Truth is Like Poetry
AN OJAI LANDSCAPE CREATED USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
(And people fucking hate poetry)
VORTEX contributor Jessica Pregnolato sits down with Justin Andrew Johnson to discuss his latest work, a collection of poems titled collection, Calochortus, published by yours truly. The book is composed of Johnson’s writings from early 2022 and is presented scanned, as-is, with all its knots — and some of its names — intact.
Says Pregnolato, "Justin lets us get an intimate glimpse into his observations, stripped down and brutal in honesty, even if he might be making things up. He won’t totally disclose this when asked but laughs mightily and refers to some people in his poems as 'characters.' He likens his writing lens to a periscope: angle it wherever you want, then pull it back, and no one knows you were there watching."
Johnson is currently a wildland firefighter for Los Padres National Forest in Santa Barbara, California. He has four other books, including Let Us Find Our Future, also published in Ojai, California.
JUSTIN ANDREW JOHNSON BY NICHOLAS WEISSMAN
CALOCHORTUS by Justin Andrew Johnson
Bart’s has really been killing it with their events recently, thanks to coordinator Emma Claire. She stopped by to tell us about their workshop presented by Rob Magill’s Weird Cry Records and led by Old Time Relijun’s frontman Arrington de Dionyso: Unleashing the Voice in Creative Music: From Raw Expression to Refined Technique, Singing with your Embodied Voice!
ARRINGTON DE DIONYSO was in OJAI IN LATE OCTOBER
Finally, a Holiday Gift Guide of some of our favorite local shops and makers. All listed are OLO members, in case you were looking for a reason to join.
Thanks for another beautiful year, Guys. We’ll be spending the final days of 2022 outside the VORTEX. See you in 2023!
Culture
Gallery shows thru December:
THE OJAI JAIL
CANVAS AND PAPER
PORCH GALLERY
CAROLYN GLASOE BAILEY FOUNTATION
FARMER AND THE COOK
OJAI VALLEY MUSEUM
OJAI ART CENTER
Stream This: Fall
Louise Sandhaus is on the Creative Boom podcast. Mikael Jorgensen shares his Ojai-fi playlists. And no shuffling needed: 12 hours of delightfully curated music from our neighbors up at Cuyama Buckhorn.
