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Carving Space for Marginalized Artists
TACKY! MAGAZINE PROVIDES MENTORSHIP STUDIO AND PLATFORM
By Jessica Smith arts@flagpole.com
Made by and designed to support diverse and marginalized
artists, tacky! is a new digital multimedia magazine that will
produce monthly installments highlighting local creatives
and their works in progress, unconventional projects, sto
ries and ideas. The platform was founded by Emily Unwin,
an instructor at Shakti Yoga Athens, and Aaron Mosby, an
artist who creates work under the pseudonym Noraa James
(and was featured on the cover of Flagpole last January).
“Our mission for tacky! is to create a community of
support among the marginalized and underrepresented
artists in the local community,” says Mosby. “We look to
connect with budding artists to encourage and support
them to keep going and to know that
there are many resources in the area
to make that happen, including space
at Finley Light Factory, tacky!’s home
studio. We also aim to invite viewers
to see the artist behind the art and
support them any way they can, as
well. It’s really about strengthening
the creative network we are all a part
of as artists so that, whether the art
ist stays here or ends up in another
place, they’ll know that Athens is
a place that supports their creative
expression and passions.”
In addition to an in-house tacky!
mentor, photoshoot and virtual plat
form, tacky! offers access to Finley
Light Factory, a cooperative artist
studio tucked into the back corner
of the brick building on North Finley
Street that also houses Big City Bread.
Envisioned as a place run by and for artists with margin
alized identities, Finley Light Factory aims to increase the
inclusivity of diverse artists in a town historically marred
by racism, classism and poverty. The current roster of art
ists includes Unwin, Aaron and Jaz Mosby, Maggie Scruggs,
Camilla Sims, Abby Kacen, Ruby Chandler and Kristen
Joseph, and their crafts vary among music, healing arts,
fashion, photography, comics, graphic design and writ
ing. Beyond hosting the personal pursuits of its resident
creatives, the space has also begun offering public perfor
mances and artist markets.
Each featured artist in tacky! receives a base pay of $75
for their contribution to the magazine’s content, as well
as 100% of ongoing reader donations. Before accessing
the publication, visitors are requested to donate a recom
mended minimum of $3 through Patreon, PayPal, CashApp
or Venmo. For those not in a position to donate money,
there are also options to share and tag content on social
media or send a poem, compliment, playlist, artist profile,
story or love letter. The tacky! team—which also includes
Alden DiCamillo, Maggie Mitchell and Jo Arnow—is
compensated through grants, fundraising and business
sponsorships.
“We want to create a framework that redirects money
back towards artists and allows them to directly profit off
of their work,” says Unwin. “We’re hoping to create a larger
network of interdisciplinary artistry that brings the differ
ent sections of the Athens art scene into one place.”
Preferring to focus on individuals as themselves rather
than the products that they create, tacky! uses a free-form
approach that allows subjects to determine how they are
represented and what they share. Released on Apr. 1, the
first official issue of tacky! features Assata and Fish. While
the debut issue features two subjects who are coinciden
tally both UGA students, future issues will also highlight
community members, in-and-out-of-towners and former
Athenians.
In their interview, Assata discusses their background as
a bass trombonist, their journey of becoming comfortable
within their Black, queer and nonbinary identities, and
the challenges of balancing school, work and life. They use
their space in tacky! to share “Teenage Years,” a collection of
poems that began in high school and were recently revisited
and workshopped, as well as a song.
Fish is an Asian-American student currently attending
business school with the hopes of entering the music,
entertainment and arts industry. During her interview, she
discusses what attracted her to the South, how her Asian-
American identity influences her artwork and how she
hopes to apply her experiences once she returns to China.
Her contribution to tacky! consists of a collection of digital
illustrations and a sketch of an idea for a storybook about
an alien who visits Earth to appraise whether it should be
invited to join a planetary union.
“We prioritize artists who have strong or unique ties to
the Athens community, first and foremost,” says Unwin.
“After that, we’re considering the dif
ferent ways in which someone can be
marginalized: gender and sexual iden
tity, neurotype, socioeconomic status,
race, ethnicity, age, ability, access to
resources, to name a few.”
While local publications such as
Flagpole, The Athens Banner-Herald
and The Red & Black all certainly dedi
cate a large and consistent portion of
their labor to arts coverage, feature
stories often prioritize promoting
publicly accessible exhibitions, high
lighting artists with developed bodies
of work and documenting other major
community developments, tacky!
therefore fulfills an important role in
both nurturing and boosting the visi
bility of emerging artists, specifically
those with marginalized identities
who may be underserved by the cur
rent state of the scene.
“We wanted to see a magazine for Athens’ marginalized
artists that didn’t just give artists a platform, but gave
them consistent and continued funds, mentorship and
a physical location to support their creative projects in
all stages,” says Unwin. “Giving artists access to multiple
resources feels especially important when looking at equity
and accessibility across race, class and gender, in particular.”
To view tacky! in its entirety, visit tackymagazine.com.
For all things related to Finley Light Factory, check out fm-
leylightfactory.com. ©
APRIL 14, 2021 | FLAGPOLE.COM H