We’re pleased to announce the conclusion of issue 25, Resentment, which we invite you to read (or revisit). This issue is devoted to reclaiming resentment, especially as harbored by those who are used to fits of anger and bitterness being called unproductive, petty, selfish, even pathological. It asks: Who has a right to be resentful? What are the possibilities and limitations of resentment as a basis for thought and expression, intimacy and solidarity? How does resentment channel (or erode) our attention and energy? How is resentment stoked, mobilized, policed, and to what ends? Can—and must—resentment be useful?
Launched in June 2018, Resentment includes thirty-seven works of poetry, prose, visual art, readings, and conversations. The visual identity for the issue was designed by Pianpian He, who created a visual index of resentment with colors that she associates with the feeling. She applied these colors to Hansje van Halem’s Wind font, whose styles correspond with the cardinal directions, to create patterns that reflect the vital instability of resentment and the mood of each work.
With contributions by Rahel Aima, Wo Chan, Jesse Chun, Mike Crane, Lina Ekdahl, Jacqueline Feldman, Goldin+Senneby, Marwa Helal, Imani Elizabeth Jackson, Kira Josefsson, Devin Kenny, Jennifer Krasinski, Saretta Morgan, the New Red Order (Adam Khalil, Zack Khalil, and Jackson Polys), Kareem Rabie, Sarah Resnick, Pooneh Rohi, Aki Sasamoto, Kaneza Schaal, Matthew Shen Goodman, Sean D. Henry-Smith, Emily Wang, Wendy Xu, and Henry Zhang.