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Letter from the Editor

February.01.2006

As the founding editor of this publication, it is my happy office to present the first issue of Visual Codec.

It not only contains a wide range of visual arts coverage from a fine group of talented individuals, but also marks the manifestation of a vision I think worthy of consistent effort and attention: The creation of a publication focused solely on sustained coverage of the vibrant contemporary visual arts scenes showcased by three pivotal Pacific Coast cities, namely Portland, Oregon, Seattle, Washington, and Vancouver, British Columbia.

It is my sincere hope that our coverage of these correlative regional meccas on a top-drawer and ongoing scale will, issue by issue, begin to unearth and decode our shared visual vernacular, one that stretches across a good six hours of interstate, three cities, and even an international border.

This in turn, will, I think, further encourage the cross-pollination of our immediate artistic communities and also poise the publication to serve as a sort of regional baedeker for the visual arts community at large.

Ambitious? Maybe. Necessary? Absolutely.

If you share in this vision, I humbly invite you to support us in any way you can with your readership, your feedback, even your advertising, if applicable ::wink, wink::

On that note, if I may, I'd like to thank some people who were prominent in seeing this first issue through to publication. If you've ever been involved in the creation of an enterprise-level website from scratch, you know what an arduous haul it is to see architectural and content plans translate into a cohesive reality.

First props go to Carrie E.A. Scott for acting as the patient, longterm midwife to the birth of this publication. Many thanks are also due Jeff Jahn, whose keen insight into and sheer exuberance for our region has begun to reach legendary status. There is also a sincere shout-out due Lance Blomgren, whose very appearance in our first issue displays an act of extreme determination on his part to play catch up after being recruited rather late in the game.

And, last but not the clichèd least, I'd dearly love to thank Alice Wheeler for sharing so freely and continually of her vast regional knowledge both through her verbal consultation and her photographs.

Thanks, also, to everyone out there who believes in what we are doing here. Shine on!!

Best regards,

m.

Founding Editor
Visual Codec
editor@visualcodec.com