dyna'mic n. 1. energizing or motive force; ACTA Victoriana.
This is no ordinary literary publication. At least, not this edition.
The Cover: black on white...white on black. An industrial collage of fonts. Black text rising from the page to meet your eyes before inverting, outlining, the message, the theme: SUBTEXT.
The creativity of the publication does not stop with the cover non-art. Open your precious edition now...
The inside page wields a digitised photograph of a farm. The distorted image, in all its splendid ugliness, satisfies the promise of SUBTEXT. Read all you want into the selection by the editorial committee, you likely won't take it far enough; this is a work of inspired madness.
Now turn your eyes to the table of contents... "Human Sperm" bleeds through the paper at the top of the page to literally provide a subtext, a subtitle, to the collection of works. "Women Dicks" leads the way. Dicks shoot sperm. Dicks, an idiom for detectives, investigate. How appropriate for an issue that features subtext.
Flip to page two now. Try to avoid the quotation on the facing page. You can't. The editors selection of red ink, so garish in comparison to basic black, forces you to be aggressive. You have to make a move. Read the page or turn it, but you will not be able to let it rest open. Remember, this work is dynamic. It will force you. This publication is not for those who read to relax. The editor will not show you red again for thirty-fivepages, but your optic nerves, already unsettled, will not repose in trust.
My biggest criticism of this publication lies in that I have found it very difficult to read the actual text. Artistically, the publication is almost overpowering such that I find myself being distracted from the most important thing: the words on the page. However, I'm willing to take the time necessary to set-up peripheral blocking devices and focus on the words that make ACTA such a renowned literary publication.
Take the time to enjoy this fine work of art. Whether you are a connoisseur of the avant-garde, traditional press, or the Toronto Sun, your mind deserves this snack. Copies are available in Wymlwood Hall at Victoria college, or from the Strand office.
