UNDULATING
to form or move in waves
Undulating is Calm Down Magazine's first digital issue. It's a testament to the cyclical nature of life, the way things come and go in waves. Undulating is spirals and riptides, it's things that stay the same, and things that feel different.
"End of Spring Feels" & Others
Photography by Sélina Farzaei
"Growing up in the suburbs of Montreal Island, I found inspiration in shitty things; dead flowers, shattered glass, construction sites. Although I like to explore, experiment, and share various forms of visual art, analog photography remains my favorite. I believe in limitless creation at a minimal cost, often using recycled or thrifted materials in my work."
Ethereality, Poetry by Libby Taylor
I lay on a bed on sapphire waves
The tide gently kisses my skin
And I am embraced by the depth
I don’t feel the cold of the ocean water
I am calm in the perpetual space around me
As I drift further and further into the deep
I feel
Weightless
Serene
Ethereal.
Artwork by Sudeshna Ghosh
Undulating, Poetry by Trishita Das
i can't stop thinking about all the things
i can do with my body - lift crates of mangoes,
open milk cartons, crack pepper, sing.
this is a strange time for a love letter but
my body is a little bit magic, tough but sweet:
i want to be underwater, streamlined,
cutting through the surface in an agile breaststroke,
i want to be on a bicycle in the sun
on a hill in a free-fall, or around the blocks
of my old neighbourhood, swerving potholes.
i want to be stuffing myself with tea and crackers
and too much chocolate and cheese.
and i want a world without mirrors or words
where i can be quiet, feel the insects land on my arm,
feel the sweat and thrill in it;
feel the shock of tears and blood as a prize,
breathe and erupt every night, undisturbed,
and grow, and grow, and grow.
i'm too finifugal for closure,
ill leave the world half-finished.
"Mermaid," Artwork by J.E.M. Hast
Clockwork, Poetry by Charlotte Shao
Summer sun melts the hands off my watch
The minutes tick by, unnoticed
Hours go by in handfuls and in grains
Days wheel in and out, weeks stack in the corner to collect dust
Last month was March-
Or so I thought
It always feels as if time has just snapped back into place.
Artwork by Sneha Gaur
beyond ones depth, Artwork by Brecht Lanfossi
2019, mixed media, printed digital collage on 39,37” x 39,37” canvas
To describe my work or make an artist statement, it's best to start by quoting two men:
“In the future, humans will be able to simulate entire universes quite easily. And given the vastness of time
ahead, the number of these simulations is likely to be huge. So if you ask the question: ‘Do we live in the one
reality or in one of the many simulations?’, the answer, statistically speaking, is that we're more likely to be
living in a simulation.” – Silas Beane
“Our brain simulates reality. So our everyday experiences are a form of dreaming, which is to say, they are
mental models, simulations, not the things they appear to be.” – Stephen Laberge
One could argue that what Beane says is nothing new. Artists are already simulating universes for their
viewers in a seemingly effortless way. Because of the immense range of works and styles in art, the number
of simulations is already large. An artist offers viewers the opportunity to live in this variety of simulations
for a while. And Laberge states that things are not what they seem to be, which can be traced back to every
artist’s work. In their own context, artists let viewers experience this noble fact.
While creating my artwork, I always keep the ideas from these quotes in my mind, hoping to share them
with any potential viewer.
