THE THREAD: (re)launching Forum magazine
Hi there!
I’m gradually shifting back to the habit of sending poems and essays more often. It just might resume being a weekly thing for me. Who knows! But thank you for reading, for following my work, and for supporting me over the years. Y’all are great.
I’ll keep sharing my poems and essays here. But for today, I want to share my editor’s note that’s included in the first issue of Forum magazine, which officially comes out this week. In fact, I’ll pick up the first box of copies from the printer this morning. I can’t wait to get it into the hands of readers. That includes you. So for a sneak peek of the magazine, enjoy reading my editor’s note below.
If you’re in Kansas City and available next Wednesday, I hope you’ll come celebrate with me at our launch party. You can RSVP here. And here are the details:
FORUM EDITOR’S NOTE
Welcome back. It’s been a while. Do you mind if I just pick up where we left off?
The year was 2001. This magazine printed what was to be its final issue. I was in college, wearing a faded Toad the Wet Sprocket t-shirt, watching the Twin Towers fall on live TV, and reading Strong Bad emails. I was not reading Forum.
Meanwhile, in what was supposed to be the last issue of this magazine, its pages declared, “The era of on-line shopping is here. The question is – are you online?”
At that moment, while the promises of the Internet unfolded before us, Forum ceased to be. It became an ex-magazine. Forum’s remains were boxed up and buried in storage.
Fast forward. In late 2023 I had coffee with Courtney Wasson, executive director of Kansas City Artists Coalition. I was finishing a writing residency at Charlotte Street, and I told Courtney I was interested in starting a new arts publication in Kansas City. That’s when Courtney asked, “Why don’t we just work together to bring back Forum?”
A few weeks later at the Artists Coalition office, I pored over stacks of old issues published between 1975 and 2001. The archives revealed how a small, scrappy group of artists formed the Artists Coalition and immediately began printing a regular newsletter. The newsletter soon grew into a magazine, extending its scope beyond the activities of the Coalition members to become a space for thoughtful discourse about art and culture in our region.
Every issue included reviews of exhibitions; interviews with artists and poets; challenging perspectives on what makes Kansas City an incredible — and at times incredibly frustrating — home for working artists; constructive criticism on government programs for the arts; and dedicated space for readers to share their own thoughts. The archives showed that our critical conversations today have roots in conversations that have been taking place for a long time. We are not starting anything new; we are entering a conversation long underway.
So. Mind if we pick up where we left off?
Forum will print a new issue every two months. If you are a member of the Artists Coalition, you will receive each issue in the mail. If you’re not a member, you can join today and begin receiving Forum at home, or you can keep an eye open to find Forum at various galleries, coffee shops, and bookstores around the region. We’re committed to keeping Forum free of advertising, which means we rely on our generous community to financially sponsor the magazine. If you have any questions or ideas, or if you want to learn more about sponsorship, don’t hesitate to contact me at forum@kansascityartistscoalition.org.
We hope Forum can once again be a generative source of dialogue in our broader creative community, bring new voices and distinct perspectives, and elevate the great art and writing happening in the region. More than anything, we hope that you will be part of the conversation, too. This is your Forum.
- Andrew Johnson