Psyop On You

They Did Not Belong Amongst the Obsolete   I remember being scorched. Driving down Richmond Highway sometime during late July. The back of my thighs stuck to my leather car seat as I blasted “American Teenager” by Ethel Cain. The volume was maxed and its grainy audio rattled through the frame of my compact car. I […]

Weekly Roundup: Sudoku, Japanese Sound Rock and Scott Pilgrim

What our staff has been looking at, thinking about, listening to, etc… Andrew: I know what you’re thinking; “Scott Pilgrim is for losers.” But trust me, the new Netflix anime is a hilarious animation masterwork that remixes everything that made the original comic a bit… dicey. Amid the holiday season, “Scott Pilgrim Takes Off” is […]

Men Hate Women: Let’s Talk About It

I ‘that phase where you slowly start hating your girlfriend is crazy😭’ When Twitter user @sk1tguru tweeted this on Oct. 2, the Earth’s crust cracked in half. The conversation in the replies ran long and its reach spanned the cosmos. The boys had something to say, and they were gonna say it loud and strong. […]

A Richmond Guide to Authentic Vintage Fashion

Saturated with fashion-forward individuals and subcultures, Richmond is home to a plethora of unique apparel locations that can cater to any niche. Here, there is nothing that can be considered too extreme or out of the ordinary. At Virginia Commonwealth University, you’ll constantly be exposed to students on complete opposite ends of the fashion spectrum. […]

If I Were A Campus Tour Guide…

Walking out of class most days I’ll cross paths with a campus tour guide, giving their barely-paid spiel to the unsuspecting parents and students, about how star-studded awesome this university is. I always smile, just a bit when I see them, because you see I have this great fever dream,  of just skipping up behind them,  […]

Shortcomings: Not Your Model Minority

WARNING: Heavily Spoilers Past This Point I “Shortcomings” is a movie about an ass****. As the film opens, we’re introduced to the main character, Ben Tanaka, doing what he does best: hating. In the IDGAF (I don’t give a f***) wars, Ben fought valiantly on the side of giving a f***. But he didn’t just […]

An Extension of You

Last weekend I woke up from a night out and there were roughly six bags, ranging from purses to totes, sprawled out on my bedroom floor. The crocheted purse held my keys, wallet, and red lipstick. The “1-800 INK MAG” tote held my computer, journal, and doodles.

Ram City Market Is a Contradiction

My gut reaction of disbelief rolled straight into panic as I ran down the road. I had not just trudged through what felt like an hour-long walk to just sit back and watch my milk carton roll into the street to be forsaken. As I raced across the road seizing my carton from the impending doom of a rogue Richmond driver, I regretted trusting that flimsy plastic Kroger bag. I just wanted to have cereal.

Written in the Stars: Confessions from the Zodiac Signs

Astrology is a steamy topic, it incites rage from some and passion from others. Personally, I believe in it. It’s a fun, little pastime that allows insight into the behaviors of others. “What’s your big 3?” This question, which could be a wee bit annoying to some, has made it into my process of getting to know anyone new. As an Aries sun, who is always eager to learn about the ones I love, this ritual is essential to making new friends. Is your chart fire and air dominant like mine? Do we both have cardinal risings? Are we compatible, and you’re my new love interest? I simply must know! I wanted to see what others thought about astrology, specifically how they viewed their signs and the ones of others. Featuring the thoughts of VCU students, which I collected through anonymous submissions on our Instagram @ink_magazine, we explore the things written in the stars and how astrology forms the people we are today.

Mangled Dressings

The accompanying photoshoot to article, “What is the Male Gaze, Actually?”

What is the Male Gaze, Actually?

The woman on the screen is smooth. It is almost violating, the way the camera creeps along her skin. Its centipede legs tickle and invade, tracing along shiny curls and a single, bare leg. Her feet are arched and heeled. If we reached up, out of our velvet movie theater seats and through the projector’s pixels, she would smell like sex and prize money. The leading man gets her at the end and we do too, like a present. Like a dog. She is the trophy for all our hard-earned gravitas. After shooting down all those planes, killing all those spies or saving everyone from a burning building, a man must receive his due. It comes gift-wrapped by the director in a gratuitous sex scene. If only there were a fifty-cent word to describe such a phenomenon!

The Descending Heel of Fascism: Drag Bans and the Assault on Trans Bodies

On December 23rd, Tennessee’s House of Representatives passed House Bill 09, one of numerous laws being proposed around the nation criminalizing crossdressing that have come to be known as “drag bans.” The bill was signed by the governor on March 2, going into effect on July 1. While Tennessee is the first to sign a bill like this into law they are not alone in their targeting of drag; bills have been proposed in at least 14 states, including Texas, West Virginia, and Missouri.

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