Island 132
Island Magazine, $19.99 pb, 96 pp, 9780987471901
Island 132
The Kantian epigraph to this issue of Island points to an exploration of the island as ‘the land of truth’, with the ocean around it as ‘the native home of illusion’. In this way, the translation of experience, both real and imagined, is navigated in clever and topical ways. The emphasis on ‘island’ as a micro-metonym for Tasmania demonstrates that while there are changes afoot at Island, the new editors, Matthew Lamb and Rachel Edwards, have remained steadfastly loyal to its ‘Tasmanian-ness’. Issue 132 showcases the new A4 format. The content is as rigorous and engaging as ever, but the design and layout have more in common with the sinking Cartela on its cover. While the larger format has increased the content, it is at the cost of a rather gauche and cheap-looking publication. (Indeed, pages are falling out of my copy.) Tom O’Hern’s artwork adorns whole pages, and though his huge black-and-white illustrations of skulls and decomposition are repetitive and predictable, his double-paged industrial ‘Behemoth’ demonstrates his flair.
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Comment (1)
T’was on a Thursday morning
The weather was dull and grey
Cartela bound for Melbourne
Set out upon her way
She was loaded to the sponson
With apples and dried fish
Commanded by captain Johnson
A better skipper you could not wish
Iron Pot
From the engine room came a bloodcurdling shriek
Turn back skipper the Cartela has sprung a leak.
Please contact Irene Wierenga on 0413 955 305 or email
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