Abstract
This year's journal finds many of its authors in a reflective moment affected by the still radiating and lingering pulsating light of 9/11. The journal pays respect to the tragedy of that event and the suffering that ensued through its cover design. As caucus members, we acknowledge the magnitude of the event in the way that our lives have been affected by the many horrific images that remain forever embedded as part of America's cultural memory. Besides my own mediation on the imagery of 9/11 from a Lacanian and Deleuzean perspective ("The Last Shard Standing"), Jim Edwards in, "Tagging a Boxcar/' reflects on his motor journey through the Nevada dessert the day after 9/11. His meditation on Inuit art, rock art and graffiti boxcars he sees as he is driving, raises questions of the human need for mark making. As he notes, "art" as interpreted from a Western perspective is not needed by saints and the totally insane. For the saint all things are possessed by an animism that is perceived as "art." For the insane, art's categorical specificity seems to vanish. In this regard, his meditation both complements and contrasts Laura Fatall's reflection on the educational potential of the "Antiques Roadshow." Again, defying the common acceptable categorizations of art, Fatall argues how such readily accessible artifacts can be a rich source of history and cultural richness. They can be explored for their educational potential.
Rights
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