Find Me Find you

Mask Thyself (2020) Tim Tadder, Mike Campau

“I hate wearing a mask because it hides what I am expressing. The smile, the grin, the frown — they all have become inherently lost behind the fabric. So much of our communication is subtle. What if masks were made to express one’s true identity? What if we could be someone we always dreamed of being? In a time when we all need to laugh now more than ever, I created these images with the help of my long time creative partner, Mike Campau, and creative director, Ahab Nimry, to bring out the joy in wearing a mask, & hopefully a smile to someone’s face.“

I know. I know already. But I’m not ready to hurt.

It’s - It’s flickering, a heat in one eye and tears in the other, a stutter between two things that should be one; the girl who doesn’t think the world is worth seeing the winter lights and the girl who wanted to help others smile.

Past tense because she has been in rusted shackles - because she is dying.

Wow! Wow! That was Ruth-less! Now we know why she works out so much - so she can dance on your grave.

You wouldn’t like me if I let you see my face The horns I keep inside Contorting and pounding against your skull Tight in this confined cage A pulsating headache Veins throbbing on your temples You can push me down all you want You know I will come out And you know it will feel good At least for a time Ridding yourself of that black tar that bubbles inside Not so deep under the surface I am a sore loser but it doesn’t matter Because I always win I have eyes of fire And if looks could kill, my stare would sear their skin I crawl inside your bones. Every nerve twitching The tingling sensation of patience running out

My warm breath in your throat, rancid and yet heady The smell of a gas leak longing only for a spark Never mind who you’ll scar A brother, a friend, a lover The air in your lungs, a burning cloud of steam A scream whistling louder as you loosen your lips Never mind who’ll be scorched or driven away They will learn their lesson and so will you Scalded along with the bridges we’re burning

We’ve been together down this road before A little push, teeth grinding, wheels set in motion Your hands closing into fists My index pressing the trigger And it’s all downhill from here You can’t hear clearly what any of them is saying But would you even care? It’s you and I against the world, my friend Nothing can stop us now that we’re picking up speed And I’ll twist every word of their speech anyway Each sentence spoken, a trail of powder There is no calming down, no seeing anyone’s point of view Despite what they think, you’re no better than me And given a chance, I will prove it to you Pulling your vocal chords Like the elastic band of a slingshot All I need is a sign, real or imagined And I’ll break my leash, I’ll show them our very worst You can’t back down. It’s you or them now Either let go and fire or snap and self-combust

women don’t endure simply because we can; no, women endure because we aren’t given any other choice.                                           — they wanted us weak but forced us to be strong.

Gravitate those the body wishes

To cling to, connect with, link up

As most other bodies attract,

Answered only by those that repel,

If only human bodies were magnets,

But certainly they, we, are not -

To attract, one must try to attract,

And to repel, one must do repel,

Only, how can one body, one man

Both embody attract and repel -

Wishing to be around someone,

Or some people, feeling caved in

On by a sea of many strangers, day

Night, sun up, or moonshine bright

Instead and wishing to keep away from?

This dance, this push and pull,

Against and to the waves of

human oceans, found cities

A constant come and go, how

Do I attract who I wish to know

And how do I find out what I want

To repel? I wish I were magnets

Simply to simplify this need, craving

I wish to be alone, but not as just

I wish to be with someone, but not just

If only I were magnets, I’d fully know

And fully see, pole to pole, those that

Wish to find and to attract me, for now

I’m stuck on repel, I hope some time

Drawings by Sergio Barrale

Sergio Barrale was born 1982 in NYC. He attended Maryland Institute College of Art and graduated in 2004. His large-scale works seek to incite a conversation about past approaches to religion as well as capture an outlook on it today as an ethical code, reformed without emphasis on hierarchy, but alternatively on individual truth and morality. Follow him on Instagram. 

TRANSCEND - Portrait series by Rae Senarighi

“Transcend is a series of portraits featuring transgender and gender non-conforming artists, activists and leaders from around the world. All works are acrylic paint on canvas and range in size from 36" x 36" to 72" x 96". TRANSCEND will be touring nationwide in the US in 2018 (and prints will be shown in London, UK). Living openly as transgender requires the personal courage to present authentically in oppressive environments. The subjects in this portrait series live out in the open all over the world, thus choosing integrity over safety daily. Using large canvases, bright colors and wide-open skies, these rising transgender leaders are literally and figuratively taking up space. I’m a transgender non-binary artist currently living and working in Portland, Oregon.”