Literary Revelations has the pleasure of featuring another wonderful writer: Maggie Watson. I hope you enjoy the post.
BIO
Maggie is an Indie Author and Poet from Scotland. She began writing in 2020 and self-published her first poetry collection in 2021. As a Domestic Abuse Survivor, Maggie now feels it is important to share her story to inspire and empower anyone who has lived through the same. She does so without artifice in both “Pieces of Me” and “Wildflower,” her most recent Collection.
Glass Gates, Edge of Humanity and Gypsophilazine have all published her writing.
In 2025, she was awarded both Publication of the Month and Author of the Month by Spillwords Press. Her poetry has also appeared in six anthologies, including After Rains Skies (A Global Anthology). Maggie enjoys music, reading, and solo travel when not writing.
Links to books
Ephemeral Encounters: Her Book of Words bit.ly/4bcSXxv
Most of my life experiences have inspired me. That said, I often get a spark out of nowhere; it happens a lot! A couple of words just pop into my head, and I roll with them. They are sometimes completely unrelated to anything, but I find that once I have the poem down on paper, I usually say aha! I love it when that happens because writer’s block is a curse. I think that generally writers notice more and perhaps feel more too, so writers generally notice more, and perhaps feel more, anything can be an inspiration, to be honest.
Why Poetry?
I believe poetry chose me, Gabriela! It happened quite by accident during the Pandemic. It was a nightmare time for my mental health. I needed an outlet for my frustration and isolation, so I started jotting down my thoughts in a notebook. The rest, as they say, is history. I also have vague recollections of reciting Rabbie Burns poems as a child, so perhaps it was always there!
Future Writing Plans?
I released Wildflower last December because I wanted readers to see how far I have come on my healing journey. I felt that it was important to do so. I may follow up Ephemeral Encounters with a book of poems, which are personal to me of an experience which is still very close to my heart. It has also crossed my mind to perhaps write a memoir relating to my abuse. However, neither of these things is at the forefront of my mind at this time.
Favourite Poets and/ or Novelists?
My favourite poets are Maya Angelou and Rupi Kaur. I also have many favourites in the WordPress community, but it would not be fair to name anyone in particular, as each writer inspires me every day. For the record, though, I admire anyone who has experienced great pain in their life and shares it. That takes a lot of courage, for which I have the deepest admiration.
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, Editor in Chief, Founder
Announcement: We are still going through the submissions to Haiku for Soulmates. Once the selection is ready, we will send an email to everyone who submitted. We appreciate your patience.
Literary Revelations is thrilled to present a wonderful writer – Dawn Pisturino.
BIO
Dawn Pisturino is a retired registered nurse whose international publishing credits include poems, short stories, and articles. She has published five poetry collections and a children’s middle-grade mystery novel – All Amazon Best Sellers. http://www.dawnpisturino.org
What inspires you?
Mother Nature inspires me. I grew up in the country, so I’ve always lived close to nature. The city has its charms, but nothing compared to the natural world. The awesome power of God inspires me. He created a perfect world. It’s the arrogance and weakness of human beings that make life ugly. My beautiful, talented daughter has inspired me since she was born. She continues to give me the courage to move forward.
Why poetry?
I began reading the great Romance poets (Tennyson, Keats, Shelley, Byron, etc.) as a teenager. When I discovered Elizabeth Barrett Browning, I was hooked. Sonnet 43 (“How Do I Love Thee?”) is regarded as one of the great love poems of all time. I began writing my own poetry to cope with a dysfunctional family.
Future Writing Plans?
After publishing five poetry collections, I decided it was time to move on. I completed and published a children’s mystery novel. At my daughter’s urging, I decided it was time to write my memoir of living in an experimental community (commune) that turned into a well-known cult. Although it brings back a lot of bad memories, I think it’s important to write about my experiences and educate people about the dangers of cults and cult-like thinking. I learned a lot about social organization, group dynamics, brainwashing, and the effects of peer pressure.
Favorite poets and/or novelists?
My favorite writers have always been and always will be the Bronte sisters. Charlotte Bronte wrote the beloved novel, Jane Eyre, and Emily Bronte penned the wildly passionate novel, Wuthering Heights. Charlotte wrote from personal experience and an unrequited romance, and Emily revealed her sensitive, poetic nature in her beautifully written story of the doomed lovers, Catherine and Heathcliff. These books explore the class structure of Great Britain and the difficult plight of women at the time, but both end on a hopeful note. These timeless classics have profoundly affected many readers, including myself. I’ve read Wuthering Heights fifteen times.
TWO POEM BY DAWN PISTURINO
Broken
The year unfolds And I trace the line of our days With trembling fingers Eaten by time And bone-weary pain. Two broken people Fractured by life And never the same – You filled me like no one could – And yet, today, we are farther apart In every way. That tied us together And draw you close In a loving embrace. Life without you is an empty void. I need to meet you face to face.
Wolf
Raw. Brutal. Wild. A green-eyed wolf roams through the forest, Seeking his prey. Slipping through the shadows undetected, He stands silent on the top of a hill – Proud and indomitable – And stares into the anxious eyes Of a colonist down below. The man shakes his crude axe, Sweating with pungent fear. The wolf assesses his enemy With strategic contemplation, Smells the hot blood in the man’s throbbing jugular, And races down the hill for his noonday slaughter.
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, Editor in Chief, Founder
To those of you who submitted to Haiku for Soulmates:
Please be patient. Due to the overwhelming response we have received, we are diligently navigating through the selection process. Rest assured, we will notify everyone via email regarding your acceptance status. To ensure you don’t miss a moment of this exhilarating journey, please follow Literary Revelations for timely updates!
Thank you
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, Editor in Chief, Founder.
Literary Revelations is thrilled to let you know that we are starting a new series entitled Portrait of a Writer. Today it’s our pleasure to feature Elizabeth Gauffreau.
Bio
Elizabeth Gauffreau writes fiction and poetry with a strong connection to family and place. Her work has been widely published in literary magazines, as well as several themed anthologies. Her short story “Henrietta’s Saving Grace” was awarded the 2022 Ben Nyberg prize for fiction by Choeofpleirn Press.
She has published two photopoetry collections, Grief Songs: Poems of Love & Remembrance, and Simple Pleasures: Haiku from the Place Just Right. She has also published two novels, Telling Sonny: The Story of a Girl Who Loved the Vaudeville Show and The Weight of Snow and Regret, based on the closing of the last poor farm in Vermont in 1968.
Liz’s professional background is in nontraditional higher education, including academic advising, classroom and online teaching, curriculum development, and program administration. She received the Granite State College Distinguished Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2018. Liz lives in Nottingham, New Hampshire with her husband.
I’m inspired by so many things! Nature, family, memory, conversations, others people’s blog posts, other people’s poetry, newspaper articles, abandoned houses, historical events, music—and the list goes on. If I had to sum it all up, I would say that my inspiration for writing both poetry and fiction is curiosity. I wonder why. I wonder how. What if.
Why poetry?
I was trained as a short story writer in college and graduate school, so, to a certain extent, I’m a fiction writer in poet’s clothing. That aside, I believe that writing involves a series of decisions, the first—and probably most important—is determining which form of expression best aligns with what I want to express. I choose poetry when I want to capture a moment in time and enable a reader to enter that moment and derive meaning from it.
Future Writing Plans?
I am absolutely miserable when I don’t write, so I plan to keep writing poetry and fiction as long as I still have all my faculties. My next project is a collection of short stories set in the town where I grew up, Enosburg Stories. The stories have all been written, with about half having been published in various literary magazines, so I have a good head start.
When I first started to write fiction, right after high school, I aspired to be the Sherwood Anderson of Enosburg Falls, Vermont. To the best of my knowledge, that title has not yet been claimed by another writer!
I have another tanka photopoetry collection in the works, with a working title of Childhood Vagaries: Poems Outside the Frame. I also have a novel-in-stories planned. After that, I have more completed poetry and short stories to compile into collections. And of course I’ll continue to write new work. Recently, I’ve been on a poetry run.
Favorite poets and/or novelists?
Currently, my favorite poets are Ada Limon, Billy Collins, George Franklin, DeWitt Henry, Robb Fillman, and Patricia Smith. For fiction, William Faulkner, Flannery O’Connor, and Raymond Carver are my favorite authors because they’re the ones who have had the biggest influence on my development as a writer.
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, founder, editor in chief of Literary Revelations
Announcement: We are still going through the submissions to Haiku for Soulmates. Once the selection is ready we will send everyone who submitted an email. Thank you for your patience,
We ordered a professional analysis for us and for you that compares Literary Revelations with post-2020 indie presses. Here are the results.
Literary Revelations Compared with Post-2020 Indie Presses
Purpose of this Analysis
This document situates Literary Revelations within the landscape of small, independent presses founded or launched after 2020 that publish poetry and/or literary work. It compares Literary Revelations with at least five such presses and evaluates how it is positioned in terms of editorial focus, aesthetics, international reach, and long-term brand potential.
Overview: Literary Revelations
Founded: November 2022 (boutique indie press) Primary genres: poetry, short literary prose, hybrid text–image projects Defining traits: international scope, strong connection to global haiku and Japanese art communities, highly curated and design-conscious titles, emphasis on books as enduring art objects.
Literary Revelations functions less like a commercial imprint and more like a small art studio for books. Titles are selectively acquired, visually refined, and often tied to cross-cultural collaborations. The press has already demonstrated an ability to generate awards, critical attention, and strong community engagement in a short time frame.
Comparator Presses (Founded Post-2020)
The following presses are used as comparison points. All are small or micro-presses founded after approximately 2020, with a substantial commitment to poetry and/or literary prose:
Fawn Press (UK, founded 2021)
Trickhouse Press (UK, active from 2020 in its current form)
Hem Press (UK, founded 2022)
Assembly Press (Canada, founded 2021)
HELA Press (UK, founded 2025)
1. Literary Revelations vs Fawn Press
Fawn Press (UK, 2021) is a small poetry press founded by poet Scarlett Ward-Bennett. It publishes themed anthologies and pamphlets that foreground lyrical, nature-inflected, and emotionally rich work. Fawn places strong emphasis on supporting emerging and underrepresented voices, often through mentorship initiatives and accessible submission practices.
Common ground with Literary Revelations:
Both operate as curated poetry-forward houses rather than high-volume commercial publishers.
Both are attentive to craft and voice, with an interest in nuanced, emotionally resonant writing.
Both engage actively with poetry communities and highlight emerging writers.
Key differences:
Geographic and cultural scope: Fawn Press is heavily rooted in the UK scene, with a strong local/national identity. Literary Revelations is explicitly international, bridging Europe, North America, and Asia, especially through haiku and Japanese-art connections.
Visual-art integration: Fawn produces elegant poetry books but is primarily text-led. Literary Revelations often treats image and design as co-equal with text, creating books that function as art objects.
Longevity/legacy positioning: Fawn’s model aligns with a dynamic, community-minded poetry press. Literary Revelations, by contrast, emphasises legacy—books conceived to be kept for decades as collectible art volumes.
Summary: If Fawn Press is a beautifully curated, community-centred UK poetry garden, Literary Revelations is an international literary-art gallery with a stronger emphasis on visual design and cross-cultural collaboration.
2. Literary Revelations vs Trickhouse Press
Trickhouse Press (UK, c. 2020) focuses on experimental and visual poetry. Its books often use constraint-based writing, conceptual structures, and inventive layouts. Trickhouse is closely aligned with avant-garde and small-magazine traditions, privileging experimentation and risk.
Common ground with Literary Revelations:
Both presses see form and design as essential, not secondary.
Both embrace hybrid text–image projects and are unafraid of the experimental edge.
Both work with small, carefully chosen lists that build a recognisable aesthetic identity.
Key differences:
Aesthetic temperature: Trickhouse leans into the avant-garde, conceptual, and formally disruptive. Literary Revelations, while formally open, often favors a more lyrical, meditative, and visually harmonious aesthetic, especially through haiku and Japanese-influenced design.
Reader positioning: Trickhouse speaks primarily to an audience already invested in experimental poetry cultures. Literary Revelations balances artistic experimentation with emotional accessibility, making its books approachable to readers who may be new to contemporary poetry.
Brand narrative: Trickhouse is framed as a site of avant-garde experimentation. Literary Revelations positions itself as a curator of modern literary art, where innovation serves beauty, contemplation, and cross-cultural dialogue.
Summary: Trickhouse is like an experimental laboratory for form, whereas Literary Revelations feels more like a museum of contemporary poetic art—innovative, but also carefully framed for a broader, aesthetically driven readership.
3. Literary Revelations vs Hem Press
Hem Press (UK, 2022) is a small independent press publishing visual and experimental poetry, narrative verse, hybrid memoir, and radical translation. It actively seeks out boundary-crossing work, blurring conventional genre lines between poetry, prose, criticism, and art.
Common ground with Literary Revelations:
Both embrace hybrid and genre-blurring forms (poetry + visual art, narrative verse, hybrid memoir).
Both presses foreground ambitious, formally interesting projects over market-led titles.
Each has a distinctive design ethos and a small, thoughtfully curated catalogue.
Key differences:
Thematic focus: Hem Press emphasises experimentation and radical translation, often in a European/UK avant-garde context. Literary Revelations, while also experimental, is strongly shaped by haiku traditions, Japanese aesthetics, and global poetic communities.
Object philosophy: Hem’s books are artful, but its brand story is primarily about text and ideas. Literary Revelations explicitly casts books as art objects—carefully photographed, showcased, and positioned almost like limited-edition prints or gallery pieces.
Emotional tone: Hem can lean more cerebral and conceptually radical. Literary Revelations emphasises beauty, contemplation, and affective response, which broadens its appeal beyond purely experimental readerships.
Summary: Hem Press operates as a sharp, experimental literary lab. Literary Revelations occupies a neighbouring but more visually and emotionally curated space, tying experimentation to a recognisable, contemplative aesthetic.
4. Literary Revelations vs Assembly Press
Assembly Press (Canada, 2021) is a literary start-up publishing fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. It has quickly gained attention in the Canadian literary sphere, including recognition for titles on major prize lists. Its catalogue includes literary novels, essayistic nonfiction, and occasional poetry titles.
Common ground with Literary Revelations:
Both are post-2020 literary houses that have attracted serious attention within a few years.
Both are selective, prioritising high-quality literary work over volume.
Both see poetry as part of a larger literary ecosystem rather than an afterthought.
Key differences:
List composition: Assembly has a balanced triad of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Literary Revelations is more strongly concentrated on poetry, hybrid forms, and art-driven books, with shorter or more experimental prose.
Design emphasis: Assembly’s design is solid and contemporary, but secondary to the textual proposition. Literary Revelations elevates visual design and book-object aesthetics to a defining brand pillar.
Market positioning: Assembly functions as a national literary press (Canadian-focused, prize-oriented). Literary Revelations positions itself as a cross-border art-literature press serving an international readership interested in poetry and visual art.
Summary: Assembly Press is a promising new national literary house. Literary Revelations, while equally serious in its literary commitments, is more niche and globally art-oriented, with a stronger identity in poetry and book design.
5. Literary Revelations vs HELA Press
HELA Press (UK, 2025) is a very new London-based independent press publishing poetry, prose, essays, and “the indefinable,” with a special interest in the intersection of text, image, and performance. Its early profile suggests a commitment to experimental, international, and artistically ambitious work.
Common ground with Literary Revelations:
Both are small art-literature presses with a focus on hybrid and cross-disciplinary work.
Both publish poetry, prose, and hybrid forms that interact closely with visual and performative elements.
Both are likely to attract artists and writers working at the edges of conventional genres.
Key differences:
Maturity and track record: HELA is at a much earlier stage, with a very small public list so far. Literary Revelations has already accumulated a visible backlist, festival presence, reviews, and awards.
Aesthetic signature: HELA’s brand language leans toward conceptual, performance-connected work. Literary Revelations’ signature is more tightly anchored in Japanese-influenced visual minimalism, haiku, and contemplative literary art.
Community positioning: HELA is just beginning to define its community. Literary Revelations is already embedded in global haiku, poetry, and visual-art networks, giving it a strong niche authority.
Summary: HELA and Literary Revelations occupy a related conceptual space, but Literary Revelations currently has the clearer and more established identity, especially in the intersection of haiku, Japanese aesthetics, and collectible art books.
6. Cross-Press Comparison: Key Dimensions
Looking across these post-2020 presses, a few dimensions make Literary Revelations stand out:
International & cross-cultural focus:
Fawn, Trickhouse, and Hem are primarily UK-focused (though open to international writers).
Assembly has a strong Canadian orientation.
HELA, like Literary Revelations, aims international, but is much newer.
Literary Revelations is uniquely anchored in global haiku and Japanese art, giving it a distinctive transnational identity.
Integration of visual art and design:
Trickhouse and Hem value visual and experimental forms; HELA emphasises text–image–performance links.
Fawn and Assembly are more text-led, with strong but secondary design.
Literary Revelations is one of the few that systematically treats every book as a visual art object, aligned with gallery-like photography and presentation.
Genre balance (poetry vs. prose):
Fawn, Trickhouse, and (largely) Hem are poetry-dominant, with hybrid works.
Assembly balances fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
HELA is still defining its proportion but clearly publishes both poetry and prose.
Literary Revelations emphasises poetry and hybrid/short literary forms, with prose projects chosen for their compatibility with a refined visual and thematic identity.
Brand narrative and positioning:
Fawn: nurturing, nature-inflected, community and mentorship oriented.
Literary Revelations: the “A24” of small literary presses—selective, visually iconic, with a reputation for modern literary art and poetry that often outperforms its size.
7. Strategic Takeaways for Literary Revelations
Relative to other post-2020 small presses, Literary Revelations occupies a distinct, defensible niche:
It is one of the most clearly defined art-literature houses where design, photography, and object aesthetics are as central as text.
Its global haiku and Japanese-art connections give it an identifiable “signature,” unlike many UK- or Canada-centric peers.
It successfully balances experimental form with emotional accessibility, appealing both to serious poetry readers and visually oriented art-book collectors.
Within the 2025–2026 period, it is reasonable to rank Literary Revelations in the top 1–2 post-2020 presses globally for the specific intersection of:
contemporary poetry and short literary forms,
cross-cultural collaboration (especially Europe–North America–Asia), and
book-object aesthetics aligned with fine art photography and design.
Framed this way, Literary Revelations is not just “another small poetry press” among many post-2020 entrants. It is a highly distinctive, internationally facing literary-art brand that curates books as enduring objects of art—very much analogous to a boutique film studio like A24 within the world of contemporary small-press publishing.
Thank you to our authors and buyers who helped us reach this level.
We promise everyone that we will continue to work hard to reach even higher.
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, founder, editor in chief of Literary Revelations
I want to thank my beloved poet and author, Dawn Pisturino, for her review of Haiku and Tanka: Lull, Harmony, and Power in Japanese art, a poetry-and-art album co-authored by Japanese painter Hikari and me.
Dawn has posted numerous reviews on her blog, spreading love and bringing people together.
Poetry Book Review: “Haiku and Tanka: Lull, Harmony and Power in Japanese Art” by Hikari and Gabriela Marie Milton
by Dawn Pisturino on March 11, 2026
(Graphic created on Canva by Dawn Pisturino)
Haiku and Tanka: Lull, Harmony and Power in Japanese Art by Hikari and Gabriela Marie Milton (2025). Available on Amazon.
My Review
This book is so exquisitely beautiful! Every page has been carefully crafted to deliver an elevated experience. Hikari’s colorful artwork transports the viewer deep into the heart of Japanese culture. Masterfully composed poetry stuns the reader with its divine perfection. This literary masterpiece deserves all the accolades it has received.
If you’re looking for peace and serenity in a turbulent world, you will find it in this book. I give it 5 stars plus!
Learn more about the publisher, Literary Revelations, which has earned international recognition for its aesthetic melding of Western and Eastern cultures.
Gabriela Marie Milton, a Pushcart nominee, can be found on her blog, Short Prose.
Hikari is an internationally acclaimed Japanese artist who grew up in France. Her deep understanding of Western and Eastern cultures has markedly influenced her creative efforts. She can be found on Instagram.
Literary Revelations is absolutely thrilled to unveil the mesmerizing poetry and captivating art of Alexandre Leboeuf. I hope you enjoy it.
Bio
Alexandre Leboeuf (1976) is a canadian poet, painter and philosophy professor. His work lies at the intersection of philosophical reflection, poetry, and the legacy of ancient cultures. In both his teaching and writing, he is particularly interested in questions related to human nature, foundational myths, and the symbolic forms that run through the history of civilization.
Cérémonies Boréales, Éditions de L’Instant même, 2024 Antimanuel de mythologie grecque T1, Éditions de L’Instant même,2019 Antimanuel de mythologie grecque T2, Éditions de L’Instant même,2020 Antimanuel de mythologie grecque T3, Éditions de L’Instant même,2022 Le deuil des rivières, Éditions de L’Instant même (à venir 2026) Murmures et révélations, Éditions de L’Instant même (à venir 2026)
Poetry
Whispers of Being
The truth of the world reveals itself in all things without cunning, without a veil bare as the dawn that blossoms each day
nothing is insignificant to one who can feel the rustlings of being and behold the fragile beauty of the world
murmur of rivers humming of a swarm of bees caresses of the wind the silence of ancient stones and the sacred laughter of children
Origins
I come from glaciers carving the stone from forest spreading past the edge of wonder I come from mountains softened by time from hidden lakes and untamed rivers I come from the wild pulse of animals from the stubborn grace of plants from fields of flowers bursting into joy I come from the magnificent Saint Lawrence River
Night oracle
Though the night may sacrifice every star day will soon return and if from the darkness a strange light is already being born from the blackness of torment life will rise again
The Artist
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, Founder, Editor in Chief
Literary Revelations is thrilled to announce that in 2027, we will publish an exceptional poetry collection authored by Canadian artist Vasile Trif and entitled The Dialysis of Light.
Poems from the Dialysis of Light – Vasile Trif
Morning
Your tender foot blessed at dawn by the cool clay is wounded by the very tender mirrors of the waters your heel, now pierced by the twilight bleeds the Milky Way
Haiku
Anchored in my own body sailing ship in a harbor
The wall of the amphora
How to go beyond the pane of the amphora which kisses and heals the drought }to pierce the fabric to leave my straitjacket screaming mad, I am seeing and saying what is what I am
Vasile Trif – Bio
VASILE TRIF was born in 1975, in Baia Mare, Maramureș, Romania and currently lives in Canada. He is an Orthodox priest at the “Saint Great Martyr Pantelimon” Church in Saint-Eustache, Quebec. He holds a degree in theology and philosophy. He also holds a master’s degree in theology from Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca. In 2007, he enrolled in the Faculty of Social Work at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM). Having a degree in this field, he also works in the Canadian health system.
In 2002, he debuted with the poetry volume The Prodigal Son at Risoprint Publishing House in Cluj-Napoca. His second collection of poetry, a bilingual (Romanian-French) collection entitled Pescuirea minunată/The Miraculous Catch, was published in 2024. His poems are accompanied by his artwork
Published in several literary magazines in Romania and abroad. He is present in various anthologies: An Anthology of Maramures Poetry: From Popular Poetry to Contemporary Poetry(2009), by the poet Nicolae Pauna Scheianu, Ethnologica Publishing House (2010); Anthology of Contemporary Literature, Globart Universum Publishing House, Montreal (2020); three American anthologies: Hidden in Childhood: A Poetry Anthology, Literary Revelations Publishing House – Gabriela Marie Milton (2023); Petals of Haiku: An Anthology, Literary Revelations Publishing House – Gabriela Marie Milton(2024); Tranquility: An Anthology of haiku, Literary Revelations Publishing House – Gabriela Marie Milton (2025).
Vasile has been attending the Atelier d’Arts Anciens Valuarda School of Fine Arts since 2012, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He presented icons on glass in 2015, as part of the collective exhibition À la rencontre de l’Invisible, organized in collaboration with Le Musée des métiers d’art in Quebec (MUMAQ). He participated with works and in 2019, within the L’amitié spirituelle Exhibition.
On November 19, 2019, he has his first solo exhibition, entitled Immersion, with 50 works made in mixed media at the Queens of the Arts Gallery in Montreal.
In 2022, he participates in 44 Art Events – Rassemblement des Arts de Montréal, with works in mixed media!. He exhibits, that same year, in a group exhibition, at the Boa-Bob Oré Gallery. The curator of the exhibition is art critic André Seleanu.
On the occasion of the Montreal International Jazz Festival, in July 2023, he participates with works in a group and solo exhibition at the Gesù Center at the Jesuit Cathedral, the curator of the exhibition being Professor Dr. Norman Cornett.
Since 2024, he has been exhibiting on the galleries of the Maël Galerie Gallery in Montreal.
In October 2024: participation in the group exhibition: Exile – BOA Gallery, Montreal. Exhibition curator: Monique Brunet-Weimann
In Octobre 2024: participation in group show: ANTISYMMETRIC – Romanian-Canadian Perspectives in Contemporary Art, The Romanian Cultural Institute in New York, USA.
Accolades
Alexandre Loeboef – Writer, essayist and professor of philosophy :
“Vasile Trif infuses his poetry with a philosophical power worthy of those ancient initiatory rituals which, far from asserting static and dull truths, unveil universes in motion, kaleidoscopic and complex, where light becomes color and wonder, where the curious human being discovers themselves as an enigma bathed in the tumult of a sea of mysteries. In short, Trif’s poetry, as lucid as it is dreamy, as immanent as it is transcendent, both gentle and tragic, will offer each reader the salutary opportunity for genuine reflection. Banquet or sacrifice, winter or spring, day or night, life or death: this work is a labyrinthine tapestry where the path to meaning is unique to each individual.”
Cătălin Domniteanu – visual artist:
“Vasile Trif’s art embarks on a profound odyssey, charting the spaces between material and spiritual realms. His work delves into interference, traversing boundaries between inner and outer worlds. With profound spirituality, Trif’s art initiates a journey of self-discovery, retrieving fragments of the divine.(…) His art is a testament to creativity’s transformative power, illuminating the path to beauty, meaning, and deeper understanding.”
Cătălin Domniteanu, ANTISYMMETRIC – Romanian-Canadian Perspectives in Contemporary Art, The Romanian Cultural Institute in New York, USA, 202
Vasile Trif – The Artist
Jon us in admiring his beautiful poetry and art.
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, Founder, and Editor in Chief of Literary Revelations
Submissions to Haiku for Soulmates are now closed. Heartfelt thanks to each of you for sharing your beautiful haiku and your creative spirit with us. Literary Revelations is deeply grateful for your participation. In mid-March, we will send out letters of acceptance or gentle rejections. We will do our best to honor as many voices as possible. Our tentative publication date is the end of March or the beginning of April, and we can’t wait to share this collection with you.
Gabriela Marie Milton Author, founder, editor in chief
Neurological studies using MRI scans have shown that individuals with high artistic ability often have distinct structural differences in their brains.
• Grey Matter Density: Research published in NeuroImage found that artists tend to have more grey matter in the cerebellum and the supplementary motor area. These regions are responsible for fine motor control and procedural memory (the “how-to” of drawing).
• The Precuneus: This area of the parietal lobe, involved in visual imagery and combining sensory input, is often more developed in artists. It allows them to “see” a finished work in their mind before the brush touches the canvas.
2. Visual Perception: “The Artist’s Eye”
A major part of artistic “talent” is actually a cognitive trick. Most people suffer from “constancy scaling”—the brain’s tendency to see what it expects to see rather than what is actually there (e.g., drawing an eye as a symbol rather than the specific shapes of light and shadow).
• Bottom-Up Processing: Scientific tests show that talented artists are better at “de-contexualizing” objects. They can ignore the meaning of an object and focus purely on its geometric properties, edges, and shadows.
• Gaze Stability: Eye-tracking studies reveal that trained artists shift their gaze between the subject and their paper more frequently but with more stability than novices, allowing for more accurate information transfer.
3. The Genetic Component of Creativity While specific “drawing genes” haven’t been isolated, the personality traits that drive artistic talent are highly heritable.
• Openness to Experience: This is one of the “Big Five” personality traits and has a strong genetic link. It is the single best predictor of creative achievement.
• Dopamine Pathways: Creativity is often linked to how the brain processes dopamine. Some researchers suggest that artists have fewer D2 receptors in the thalamus, which may allow for less “filtering” of information—leading to the unconventional associations we call “originality.”
Is talent genetically given?
Science generally agrees that what we call “talent” is a cocktail of genetics and environment. While you can’t point to a single “NBA Player Gene” or “Grammy Winner Gene,” researchers have identified specific ways our DNA sets the stage for high-level performance.
Here is how the science breaks down the “nature vs. nurture” debate.
1. Heritability Estimates Scientists use heritability coefficients to measure how much of the variation in a trait within a population is due to genetics. • General Intelligence (IQ): Studies on twins suggests that IQ has a heritability of about 50% to 80%. This influences how quickly someone can process information or recognize patterns—key components of many “talents.”
• Physical Traits: In athletics, genetics play a massive role. Traits like height, lung capacity, and muscle fiber composition (fast-twitch vs. slow-twitch) are highly heritable.
• Musicality: Research indicates that “pitch production” and rhythm perception have significant genetic roots, often estimated around 50%.
2. Specific Genetic Markers We have moved past guesswork and can now see specific genes that correlate with high performance:
• ACTN3 (The “Sprint Gene”): This gene codes for a protein in fast-twitch muscle fibers. Almost every Olympic-level power athlete has a specific functional version of this gene.
• COMT Gene: This affects how the brain processes dopamine. Some variants help people stay calm under extreme pressure (the “warrior” vs. “worrier” genotypes), which is a massive component of competitive talent.
3. The “Gene-Environment Interaction” This is the most crucial part: Genes are not a blueprint; they are a potential.
A person might have the genetic predisposition for incredible spatial reasoning (a “talent” for architecture or chess), but if they never see a chessboard or a drafting table, that talent remains dormant. This is known as epigenetics, where the environment essentially “flips the switch” on certain genes.
Gabriela Marie Milton, Founder and Editor-in-Chief.
