LETTER FROM THE EDITORS

What does it mean to decompose? To break down, to distill, to  …

At decomposure magazine, we’re interested in the essence and essentiality of all things. In the beauty that comes from slowing down, looking a little closer, from peeling back an extra layer of understanding. 

Society spends a lot of time online these days generating: creating content, composing a photograph, writing a caption. We devote considerable effort and energy to building digital personas, brands, and ideas. There's a pervasive sense that everything and everyone online has to be perfectly composed all the time. Say the wrong thing and you might get canceled. Pose poorly in your photo and trolls will call you fat. 

At decomposure, we’re pushing back against this narrative. We want you to slow down, to ask questions, to spend a few hours “rotting” on the couch while you peruse our pages. 

There’s so much in life to be decomposed. Take apart the disparate components of an album cover or a set list; explore the inner workings and minuscule pieces of a film camera; figure out how recycling works and why it matters. Over all of our issues, we’ll explore a variety of different topics by breaking them down. What new ideas and realizations can be found in destruction? What do disparate parts allow us to see and understand that the whole might obscure? Which came first - the forest or trees? The seed or the stalk? 

For this first issue, we’re sticking to the most original, natural form of decomposure; organic decay. We’re bringing to light the incredibly hard work that some of our smallest creatures and organisms do every minute – every second– to keep our world moving forward. Without these microscopic beings and processes the world as we know it would not exist. Life starts from the bottom up.  

So here’s to the mold, the mushrooms, and the messy work of new beginnings. We’re right there with you.