‘Arts’ Archives
Introducing Jake Ryan!
Jake Ryan’s illustrations will be gracing the pages of the alley for a little while, adding pen and ink flare to some of our articles. He kindly drew our namesake as an introduction. Can you spot which article he illustrated this month? Jake is a South Minneapolis born illustrator, copywriter, whiskey distilling DJ, who loves the outdoors and art in all its forms. He generally spends his time lurking around cafes, going to shows, and running.
REFLECTIONS
By FRANCES TRAPHAGAN The time came when there was a release of all that had been. Forgetting it wasn’t in the release. The release of all the anger and hatred that spewed out into things of no concern.The gentleness towards myself, the forgiveness of past injuries and the looking to today. Living in today not in the past and not in the future; now expressing the care and concern towards those I meet. Welcoming the kindness from them-- not taking their kindness for granted and not letting it dictate my choices. Not all kindness displayed towards me is in my best interest, but a lure for victimization. Today I welcome kindness but watch for hidden agendas. Questions in my mind----What do they want? As my inquiring mind touches on the experiences of my life, I learn to question and receive what is wanted and needed with reserve.It’s a new day with a new dawn, but the experiences I’ve had temper the day and I plan to have a good day. Frances Traphagan is a writer and a poet as [...]
Movie Corner: Oct ’23
Elemental Disney/Pixar, 2023 Animation/Adventure 3/5 stars By HOWARD MCQUITTER II Howard McQuitter II One can honestly say Pixar doesn’t make bad movies. One can also say - with conviction - since Pixar chief creative officer John Lasseter left the company in 2018, the quality in the storytelling has noticeably diminished. Nonetheless, Pixar‘s animation is still fun. While animation/adventure like the Toy Story installments, Finding Nemo, Up, Monsters, Inc., Inside Out, Cars (well at least the first one) are all at stellar levels, Elemental, I think, falls into the “mediocre” category.Yet, there’s a cuteness to Elemental, and strangely enough, not much to laugh about. The theme of Elemental is fire, water, earth and air, all for life to subsist, can only be possible with God. Fire, the element that seems to be most discriminated against, is forced to live in Firetown, on the outskirts of Element City. The story begins with two immigrant Flames Bernie [...]
