The Cloudscent Journal is thrilled to finally present to you our first issue of 2024 and our fourth issue, ISSUE 4: ETHER.

 

When we hear the word ether, we think of its counterpart, ethereal. A word so commonly found in artistic worlds, yet so hard to describe simply because of what it stands for: an otherworldly sense. It unites art in a way that is inexplicable; we find ourselves grappling to give this word a meaning in our art and trying to create new worlds that find a whole new purpose. It is because of our collective struggle that we have chosen only part of the word to best represent this issue. Ether, the space between our world and everything beyond it. That very space is the distance between our understanding of our world and everything unknown. The willingness of each of our extraordinarily talented 28 contributors to redefine infinity through this space just so perfectly captures everything that makes ether the word it is. As you read ISSUE 4: ETHER, you will find that this issue's works explore the unknown, travel between dimensions, and go beyond what humanity believes is possible, and we are so pleased to finally be able to present it to you. 

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We open the issue with "Death in a Youth" by Sophie Mo, a piece that attempts to travel between generations and the spectrum of time, and gives meaning to memory and bloodlines, before exploring new worlds in John White's "Walking to Zennor," Shreya Gupta's Kanya, Caroline Chou's "helios," and Race Harish's Canonizing Dorothea. However, this issue also finds way to question the infinite space in the very world we live in, like K. Rice, Hans Yang, and Alice He do in their pieces "On Duality," "TERTIARY CONSUMERS," and red, gold, and the truths left untold. And finally, ETHER's very purpose is captured in Xavier Lorenzo Victoriano's tranquil, explorative photograph, "Where Faith and Reality Coexist," in which the distance between two intangible dimensions is given a purpose.

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This issue is a symbol of The Cloudscent Journal and our goal to discover pieces that truly transcend. We have always aimed to bring together worlds through art, yet never considered what lives in between those distances. And with ETHER, we were finally able to find the true importance of redefining these boundaries while also persisting through impossibilities and discovering the raw, vulnerable, inexplicable, infinite beauty of the unknown. 

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And lastly, to all our readers, we are beyond grateful for your continuous love and support since our last issue. You've shown us the eternity of art as a bond and that is one of the most valuable, priceless things a human could possibly know. We hope you enjoy exploring the different worlds that await you in this issue; it’s the least we can do.

 

Warmly,

Vivian Huang

Founder & Editor-in-Chief