All the Gifts You Gave Us, and

All the Gifts You Gave Us, and: Love, and: Crabbing Bayou Como, Royal Oaks Plantation, and: Yellow Mary Artist Self Portrait, Daughters of the Oaks, and: A Sacred Night Bath in Maryland USA 1., and: A Sacred Night Bath in Maryland USA 2 OZ Sanders (bio), Mel Michelle Lewis (bio), and Nina Q. Allen (bio) Is she as pretty as a pictureOr clear as crystalOr pure as a lilyOr black as coalOr sharp as a razor? —Lorna Simpson, Twenty Questions (A Sampler) 1986 [End Page 349] All the Gifts You Gave Us OZ Sanders Click for larger view View full resolution All the Gifts You Gave Us Ink, Pencil and Gouache on Stonehenge paper, 8 "×10", 2021 OZ Sanders [End Page 350] Copyright © 2022 OZ Sanders Love OZ Sanders Click for larger view View full resolution Love Ink, Pencil and Gouache on Stonehenge paper, 8 "×10", 2021 OZ Sanders [End Page 351] Copyright © 2022 OZ Sanders Crabbing Bayou Como, Royal Oaks Plantation Mel Michelle Lewis Click for larger view View full resolution Crabbing Bayou Como, Royal Oaks Plantation Photography (Black + White), 2014 Mel Michelle Lewis [End Page 352] Copyright © 2022 Mel Michelle Lewis Yellow Mary Artist Self Portrait, Daughters of the Oaks Mel Michelle Lewis Click for larger view View full resolution Yellow Mary Artist Self Portrait, Daughters of the Oaks Photography (Black + White), 2014 Mel Michelle Lewis [End Page 353] Copyright © 2022 Mel Michelle Lewis A Sacred Night Bath in Maryland USA 1. Nina Q. Allen Click for larger view View full resolution A Sacred Night Bath in Maryland USA 1. Photography (Black + White), 2021 Nina Q. Allen [End Page 354] Copyright © 2022 Nina Q. Allen A Sacred Night Bath in Maryland USA 2. Nina Q. Allen Click for larger view View full resolution A Sacred Night Bath in Maryland USA 2. Photography (Black + White), 2021 Nina Q. Allen [End Page 355] Copyright © 2022 Nina Q. Allen OZ Sanders OZ Sanders is a mixed Black visual storyteller from the East Coast in the U.S. Her imaginative illustrations provide episodic glimpses into the worlds of complex and determined protagonists as they navigate their journeys. Mel Michelle Lewis Originally from Bayou la Batre, on the Alabama Gulf Coast, Dr. Mel Michelle Lewis's creative writing and multimedia projects feature their ancestral lands, lineages, and queer longings. They explore queer-of-color themes rooted in rural coastal settings and southern port cities; specifically, Bayou la Batre, Coden, Mobile, New Orleans, Biloxi, and Baltimore. These projects present local and regional Black and Indigenous southern folklore, dialect, foodways, religious and spiritual practices, music, and cultural events. Dr. Mel is the Inaugural Visual Arts Editor for WSQ. Nina Q. Allen NINA Q. ALLEN IS AN ARTIST (INDIGO EMPATH + STARSEED) WHO USES THE LANGUAGE OF THE OCEAN TO SYMBOLIZE MATRILINEAL HEALING (DIVINATION) &&& AFROFUTURISM. THE INTERIOR/EXTERIOR OF A WOMXN'S ANATOMY REQUIRES DEEP CLEANSING OF AURAS ONTO PAST, PRESENT, &&& FUTURE. *ALL-CAPS USED INTENTIONALLY TO BRING THE ENERGY OF EPITAPH STYLES AT CEMETERY/MEMORIAL SITES ... PRECISELY OF OWN BLOODLINE. TO MOTHER MOON/MOTHER OCEAN ... REST IN PEACE. Copyright © 2022 Feminist Press at the City University of New York

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