Gloom Cupboard

The 1920′s and 30′s are two very different eras that depict themselves well in your work.  I find myself going from glamorous, inspiring and lively moods to very moody, ,modest, and misunderstood ones.  A purer example of this may be in two of your 2007 acrylic pieces, American Woman and Lonely Heart.  It seems like almost the same picture or woman, but extravagantly different.  How would you describe the relative difference in these two eras and decades in relation to your art? (more…)

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Eeenterview with Neil Rothstein
By Luis Rivas

Neil Rothstein is 34 (but doesn’t look a day over 33), and lives and works in Manchester, England. He studied fine art at Bath Spa University over ten years ago. From his little in-house studio, he produces his artwork, paintings and writing.

Neil has said, “In my artwork I have tried to always evolve and experiment with styles and methods. I think it’s very important to be chameleonic with artwork and to react to different emotional circumstances in a host of ways. I alternate my painting and writing, both of them giving me a certain cathartic relief in specific ways.”

With writing Neil finds it to be a more immediate form of artwork, a distinct and quickly forming, almost absolutely instinctive process, the words forming are removed from him in some dark recess of the mind, where they wait to be unlocked. With his paintings, it tends to be more considered and time consuming but nonetheless important.

Neil has exhibited mainly in the north west of England, Liverpool, and St Helens mainly; and he has sold a good percentage of his artwork. He is also a regularly-published poet and artist on Gloom Cupboard. (more…)

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Kristina Marie Darling, a twenty-five year old, two-time Pushcart nominee and author of Fevers and Clocks, Nigh Songs, and Traffic in Women, discusses her personal writing style and breaks down certain aspects of the publishing world for up-and-coming writers.

-M.K. Barnes

How do you determine what topics to write about, and how does this affect your personal memoir and nonfiction essays individually? 

I try to address topics that aren’t usually the subject of essays or memoirs.  When I read a nonfiction book,  I’m always thrilled if I encounter something I’ve never seen before—particularly experiences, images, or themes that we wouldn’t normally think of as “literary” or “significant” enough to include in a serious work.  I definitely emulate writers like Sarah Manguso, Poe Ballantine, and Kathleen Finneran, who see philosophical significance in everyday events. 

For an individual work, this often means that I immediately rule out certain subjects.  I wouldn’t ever write an essay about a trip to Paris, my cat, or my grandmother because these seem like easy choices.  I think it’s good for nonfiction writers to challenge themselves, and try to find beauty and strangeness in the most unexpected places.  (more…)

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