A Conversation with a Surrealist

To start off my week right, I sat down with the painter of this year’s cover for Marooned, Rachel Coughenour. Her artwork connects perfectly to this year’s theme “RE-,” but I wanted to know more about her inspiration for the piece and her passion for art itself. Rachel and I started off by talking about her studies here at ASU. She has taken a number of art classes such as sketching, metallurgy, and painting in pursuit of her major in Art Education. “Why education?” I asked. She replied that in the past her art teachers had simultaneously improved her talent and inspired her. “I want to be one of those teachers,” she said. I could relate to this pursuit so well, as I myself am hoping to teach English and kindle a love of literature in students one day. I told her this and she shared my enthusiasm for literature, since her art is not confined to the visual. Rachel is inspired by all mediums of expression, so she also writes in her spare time. We talked about how we both dream of writing a novel one day, in between summer breaks and grading students’ work. For now, though, she focuses on her artwork.

Rachel’s style of art completely embodies the theme for this edition of Marooned. The words “recreate,” “reimagine,” “renew,” and “reconstruct” were all thrown around during our conversation. I asked what inspired her to paint the cover, and she couldn’t pin down an exact moment when she decided to paint it. “I like making pieces that I would like to look at,” she told me. Truly, her art has a way of drawing one’s eyes and mind. I have been amazed by her creativity, her ability to take an old, worn-out idea and completely recreate its meaning. Rachel said she could never paint a still life, never create something so stagnant or expected. She combines the opposite with the original, and prides herself on producing work that makes people rethink their opinion of something mundane.

I asked for her favorite artist and again she lit up. Full of excitement, she pulled out her phone and showed me an Instagram account of a surrealist photographer called Mothmeister. This artist uses taxidermy and costuming to create surreal scenes that are unexpected and unexplainable. In one photo, a woman wearing a black ball gown and a feather covered mask reaches with tentacle-like fingers towards a black bird. Because his photographs are all so different, Rachel was not able to choose a favorite. The surrealism in each work materialized such that each seemed so extraordinary and incomparable to the next.

I was so glad to talk to Rachel about her work and her interests within the arts. Getting the chance to talk to her about her inspiration and creativity showed me how even the most ordinary concepts could be turned on their heads. Now that I have been exposed to more surrealism, I know that her artwork for the cover truly encompasses the re-envisioning of Marooned. I would like to thank her for contributing to the journal, and I know we all look forward to seeing more of her work in the future.

Poetry Reading with A.M. Juster

            Around mid-afternoon on March 23^rd, a quaint crowd gathered at Hayden Library in anticipation of A.M. Juster’s poetry reading. Juster, whose identity was disclosed in 2010, is a lawyer by day, having served as Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, and a poet and translator by night.

            His poetry is classified as “formalist”, much of which was influenced by his translations from Latin, as well as common situations in people’s everyday lives.

            To start off, Juster took the audience to the 4^th century A.D. south of France as he recited his translation of “To a Painter of Echo” by Ausonius. The last two lines of the poem were beautiful and telling: “I am Echo—I live within your ears. / If you believe you can paint me, paint sound.” Juster himself used this poem to inspire his original, “Note from Echo”.

In his retelling of the Roman myth, Narcissus and Echo, Juster portrays their relationship in the world of the 21^st century: “We are the voicemail’s ponderous reply / to the computers making random calls . . .” This recreation of the myth was fresh, creative, and beautifully written. He later recited original poetry inspired by everyday  circumstances.

In his poem, “Your Midlife Crisis”, he stole some chuckles from the audience with his lines, “We liked you better when you were lost” and “Scum always rises to the top”. Juster’s poetic voice is witty yet honest. One of his “political” poems called, “A Stern Warning to Canada” is quite literally one line: “If you want peace, control your geese.” As he reads, his expression remains stoic. A true poet, in my opinion, lets his audience figure out the sarcasm from the seriousness. Through rhymes and seamless metrical patterns, Juster’s poetry is feel-good and amusing, and other times grave and earnest. His poetry draws people of all ages and genre preferences.

Near the end of the reading, it was time for audience participation. Juster read one of his translations of Horace’s riddles and gave us a clue: “It is an Anglo-Saxon symbol for hell.” After reading the riddle a couple of times, he hinted that Harry Potter fans should be able to answer it correctly. One person shouted out, “Pitchfork?” I myself guessed, “Lake of fire?” The answer? Cauldron. The audience sighed. Of course! The clues were all there in the riddle itself.

I spoke briefly to A.M. Juster after the reading, telling him that I myself studied four years of Latin but haven’t picked it up since. The translator himself confessed that he picked up Latin after approximately twenty years and encouraged me that a couple refresher courses is all it takes to pick up where one has left off. It was inspiring meeting a man of great intelligence and many endeavors.

            Juster’s passion for ancient texts resonates through his poetry and the manner with which he reads them. The diverse genres and themes made the reading a beautiful and unforgettable experience for all who attended. We greatly appreciate A.M. Juster for spending three days with us here at ASU.

by Rafaella Safarian

Writer’s Block: Identifying the Obstacles

By Kimberly N. Kottman

            No matter the level of experience, beginner or master, all writers know the frustration of writer’s block. The ink stops flowing, keys are silent, and the mind struggles to move forward. What is the solution? Sadly, there is no simple answer, and no case is the same. However, there are ways to work through and overcome writer’s block, the first step of which is to identify the problem.

            Dennis Cass, in his article "How to Get Unstuck: The Psychology of Writer’s Block," states that "…There are two basic types of fixation: mental set and functional fixedness...If you've ever been cruising along with a dramatic scene and then try changing gears and writing description, you've experienced mechanized thought. You might be better off simply continuing to write scenes for that session.” A mental set, or “mechanized thought”, is what a writer can experience simply from repetition without rest. This is the kind of writer’s block that is easier to work through; simply taking a break or reading inspiring works may be enough to break free from that stagnant pattern. However, functional fixedness takes a bit more effort than merely getting some fresh air.

Often writer’s block is associated with writing style – perhaps one is trying something new and doesn’t know how to progress or, contrarily, using the same pattern/style is getting them nowhere with the new material. Cass continues, "Mechanized thought is of the moment, whereas functional fixedness speaks to a writer's personal style." With functional fixedness, Cass suggests to approach the problem piece from a new angle, such as writing in experimental styles with tense, point of view, perspective, etc. Many times, writer’s block can stem from the pressure to be creative. "When I was first starting out, I used to think every transition had to be a work of art. The day I became a real writer was the day I just wrote, 'Two weeks later...' and got on with it." I find this line of his article to be particularly poignant. Many writers feel the need to be more creative than the next, and focusing on making the small details into something overly-outstanding or meaningful could be holding an author back. Sticking with simple lines can, in some cases, be the answer.

            There is no one way to work through writer’s block – it is different for every individual. When the cause is identified, however, the solution becomes clear. . Cass also speaks of creative processes:  "...at its heart, the writing process is about metacognition, a psychological term that means 'thinking about thinking,'" and continues with the idea that every author is capable of those grand ideas that will be life-altering for someone, growing to our full potential as writers. Though there are no easy answers or step-by-step guides through the complex writer’s block, the best we can do is learn to trust our abilities, accept help from friends and mentors, and try to learn from the overall experience.

Source

Cass, Dennis. "How to Get Unstuck: The Psychology of Writer’s Block." Poets & Writers. Web. 26 February, 2016.