Ragazine.CC – July/August 2016

In this technological age, the ping of a new email can at times seem exhaustive, from weekly ads from every place you’ve ever shopped, to growing piles of submissions and chainmail forwards from your mom. But one email to look forward to is the bimonthly announcement for a new issue of Ragazine.CC. Returning from their six-month hiatus, Ragazine.CC brings more to the table than ever before.

In this technological age, the ping of a new email can at times seem exhaustive, from weekly ads from every place you’ve ever shopped, to growing piles of submissions and chainmail forwards from your mom. But one email to look forward to is the bimonthly announcement for a new issue of Ragazine.CC. Returning from their six-month hiatus, Ragazine.CC brings more to the table than ever before.

The new issue features an interview conducted by Chuck Haupt with Ugandan photographer Joel Nsadha. Nsadha placed first in the people category of the 2015 National Geographic Photo Contest, his photography ranging from moments of motion and grit to portraits filled with emotion and soul. One has a difficult time looking away from his photos, including one of Nsadha’s personal favorites, “Mama Maria”:

She is an 80-year-old lady in Kampala, Uganda. In the picture, she is with her granddaughter. I took this picture in her house. She and her daughter were only lit by daylight coming in from an open door. Uganda is a country that has had almost an entire generation hollowed out by endless civil wars in the ’70s and ’80s. Right now it is one of the youngest countries demographically with over 60% of the entire population under the age of 35. It is very vibrant in many aspects of life. Very entrepreneurial, a very vibrant art, music and sports scene. The young demographic is a blessing, but also a great challenge for the leadership to create jobs and educate them.

Haupt goes on to ask Nsadha more about his photography, with links to additional works of Nsadha’s for those who will undoubtedly want to see more.

Music lovers should check out ten capsule reviews of albums by Contributing Music Editor Fred Roberts in “Musical Decalogue.” Albums range from 2014 – 2016, with bands from the Basque Country, Germany, Dublin, Atlanta, and more, giving readers an eclectic playlist for their day.

Combining music and art is Club Fortuna, a collective of four “alluring lady artists: Kurdwin Ayub, Xenia Lesniewski, Julia Rublow and Sarah Sternat.” Visited by Fred Roberts in Hamburg earlier in the year, he walks us through the three acts of their exhibit that mixes music—Strand, a side project band of Rublow and Lesniewski’s—with performance art. The performance seems to buzz with energy and light, Roberts calling one act “a post dada karaoke performance.” Those with piqued interests can find links to both Club Fortuna’s website and Strand’s music, though may find themselves wishing they, too, could have gone to the event in person.

Other items of interest this issue include, but are not limited to, collages by Bill Wolak, portraits that pop with contrast and color by Janez Vlachy, and an artist spotlight on Michael Netter. In the literary category, Michelle Terry writes with heart in her nonfiction piece “Pickin’ Wildflowers” as she remembers her grandmother, painting a vivid image of moments spent together, and Managing Editor Mike Foldes interviews Rod Clark, co-founder and publisher of Rosebud.

If you enjoy what this issue and back issues of Ragazine.CC have to offer—literature, art, music, and more, from all over the globe—consider giving what you can to their Summer Fun-draiser, a small price to pay for bimonthly deliverance from the usual inbox drudgery.
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