All the Ugly Feels
Art zine, Joslin Chan, 12 pgs, joslinchan.com
Let’s talk about feelings. This zine starts off with the proclamation that, “feelings are often not pretty.” Hard fact! From there, a few more words are dished. They’re kind of philosophical, kind of blunt, and generally accurate. As visuals, there are some drawings of assorted animals, often in peril. For example, a tortoise stripped from its shell, a rat gnawing its claws off, an exploding fawn, etc. Disclaimer: These drawings are more artistic than gratuitous. In fact, I think they’re an overly appropriate visual support for the words that creator Joslin Chan is sending our way. The gist of this zine is, I think, rooted deep in the causality between the physical world and the mental world. It plays on the ways in which we internalize feelings, to the extent that they manifest in actual pain and possibly suffering. Which can suck. At least there’s art, and Chan shares a half dozen or so drawings that act, effectively, as schematics. Perhaps this shows , and whether you’re just another effed-up human or a weeping dragon (hell yeah, it’s in there), the struggle between the mind and body is one based in brutality. (Cam Gordon)