Lumina – 2008

Under the direction of faculty members Matthea Harvey and Martha Rhodes, talented poets in their own right, students at Sarah Lawrence College produce this terrific journal, now in its seventh year. Current and former Sarah Lawrence teachers, undergraduate and MFA students (Gery Albarelli, Lucy Cottrell, Gillian Cummings, Kathy Curto, Todd Dillard, Thomas Sayers Ellis, Robert Perry Ivey, Marie-Elizabeth Mali, Stuart Spencer, Alexis Sullivan, Tricia Taaca, and Chris Wiley) are joined by an impressive group of poets, nonfiction and fiction writers, and photographers unaffiliated with the college, including Nick Carbó, Denise Duhamel, Eamon Grennan, and Paul Muldoon, among others. Nonfiction contest winner, Seth Raab, whose piece, “Heart Failures” was selected by Mark Singer, makes his first ever appearance in print here. His essay is tender, lovingly constructed, and expertly paced, so let’s hope this is the first of many successes.

Under the direction of faculty members Matthea Harvey and Martha Rhodes, talented poets in their own right, students at Sarah Lawrence College produce this terrific journal, now in its seventh year. Current and former Sarah Lawrence teachers, undergraduate and MFA students (Gery Albarelli, Lucy Cottrell, Gillian Cummings, Kathy Curto, Todd Dillard, Thomas Sayers Ellis, Robert Perry Ivey, Marie-Elizabeth Mali, Stuart Spencer, Alexis Sullivan, Tricia Taaca, and Chris Wiley) are joined by an impressive group of poets, nonfiction and fiction writers, and photographers unaffiliated with the college, including Nick Carbó, Denise Duhamel, Eamon Grennan, and Paul Muldoon, among others. Nonfiction contest winner, Seth Raab, whose piece, “Heart Failures” was selected by Mark Singer, makes his first ever appearance in print here. His essay is tender, lovingly constructed, and expertly paced, so let’s hope this is the first of many successes.

The work, overall, is strong and appealing, with exceptionally fine contributions from memoirist Albarelli, poet Dorianne Laux, and poet/photographer Sayers Ellis, whose photo essay “The Black and White Cargo of ______.” is clear-eyed and poetic. In his brief, brilliant introduction, the photographer discusses how he conceives of focus and perspective, and concludes, “And when the door shuts, the darkness isn’t really darkness at all; it is a roll of population, lacking color. Intimacy, not distanced, is the destination of vision.” This could just as easily define the journal’s editorial approach and aesthetic.

The centerpiece of this issue of Lumina is an absolutely marvelous interview with nonfiction star Susan Orleans, conducted by Sarah Lawrence faculty member Alice Truax. Orleans comes across as tremendously smart and likeable, and the discussion of how she relates to and selects stories for her work is both instructive and entertaining. Not to be missed is a charming untitled photo (here in black and white, but originally in color) by Christina Clusiau, from her “My Minnesota” series. The photos subjects are the neck and head of a sheep whose nose is being stroked by a hand and arm through a wide triplet of barbed wire. The sheep’s head (an angle that is almost other worldly) and human arm are seen in profile, a perfect balance of distance and intimacy. Clouds, light, and shade both soften and highlight the connection between flesh and flesh. That photo, like the whole of this issue of Lumina, will stay with me for a long time.
[pages.slc.edu/~lumina/]