lookingglass
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Through the "Looking Glass," readers are invited to dig deeper into our issues as contributors share reflections on their work. Specifically, "Looking Glass" provides a sort of parlor where authors and artists reveal the genesis of their pieces, as well as provide meta-discursive insight into their textual and visual creative works. Issue 32 Reflections
Read on for reflections by select authors and artists
on the genesis and craft of their pieces in Glassworks and then read the full issue online! |
Graciela DeAnda (She/Her)
"Roots" & "Altar"
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I was drawn to Glassworks because of its thoughtful commitment to work that feels intimate, experimental, and emotionally grounded. In “Roots” (cyanotype) and “Altar” (mordancage), I explore memory, ancestry, and faith through material transformation— allowing sunlight, chemistry, and chance to shape the final image. As an artist working in alternative photographic processes, I value spaces that honor both craft and vulnerability. I love that Glassworks supports emerging voices while creating room for work that is both personal and formally exploratory—it feels like a publication that truly believes in the power of storytelling through image and process.
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A.L. Gordon
"I'll Tell Her I Remember"
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It’s funny how some pieces come to life. “I’ll Tell Her I Remember” started off as more of a way to vent some frustration. My mother had recently been put in a nursing home—even though her body was holding up, her mind was not, and she could no longer take care of herself. My siblings kept reminding me to call or write to her, one of my sisters even sent me preaddressed cards to send. Being much older than me, my siblings have never understood the relationship I had with my mother, never understood what life was like for me as the youngest child. I was essentially an only child after they left. When they were young my parents were together, after they left my parents were divorced and I split time between them. It was like we grew up in two different families.
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In a pique of anger, I thought, “OK I’ll write to her, but she won’t like it!” and started what basically was a list of wrongs my mother had done to me. As I wrote, I realized there was more than just pain. There were good memories, memories of her being a good mom, or at least the best one she was capable of being. I’ve tried to make peace with the idea she was doing her best, and that all things considered, my life could’ve been a lot worse. That list of wrongs morphed into an essay that I hope captures her duality and perhaps gives a glimpse into my struggle to see and understand the person she was.
Kenton K. Yee
"Remember When I Kept Demanding You Tell Me the Purpose of Life?"
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Some poems are spontaneous, some are found, and some are of mysterious origin. Other poems gradually emerge from lived experience and refuse to leave. “Remember When I Kept Demanding You Tell Me the Purpose of Life?” traces back to my preschool days when I kept asking my overworked mom, “Why was I born? What is the purpose of life?” I clung to these questions, went on to pursue philosophy and religion, science (earning a PhD in theoretical physics), reading, creative writing, and art. I’m afraid this poem can’t and won’t ever be completed to my satisfaction.
Listen to or watch Yee read his poem
Or click here to READ Yee's poem in Issue 32 |
