‘Rendezvous’ journal launch party set Nov. 30

There will be a launch party celebrating the publication of two new issues of the “Rendezvous Journal of Arts & Letters,” on Friday Nov. 30, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Idaho State University Magnuson Alumni House.

“Rendezvous” is an independent journal produced by the ISU College of Arts and Sciences. All members of the university and community are welcome to attend the launch party.

The event recognizes the publication of the new issues “Water and Mountain: Two Tales” by Koda Rohan, and the double-volume “PBI: A Retrospective.”  

The issue “Water and Mountain” presents two stories by Japanese short-story author Koda Rohan (1867-1947). Tsutomu Nagata, an ISU Department of English and Philosophy doctoral student, translates the tales into English for the first time. Roger Schmidt, Ph.D., ISU professor of English, edited the volume.

“There is looseness in Rohan’s writing,” Schmidt writes, “or call it artlessness, and this is the source of Rohan’s wisdom. The many days I spent discussing these stories with Mr. Nagata, the translator, are among the happiest hours I have spent as editor.”

The issue “PBI: A Retrospective” focuses on an annual series of book and paper-making workshops. The boxed, two-volume set becomes the medium to deliver its message.  Containing samples of handmade paper and of pigments pasted by hand into the journal, the two volumes come packaged in handmade slipcases with letterpress labels.  

This issue’s co-editor is Paula Jull, co-chair of the ISU Department of Mass Communication, who is a book artist herself who teaches the class “Art of the Book.”

“Elements of the craft of book and paper making have gone into each volume to make them esthetically pleasing and unique,” she writes.  “In this way, the volumes reflect the artistic values of PBI itself.”

“Rendezvous Journal of Arts & Letters” is dedicated to innovative, speculative, and creative work within and outside traditional disciplines. The journal has announced it has a new general editor, Sharon Sieber, Ph.D., ISU professor of Spanish. Upcoming issues will focus on the importance of the international experience for students, and on the state of feminism today.  

To order copies, contact Schmidt at (208) 282-2374.