look more like a wild flower than a dry desert plant. The cactus blooms in various vivid colors and, just like the African violets, it lives year round. During its blooming season in the spring, the cactus requires a generous amount of water. However, during the fall and winter, it becomes semi-dormant and only needs to be watered once a week. This plant is a little more difficult to take care of than the African violets, as it is very picky about how much water it is given. Over watering is the main culprit for the deaths of Easter cacti. If you are looking for a plant that does not take too much time to APRIL 2014
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care for but still needs a tiny bit of attention, this is a good one to start with for the spring. Gerbera Daisy (Gerbera jamesonii) grows in bright shades of orange, red, and yellow and has big green leaves that branch out in large shapes and sizes. The flowers bloom year round and brighten up any room as long as they are properly cared for. You can’t repot the gerbera daisy because of its deep roots, so the plant tends to live for only three years. During the spring, keep your gerbera daisy in the sunlight and allow it to have at least three hours in the afternoon shade. During the winter, provide the plant with indirect sunlight. Just like any other indoor plant, give water to the flower every three to five days. In order to keep your plant healthy, cut off any wilted pieces including flowers. Jade Plant (Crassula ovata) is an old-fashioned plant that sprouts green, glossy leaves with a red tint. While it may look like a plant that is hard to take care of, it is actually one of the easiest to grow. Jade only needs to be watered once its soil is completely dried or once their leaves begin to lose their sheen, which means that it is stressed. You should not need to repot this plant, as it has a very small rooting system. Just like you would with a bush, pruning is a big part of taking care of this plant. Do not over do it and shape as liked. Growing vegetables indoors can be a bit harder depending on how much space you have to work with. Believe it or not, it is possible to grow tomatoes, carrots, and avocados indoors, but they take up a decent amount of space. If you don’t want a tall plant, but still want to be able to plant something that you can cook with, it’s better to strive for herbs and small vegetables. Basil is an herb that is easy to grow and is a common kitchen ingredient that can be used in pasta sauce or to top off a plate of mozzarella and olive oil. You can purchase seeds or a starter plant at any gardening store or grocery
store like Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s. Basil is a plant that requires a lot of water and it also really enjoys sunlight. While growing your basil, be sure to pinch off any flowers, as this will stop your basil from becoming bigger and bushier. To harvest the basil, snip the amount of leaves you need from the plant, making sure not to take all of them at once. You can preserve your basil by freezing it if you take too much off at one time. Cilantro, for many, is an herb comparable to the taste of soap, but for those who enjoy the flavor should definitely try to grow this indoors. The herb grows best outdoors, so growing it indoors requires a lot of nutrients. When you originally pot your cilantro, mix your soil with sand so that the water can move more freely. One of the most important parts of growing cilantro is making sure to water it completely, meaning watering the plant until water starts to come out from the bottom of the container. Give the plant four to five hours of sunlight a day and only water it when the soil is completely dry.
Where to buy your seeds: Boston Gardener Hydroponics Garden Store 2131 Washington St, Boston MA 02119 (617) 606-7065 Niche Urban Garden Supply 619 Tremont St, Boston MA 02118 (857) 753-4294 Ricky’s Flower Market 238 Washington St Somerville, MA 02143 (617) 628-7569 Bonny’s Garden Center 41 Bay St Rd Cambridge, MA 02138 (617) 547-1585
Peppers are good vegetables to grow indoors. Not only are they delicious, but can be used in multiple healthy dishes as well. Although pepper plants grow multiple peppers at a time, this doesn’t mean you need to clear a large space for the plant. You actually don’t need to plant them in large containers, but do make sure to only plant a few seeds as they enjoy having space to grow. If possible, try to plant your peppers by sprouts rather than seeds. The sprouts help to start your peppers at a better place for growing indoors rather than the seeds, which take longer to grow. Also, make sure to give your peppers a ton of sunlight. Green onions are very small and can be found growing outside pretty much anywhere during the spring. For growing them indoors, you can either buy seeds, or green onions at the super market and stick them in a cup of water. Placing already-grown onions in the water will help to extend the roots and grow a larger amount of the onions. If you decide to plant them from seeds, the onions can take anywhere from two to three months to fully grow. When planting the seeds try to have them farther apart, as they do have wide rooting systems.
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‘TO BOSTON WITH LOVE’ text by pimploy phongsirivech photos by the museum of fine arts boston
Remembering the Boston Marathon with 1,756 flags On April 15, 2013, Boston was struck with a tragedy, and its traces linger in the memory of many today. Devastation, fear, and outrage gripped the city as the events escalated. Boston’s grief-stricken residents came together with the determination to help their city recover – fundraisers were held, and efforts were made to assist Bostonians affected by the bombing. Three of Emerson College’s students promptly founded the Boston Strong campaign, which became immensely successful in a short amount of time, raising over $840,000 in the first month from t-shirt sales and donations. As Boston and its inhabitants recuperated, 3,100 miles west of Massachusetts, Berene Campbell had a dream. Campbell, a South African-Canadian graphic designer and owner of an online business Happy Sew Lucky (www.happysewlucky.com), watched the news of the bombings from Vancouver, Canada. One month later, she and Boston-based quilter Amy Friend successfully created and installed a monumental exhibition at the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) – To Boston With Love. MARCH 2014
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Held in May 2013, To Boston With Love featured 1,756 hand-sewn flags, suspended in the MFA’s Shapiro Family Courtyard. Each flag, comprised of peace and love symbols, conveyed encouraging and inspirational messages of hope and recovery. What began, literally, as a dream that Campbell had one night turned into what she expected would be a small project, and then exploded into a globalscale exhibition. Quilters from every state in the US, and from many countries – Japan, Australia, and South Africa to name a few – contributed their messages and prayers to Boston through these handmade flags. As a tribute to the one-year anniversary of the Boston Marathon bombings, the MFA will once again host To Boston With Love from April 1 to April 30. Visit the installation, and marvel over the overwhelming number of flags, all brimming with heartfelt wishes and support. Your Magazine had the wonderful opportunity to interview Berene Campbell, who explained how To Boston
With Love came into existence the intention behind it, and her thoughts on why one should never let a good idea go, no matter its size. One of the things that fascinates Campbell the most about To Boston With Love was how it came together. Campbell says, “I had no connection to Boston at the time. I’d never been there, [I] didn’t know anyone there, [and I] had no family there…I watch the news a lot, and you know [these stories] they make you sad but in the end you kind of get on with your life…for some reason, the story just stuck with me. And it really impacted me somehow. That night I had this dream that I made these peace and love flags and I’d hung them [up] in the park… when I woke up in the morning, I had this compulsion [that] this is what I had to do.” Campbell’s idea at that time was to hang flags up in Boston as a symbol of support. She reached out to a friend who gave her the contact information of Amy Friend, a fellow quilter and blogger who lived in Boston. Campbell reached out to Friend who agreed to help her facilitate the project. She says, “After that, I thought it might be interesting for the [Modern Quilt Guild] to participate, because it would be more impactful if we had more flags.” To Boston With Love owes its popularity and enormous number of participants to the online quilting community on Facebook, Instagram, and Flickr as well as the nonprofit corporation Modern Quilt Guild (MQG), which operates over 90 guilds across the U.S., and worldwide. Campbell explains what the Modern Quilt Guild is: “The Modern Quilt Guild started out as a result of a movement of quilters who were quilting with a modern aesthetic, unlike the more traditional quilting styles known up to that point. It is now a huge movement comprised of quite an eclectic group of people – young and old, all ethnicities, some tattooed some with pink hair, and some of the more senior ladies that were traditional quilters looking to bust out and do something fresher. There are cities all over the world that joined…the Modern Quilt Guild central link[s] into all the subsidiaries, and many collaborative projects, workshops, and sewing gettogethers are planned via their site.”
To Boston With Love expanded rapidly, and as the number of participating guilds and individuals rose swiftly, Campbell and Friend had to search for a suitable venue to host the exhibition. Friend received an email from the MFA, informing her of their plans to exhibit ‘something special for the community for Memorial Day’. Friend immediately suggested the idea of exhibiting To Boston With Love at the MFA, and contacted the MFA with the idea. MFA’s Director of Public Relations, Dawn Griffin, responded in favor of the project. Campbell says, “I was making dinner when Amy [Friend] told me that the MFA had agreed to exhibit the flags for us. I’ll never forget it. I was making coleslaw. I promptly sliced the tip of my finger and had to get seven stitches [laughs]. I was just so excited.” Regarding the bombings and the Chechen brothers responsible for the attacks, Campbell had this to say: “I think that for me the critical point of it was…that the two young people doing something so horrific…that they must have been very angry or very disconnected from their community. Because essentially they were residents, they belonged there but they clearly didn’t feel like they did. And I don’t know what happened to those boys, I guess they had influences from home, and they came from a very difficult situation obviously…I think that it’s really sad. As terrible as what they did was, I feel really badly for them that they became such angry and sad people to do such a thing.” She shares her insight on the topic of immigrants, acceptance, and the importance of recognizing and appreciating the diversity within a community. Campbell says, “I just think that as human beings we box people so much. I’,m an immigrant, and for me, being allowed into a country is an incredible privilege that shouldn’t be taken for granted. When you come into a country, you have to really respect the people, their culture and what they are about. I think as a country that lets immigrants in, it’s very generous but at the same time, we often look at immigrants and we don’t realize the value that they bring to the party. I think that it is really important for the country that let them in to also be grateful for the richness that immigrants bring in.”
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Campbell contacted Vancouver Modern Quilt Guild to pitch To Boston With Love, and within four days after the bombings, the project was officially posted on the Internet and was well on its way. “I made some flags and took photographs. I wrote a tutorial with parameters such as the size, dimensions, and restrictions. For example, we asked for no religious or political messages to be put on...because I didn’t want it to be about that. So on Friday
night, we uploaded it with the tutorial, and it went on the Modern Quilt Guild. By Sunday morning…on Instagram I saw that Rita Red Pepper Quilts – she’s a big quilter in Australia – had posted a pic of her flag done and in the mail already…within 24 hours she [had] made it and mailed it! And I thought ‘holy crap this is going to be a lot bigger than I had thought!’ [Laughs]. And it escalated from there,” says Campbell.
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Campbell ends this note with what she had hoped To Boston With Love conveyed: “We all have to find a way to live with each other. We don’t have to love each other, but we have to respect and care for each other. You don’t have to like the differences, but you should respect them. It’s about humanity, [and] just being kind to humanity. I think that was for me, what I would’ve wanted to communicate. Just…let’s be kind. Because if somebody’s being kind to you, it’s hard to be mean back. It’s a very simplistic message.” She closes the conversation with a humble selfreflection and some advice on the importance of sticking with ideas and taking chances. Campbell says, “I’m not an important person [laughs]. Really, I’m not special, even in the quilting world! I have a fairly good following on Instagram, but I’m not one of these rock star modern quilters who have been quilting for years and years [and are] almost demi-gods in the quilting world [Laughs]. I’m just this little person living on the other side of the continent who had a good idea. Everyone has great ideas,
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but we often let them go, brushing them off as crazy or requiring too much effort to act on. Sometimes you have a thought and you know it’s a good idea…if you hold onto that idea, and you go ‘okay this one’s precious, let’s run with it’, sometimes they can grow into these beautiful things.” She inserts here that she doesn’t like to take credit for To Boston With Love: “Without my cohort Amy Friend, and of course the hundreds of makers that contributed, it would have just been my little string of flags hanging in a tree somewhere in Boston. Now [To Boston With Love] has got a life of it’s own. It’s on its way. I planted the seed and now there’s this forest, and I love it. It’s amazing.” It may have started from a ‘little person’ with help from a friend; however, To Boston With Love is anything but small. Visit t,e exhibition, and relish at how the world came together with a string of seven inch hand-sewn flags and a whole lot of love.
THE HEAT OF THE KITCHEN text by claudia mak
Never underestimate the power of a chef. crazy life. Her golden memories of her childhood are juxtaposed with her treacherous journeys that take her through the New York streets at 16, through Europe almost always starving, and cooking at a summer camp for sick children. She worked her butt off to get to where she is now as the founder of acclaimed restaurant, Prune, in New York City. Follow her inspirational journey and discover how food manifests in human kindness. Shoot, Bourdain even admits, “I put this amazing memoir down and wanted to crawl under the bed, retroactively withdraw every book, every page I’d ever written. And burn them.” Fresh Off the Boat by Eddie Huang America is the land of promise, right? Eddie Huang’s Taiwanese family sought success in the US, but for his entire childhood he saw this country in contempt. Being a young Asian boy in Orlando does not go without constant bullying. Huang turned to hip-hop, basketball, and food to get him through. Huang is best known as the proprietor of Baohaus, a Taiwanese inspired restaurant in New York City. He also hosts Fresh Off the Boat for Vice TV where he travels to exotic places and comments on immigrant culture and traditional culinary practices. His memoir is a hilarious and depressing tale of being Asian in America, keeping Asian tradition alive far from the mainland and how food is the universal language between cultures.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
There is a very exclusive group of ragtag antiheroes: chefs. These culinary masters rarely come from spoon-fed backgrounds, often achieving fame and recognition by the skin of their teeth. Those inspired by taking the unadulterated path avert your eyes! Here are some memoirs of chefs who share their down and dirty journeys through the culinary underbelly. Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain You all might know Bourdain by his presence on Travel Channel shows like The Layover and No Reservations. This sullied and brash celebrity chef is known for his hilarious criticism of the food world. Once you understand what he came from, his offensive personality is put into a whole new perspective. Bourdain was a lost boy who, two years into Vassar College, dropped out and decided to pursue a career in food. He was attracted to the restaurant business by the heat of the kitchen and the diverse personalities of chefs he worked with. After being hardened by his experiences, he attended the most prestigious culinary school in America, the Culinary Institute of America. His classmates felt frightened under the pressure of the head chefs at CIA, but he was brave and proved himself to be a great chef. Bones, Blood & Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton Hamilton spent 20 years pursuing a light at the end of a tunnel to form some sort of meaning in her
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NOT BY BREAD ALONE text by christabel frye photo by artsemerson
A theater experience is hitting Paramount stage this April.
Not by Bread Alone is one of the international experiences brought to us by ArtsEmerson: The World on Stage. This unique performance comes to us from the Nagala’at Center in Israel, and involves 11 deaf/blind actors creating a world of fantasy and bridging the gap to reality in a distinctive fashion. ArtsEmerson has been working hard since 2010 to bring different and innovative acts from across the country and around the world to Boston and the Emerson community. The mission of ArtsEmerson, according to their website, is to “redefine the relationship between artist and audience and the impact of theatre on the community.” They want to “expand Boston’s cultural landscape by giving audiences the opportunity to experience work from across this country and around the world that adds to the cultural choices for the community, and to support the development of new work through selected multi-year commitments to artists, ensembles, and world-renowned institutions.” Most acts can be categorized in three ways: legends (highly regarded institutions), pioneers (new artists and new ideas), and family orientated acts. The play itself focuses on baking bread, which happens in on-stage ovens and in real time. Yet it is the story and the actors behind the bread that makes this play fit in so well with the ArtsEmerson mission. Not by Bread Alone is an experience that people in Boston probably wouldn’t see anywhere other than its country of origin right to our doorstep. And, according to theater studies major James Kennedy ‘14 who serves as the ArtsEmerson student creative producer for Not by Bread Alone, the Nagala’at Center brings a cultural voice that is “unlike any other company we’ve presented this season.” This show APRIL 2014
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also illustrates a strong connection with the Boston and Emerson community. “Boston has a strong Jewish community as well as a strong network of professionals studying communication,” says Kennedy, “so a cast featuring Jewish actors who are deaf and blind will certainly give our audiences a lot to think and talk about as they discover the production.” While the actors are physically kneading and baking the bread, the act on stage is expressed through different means of communication, including having much of the play in silence. At the end of the show, the audience is invited on stage to share the bread with the actors followed by, with most shows, a talkback. This talkback features the audience, creators, and performers talking about the show right after it has been performed. The project began after Adina Tal, a professional theater artist, lead a theater workshop for deaf/blind actors in Tel Aviv. After the workshop was a success, Tal became interested in creating a production specifically for these actors. And so they did. The production, called Light is Heard in Zigzag, was the first play out of the Nagala’at Center, was a huge hit in Israel, and proceeded to tour all over the world. “Nalaga’at emphasizes the importance of human relations in every project it does. While the story of the play is ostensibly about baking bread, the moments and themes extend beyond what happens at the kitchen counter. Sharing bread is what brings us together initially, but the stories that we tell while the bread is being shared is what establishes real and meaningful human connection,” says Kennedy.
Due to the great success of Light is Heard in Zigzag, Adina Tal and the Nagala’at Center created Not by Bread Alone. It has also felt the success of international theater, not only having an open-ended run in Israel, but also touring around the world. By the time it lands in Boston, it will have visited New York City, Cleveland, and Washington, D.C. As with any show, there were some challenges that came with working with the cast and crew of Not by Bread Alone. Kennedy says that it has been difficult to provide the cast and crew with the best visit to Boston possible, while making sure that any and all accommodations were respectful to whatever assistance they may need. And the cultural exchange at the heart of this performance’s move to Boston was mutual for the cast and crew, as they experienced the Boston area firsthand. Making sure that the Boston foods they tried were Kosher and figuring out which Boston sites would still be enjoyable without being able to either see or hear were among some of the challenges unique to working on this project. All in all, the rewards seemed to outweigh the challenges for Kennedy, as he was given the opportunity to learn about the “incredible company and the lifechanging work they do around the world.”
“[This is] the first time I’ve been working directly with an international company and a company composed of actors with disabilities,” states Kennedy. “It has required me to be flexible and creative in the ways I communicate with the artists, so we are able to do what we need to on our end to prepare for their arrival.” In order to enhance the visit of the actors, Kennedy talked with multiple departments and organizations on campus as well as beyond the Emerson community. All of these experiences have helped to validate this vital creative opportunity for Kennedy. “I consider [this] learning experience to be invaluable, because not only does it teach me about how to produce engaging and relevant theater, but it also has taught me a ton about communicating with others in general, as I’m sure the production will teach everyone who sees it.” Not by Bread Alone will open April 1 at the Paramount Center. Please visit http://artsemerson.org for more information.
Kennedy expresses how he hopes the Emerson community reacts to the show. He notes: “[I] hope that the performing arts students here can see an example of how actors with disabilities can be included in the theater-making process, and the communication studies students see how creative expression can very much still be a part of the lives of adults with disabilities, and writing students see how powerful silent performance can be... the list goes on and on. Here at Emerson we often stay so wrapped up in how we communicate with others, but this production can teach how others can communicate with us in remarkable ways.” Kennedy thinks that audience members should come to the show with an open mind and be ready to let go of their preconceived notions of the world. “Try to avoid committing to expectations,” says Kennedy. “Allow yourself to be surprised! This is sure to be the first kind of production like this you’ve encounteredhopefully, it won’t be the last.”
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
This is Kennedy’s first year as creative producer for ArtsEmerson, focusing specifically on audience outreach and student engagement. He thinks that Not by Bread Alone has been a very unique experience.
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THE FACE BEHIND FACES ON FILM text by julia ferragamo photo courtesy of faces on film
Has social media changed the way we view property rights in the entertainment industry? A photograph is a captured moment, a reel of film depicting a string of faces and places that serves to embody the time and take on a larger significance. Through his music, Mike Fiore, lead singer and founder of the band Faces on Film is capturing these moments through music. I had the opportunity to speak with Fiore and discuss his musical evolution and future plans. Fiore, a 33-year-old singer and guitarist from East Somerville formed the band Faces on Film in 2007. From the start, the group has always had a unique sound and approach. Self described as a blend of “woodsy folk, pastoral indie rock, heartfelt alt-country, ‘60s British invasion, rootsy Americana, and old-timey country and western,” the group has established a distinct aesthetic. Hoping to immortalize the beauty and simplicity of the everyday, Fiore’s music can be inspired by anything and usually originates from unexpected sources. “I’m less likely to get an idea from walking in the White Mountains than I am watching drips go over the edge of my kitchen counter after I spill a cup of coffee,” Fiore states. “A big part of all this for me has been learning to look for inspiration in very small places, and how it feels when it comes.” Once this inspiration is attained, the writing process begins. “It can start with a word, or a group of words that don’t necessarily have meaning but are evocative when they’re thrown together,” comments Fiore. “Or a melody. Or a drum beat that I sing into my phone. It’s changed a little with APRIL 2014
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this last record, because I’ve got a better home recording set up together. Being able to record good sounds instantly has made it possible to capture the excitement of playing something for the first time that you’ve just written, even if the performance isn’t perfect. That vibe is a big part of the new record.” The soon to be released album entitled Elite Lines, created with the help of engineer- producer, Rafi Sofer is considered an original combination of genres. “I like a lot of R&B from the ‘60s and the ‘90s. I like a lot of rock from the ‘70s,” Fiore states. “I like a lot of spacey music from the 2000s, and all that is tied together through the idea of being able to strip away the sounds and play the songs on a guitar.” Elite Lines is the third album that the group has produced. 2008’s The Troubles and 2011’s Some Weather each similarly featured alternative and soulful qualities. Although a Boston-based group, for Fiore, a passion for music began during adolescence in upstate New York. “I remember having a sense from a very young age that music affected me,” he claims. “Even something like a song from a video game or a TV show would stay with me.” This connection with music developed further when, at age 15, he got his first acoustic guitar. Playing with friends after school and imitating songs and sounds that he heard on the radio or MTV, he continued to make music. Two years later, he was introduced to his girlfriend’s neighbor, who was
also a musician. An older and more experienced guitarist, he helped Fiore to truly hone his skill and establish a musical sensibility. “[My musical mentor] had a bunch of friends who would get together and play a lot of early country rock and folk—Neil Young, Gram Parsons, [and] The Byrds—so I spent an entire summer playing with them on their porch.” These defining years Fiore considers his “earliest and most formative musical moments.” He goes on to say: “After that I felt pretty sure that music was going to be central in my life.” In 2009, after the debut of The Troubles, Fiore received the Boston Pheonix award for Best Singer/ Songwriter and was featured on National Public Radio’s Second Stage. As the band becomes increasingly successful, Fiore hopes to maintain his initial vision. He confesses, “I feel like I’ve been going after one thing since the beginning, one feeling, and hopefully [in the future I will be] getting better at refining and distilling that. The sounds [I] use are just sort of the vehicles to get there.” Gaining more than just local acclaim; their song “The Rule”, a single from their unreleased album was featured in Esquire on Jan. 29 and the Feb. 21st edition of USA Today. “The Rule”, prompted by a dream, drove Fiore to get out of bed, write, and record the song on his phone in the middle of the night. Like most of Fiore’s music, it is
described as pensive with a somewhat eerie tone. Esquire categorizes the composition as a mix of “unexpected percussion, bright organs, meditative bass lines that work especially well when paired with the high notes he [Fiore] can’t help but soar over.” This sound attracted the attention of the production company, Fenway Recordings. Based in both Boston and New York based and founded in 2001, this organization also represents artists like MGMT. Although Faces on Film is becoming nationally recognized, Fiore still finds inspiration through his local Boston and Massachusetts roots. He claims: “Living [in Boston] is as much a part of what I write as anything.” One of Fiore’s favorite venues includes the Bowery Ballroom, a place where he had dreamed of playing since youth. In the spring of 2012, Fiore had the opportunity to fulfill this goal, an experience he describes as simply “memorable.” After communicating with Fiore and getting familiar with his music, it is clear that each song is deeply personal and crafted individually. His passion combined with an overall attention to detail and musical quality makes Faces on Film’s music worth a listen. The group will be performing at T.T. and the Bear’s Place in Cambridge on March 24. For more information, fans are encouraged to follow Faces on Film on Facebook and Twitter. Elites Lines is also available for preorder and will be released to the public on March 25.
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MUSIC FESTIVALS text by kelsey conner
High-waisted shorts. Chacos. Beards. Hula-hoops. Music festival season is coming, and it’s going to be even bigger than ever. Music festivals are a gathering of unique people, and considered by some to be the best way to experience live music. Festivals such as Boston Calling, Bonnaroo, Coachella, and Hangout happen every year, attracting tens of thousands of people. They bring the most popular artists together for several days’ worth of live music, and many have art and comedy shows as well. When you think of “music festivals,” Woodstock often comes to mind. However, the KFRC Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival that was held on June 10-11, 1967 is considered to have been the first American rock festival. It was the first event of what is known as the San Francisco-area “Summer of Love,” and was followed shortly by the Monterey International Pop Music Festival. Monterey featured now-legendary artists such as Jimi Hendrix, The Who, and Janis Joplin. The famous Woodstock Music and Art Fair was held two years later in New York. Today, we at Emerson have the opportunity to attend a music festival in our own backyard. 2014 marks the third installment of the Boston Calling Music Festival, held at the City Hall Plaza on May 23-25. The first Boston Calling was held in Spring 2013, at which organizers surprised patrons with the announcement of a subsequent festival in Fall 2013. Headliners this year include Jack Johnson, Death Cab For Cutie, Modest Mouse, and one additional headliner that has yet to be revealed. In typical Boston fashion, the 2014 lineup was announced in an unorthodox way: vinyl records with the lineup written on them were hidden throughout the city, and obscure clues as to their location were given. Those who found the records not only got an excellent souvenir, but they also won weekend passes to the festival. Three-day passes start at $175, while APRIL 2014
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single-day tickets start at $50. VIP passes are also available, which allow patrons access to exclusive bars, elevated viewing, and even private restrooms— all for an additional fee, of course. Tickets can be purchased on the Boston Calling website. First held in 2002, Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival is perhaps one of the most popular in the country. Bonnaroo is held at a 700-acre farm in Manchester, Tenn., and is a four-day event that many make a cross-country pilgrimage to attend. Unlike Boston Calling where you must find your own accommodations, Bonnaroo attendees camp together on the expansive property. The announcement of the Bonnaroo line up is an event in and of itself—this year, it was announced via a live streaming video on their website. For June 1215, 2014, the headliners include Elton John, Kanye West, and Jack White, with more to be announced. In addition to the lengthy line up of musicians, there are art exhibits, dance parties, workshops, and film showings. More than 80,000 people make the trip to Bonnaroo every year. Tickets are available on their website, and if you do not feel like paying the hefty $285 for a four-day pass and camping, you can volunteer to work the festival and have your admission covered in exchange for getting a little bit dirty. If you would rather rub elbows with the rich and famous than camp amongst the un-showered masses at Bonnaroo, then Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival may be more your style. Held at Empire Polo Club in Indio, Calif., the festival is a chance to see some of the most popular bands of the past year while trying to hunt down your favorite celebrities. Coachella attracts over 90,000 people to two separate weekends of music and art. Outkast, Muse, and Arcade Fire will be headlining for April 11-13, as well as April 18-20. The lineup is identical
for each weekend as they try to allow as many people as possible to attend. Coachella tickets are a little harder to procure than Bonnaroo or Boston Calling. They are typically available on their website, but you best be on the lookout for 2015—this year’s tickets are already sold out. If you prefer white sand beaches to fancy white tents, then Hangout Music Festival may be for you. Started in 2010 and commonly known as simply “Hangout,” it is relatively new to the scene and is unique in that it is held entirely on a beach in Gulf Shores, Ala. Hangout is smaller than Bonnaroo and Coachella, though there are still about 35,000 people in attendance each year. This year’s Hangout will be May 16-18 and will feature The Black Keys, The Killers, Jack Johnson, and Outkast. Hangout is hosted by the beachside restaurant of the same name, and attendees can lay in the white sand beaches while listening to their favorite artists. Digging sand holes to sit in is a favorite pastime of Hangout veterans. Tickets are not quite as exclusive as Coachella’s, and they can be purchased on the Hangout website for $229. No matter which festival you attend, the festival experience is like nothing else. The unique fashion of music festivals sets the tone for the coming summer, and is often a little more revealing than what you would see elsewhere. High-waisted shorts and crop tops rule, with underwear being replaced by bathing suits. Nearly everyone sports Chacos or Toms, along with the strange tan lines that they create. Messy,
often unwashed hair is held back with bandanas, straw hats, and every novelty head covering that you can think of. You will most certainly see some things that you cannot “un-see,” including people too drunk and high to know their own names. Overall, though, the atmosphere found at a music festival is like nothing else. When you gather thousands of (mostly) young people for several days of their favorite music, you create a beautifully happy and coexistent community. It does not matter what you look like or what your political affiliations are; you are all there for the same purpose. If you need help, other festival-goers are often ready to assist you. Be sure to check the festival’s rules ahead of time, because each is unique, but make sure you know how you plan to stay hydrated and protected from the sun. It is hard to enjoy the peaceful and fun festival environment if you are too busy vomiting from dehydration, blistering from sunburn, or passing out from not eating. Music festivals are a great way to binge on live music. They create a unique and entertaining atmosphere, often offering more than just music. Tickets for most festivals can be found on the festival website, but many are already sold out. Plan ahead if you wish to attend a high-demand show, and know when tickets will go on sale so that you can be sure to get yours. Late spring and early summer hosts hundreds of festivals throughout the world, so your options are only limited by how far you are willing to travel.
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APRIL PLAYLIST photo by carina allen
Ah, smell that? The promise of springtime, cherry blossoms and the steady close of the semester is in the air. While we wait with bated breath to see when spring will burst back to Boston, we are excited about the musical talent visiting our beloved bean this month. April’s playlist features a mix of melancholic melodies from up-and-coming indie hopefuls, as well touring artists who we hope will help to finally usher in the sounds of spring. Be sure not to miss out on April’s great acts.
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1. London Grammar
“STRONG”
2.
Laura Mvula
“SING TO THE MOON”
3.
4.
Cher
Born Ruffians
“I HOPE YOU FIND IT”
“OCEAN’S DEEP”
5.
6.
7.
8.
The War On Drugs
We Are Scientists
Christina Perri
Milk Carton Kids
“BEST NIGHT”
“NOBODY MOVE, NOBODY GET HURT”
“ARMS”
“MICHIGAN”
9.
10.
11.
12.
Holly Golightly and the Brokeoffs
Pigpen Theatre Co.
The Spring Standards
Hurray for the Riff Raff
“DEVIL DO”
“BREMEN”
“CHICAGO”
“LOOK OUT MAMA”
13.
14.
15.
16.
Angel Haze
Chromeo
Paolo Nutini
Wild Child
“APRIL’S FOOL”
“HOT MESS”
“SCREAM (FUNK MY LIFE UP)”
“CRAZY BIRD”
17.
18.
19.
20.
Fanfarlo
The Psychedelic Furs
Tycho
Bat for Lashes
“THE WALLS ARE COMING DOWN”
“THE GHOST IN YOU”
“MONTANA”
“DANIEL”
21.
22.
23.
24.
Horse Feathers
Chairlift
Foster the People
The Mowgli’s
“WHERE I’LL BE”
“BRUISES”
“COMING OF AGE”
“EMILY”
25.
26.
27.
28.
Iggy Azalea
The Revivalists
The Hood Internet
Kate Bush
“WORK”
“CRIMINAL”
“OVER YOUR HEAD”
29.
30.
The World/Inferno Friendship Society
Mark Heimermann & Marc Martel
“ONLY ANARCHISTS ARE PRETTY”
“WATCHING YOU WITHOUT ME”
“NO MORE HURTING PEOPLE”
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
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