Hegemony Shift

Artorial by Serge Foglio

I was sitting in a squarish room, with baby blue walls. On the wall, facing me, was a poster of Yoda out of Attack of the Clones. Nina Simone was playing, and, I, was most probably working. This room was my office. The bell must have ring, someone must have let them in, for, Mr. Routliffe and Mr. Chauvin knocked at the office door. I have known them both for few years, and we had worked in few projects together. Mike Routliffe was a learning to be a graphic designer/ outdoor and Martial Arts type of guy, while Daniel Chauvin was simply an adventurer who lived in the wild with access to technology. Mike had an idea. He wanted to start a magazine that would focus on Art and Politics. He had in mind that it would be a full colour magazine and he needed a Art Director. This was going to be me. To be honest, while producing the first edition, I had no clue what I was doing. The amount of work was overwhelming, we had to do the marketing ourselves, I wasn't certain what were my priorities, and we added a full load of extra work that would not have been necessary. Nevertheless, the magazine was complete and produced, Mike being the Editor and owner of the whole thing, and Daniel becoming a participant. The magazine was based on the concept that you would have some writing on the left side and a piece of artwork on the opposite side, which would illustrate or "talk" to the writing. While the idea was quite attractive, it turned the feel of the magazine from a magazine to a book. And people starting to refer to it as "The Book". Also, the magazine ended up being 36 pages if my memory's right, all in full colour, and this came at a very expensive price. Almost $1 per page. Still and again, the magazine sold very well and it is now sold out. So, as a try, it really was a success. This was in June 2003. We decided to start work on the second edition immediately...

The sun is shinning through the double windows fake french doors. I am doing some desktop publishing and listening to Terrence McKeanna, wondering how long we have left. Not too far, the noise of a car passing by, then a man coughing in the street. The magazine is only starting to take place. I am trying to put it together, as one thing. I am looking at my screen with a very different eye that when we designed the first one. This is looking like a magazine. The design, the content, writing and artwork, the whole thing is taking a very good direction. It has a feeling of professionalism that the first one, most definitely didn't have. I stop, to focus on one sentence Terrence just said, something about DMT, then, I focus on the design again. So much time as passed by since we worked on HS #1. My life has literally changed, and so as Mike's. On a personal level, only the roots are the same, on a professional level, the wheel has turned many time. Few months after the release of the first magazine, my wife and I divorced, I started a new job, and moved to a city with the kids. Even though, this wasn't as bad as it could have been, it was a very demanding time of my life, and I found myself in a situation where I was incapable to work for the magazine. I talked to Mike about it, slightly suggesting that he could go on with another Art Director, but he said he was going to wait for me. It would take the time it would take. And it took a year. And another one of work... And we were releasing Hegemony Shift II... It was on the 4th of August 2007... The second edition has a lots of stories. It cost about a third of what the first one did, and it has the cover and inside cover in colour. The rest is in black and white. This turned out to be a very good idea, as it gives an agreeable feeling to the whole publication. Many artists and writers have contributed, and some collaborations turned out to be quite extraordinaire. It also has 52 pages, and a double cover, front and back, but this was also the case with the first one. We managed to sell the magazine for $10 Canadian, which we thought was pretty good for a good quality independent magazine, and we would encourage you to support the artists in your communities and worldwide. With this second edition, the most interesting part is that we are learning an immense deal of things. There is the marketing part, which is huge, and the production part. Everything is falling into place, it starts to make a lots of sense, a viable sense. For the first time, I have the feeling that I know what is my next step in that "magazine" adventure. It is going to be time to apply the hard learnt lessons.

I will be sitting at the corner of Fort & Blanshard, if I am not mistaken, sipping some horrible coffee, in the worst coffee place. But I will have a fair smile on my face. On the other side of the street, I will be able to see HegemonyShift III being given to people at no cost. A free publication. Of course, we will have to deal with the frustrated, and the purists, we will have to justify ourselves on why we are now accepting advertisement, why we advertise for "those people", how could we accept money from them????!!?!! But then and again, well, that's how the magazine can be free. 5000 copies, the word of reflection and action, our words, being gently spread with the power of artwork and words. People must start thinking. And that is, saying the very least! An old man will pass by the pile of magazine, he will certainly stop by, attracted by the coloured cover, and he will pick it up. His curiosity will have been touched, and that is how every single change starts. Every revolution started with an idea told me Mike recently, this could not be more true.

Maybe I am mad. It is an option. Maybe nothing is going to happen the way the time machine is telling, this is a very possible option. But we are going to do our best to prove it right, and that is starting right now! Buy our Mag!

Serge Foglio
Art Director of Hegemony Shift
September 2007 - Victoria BC
artdirector@hegemonyshift.com