In the spring of 2021, as the Artist-in-Residence at Columbia College Chicago's Aesthetics of Research, Laura conceptualized, edited, and launched MASKS Literary Magazine. Featuring the work of a diverse group of poets, essayists, and fiction writers, this Weisman Award-winning publication is committed to amplifying emerging creative voices and increasing representation of the BIPOC, LGBTQ+, women, disabled, multilingual, and other underrepresented communities.
From the inaugural "Editor's Letter" Masks are more than just the soft cloth that covers our mouths and noses, protecting us from COVID. We wear masks when we want to present a persona to the world. We wear masks to save us and to cloak us. As these pages illustrate, masks both prevent and protect. Masks, as we've learned this year, are everywhere.
