LETTER FROM THE EDITOR: Camus Clowns Around, and Sartre sets the Stage: Ready to Rock.

By Aleksandr Karjaka
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Black Americana

From Issue 102 — Black Americana

That’s right, an Absurdist magazine.

Nothing new, and certainly not the first of its kind, except we at KARJAKA went full tilt and built an actual platform. Over the past 5+ years and 300 some pieces, we’ve randomly been emailing you posts of photos, stories, and curious info in gorgeous print layouts and non-mobile friendly interactions. Reminiscent of a Sisyphean journey up a mountain, to reconcile these issues with the market place, our investors, and you having so kindly pointed out these obvious facts, (yes, we heard you and thank you), we’ve built a mobile platform and thus inviting us to email you more regularly with articles et al, you’re welcome. AND, because our love of print has not died, unlike the world of print itself to some extent, we’ve moved to a quarterly print edition of which we of course would love you to purchase to help fund this little absurdist news experiment.

But KARJAKA, what’s so absurdist about this magazine and these articles, images and stories?

Well, dear reader, we’ll leave that up to you to decipher on your journey. But suffice it to say, in today’s world of content creation/curation and scrolling, doom or pleasurable alike etc, these longer form stories of art and life should, hopefully, be a small beacon of artistic absurdist contrast in today’s world of content nonsense. Now, whatever defines content and/vs art is beyond Sartre and us for that matter.

Ironically, this Edition features the anything but absurd painter Andrea Olivia.

Everyone has a story. No really, it’s true. If you’re alive, chances are you’ve done some things, and if you’re dead you’re probably not reading this. As most artists do, Drea has lived a few lives, but I knew none of them when I stumbled upon her art at the New York Academy of Art. On my way to the brilliant Paola Yamel Lima’s studio at the Academy, I happened upon Drea’s studio and became transfixed on her portraits. I stopped dead in my tracks. I had to know more of Drea. The rest, as they say, was history. There’s pure magic in who she is and what she paints, and so our narrative began with intrigue of the art only to turn into admiration of the whole. Her story is a must read as our feature this month.

Peruse the stacks of KARJAKA at your own peril, and let us know what you think. Many thanks and on to the absurdity…

Aleksandr Karjaka
Aleksandr Karjakahttp://karjaka.com
Aleksandr Karjaka came to New York for the music, but stayed for the visuals. As a classically trained musician, he’s had the honor of performing with some of the greatest musicians, and artistic houses, in the world. Often quoted as "Listening through his eyes." he's photographed the lives and stories of thousands of artists of all fields over the years. Here are their KARJAKA portraits.

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Do it for You – Evan Runyon

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COVER STORY

The Best of 2025

Aleksandr Karjaka -
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the holidays. Pun intended of course. Gift giving, family drama, all the drinking. And, what to make of the New Year? What will 2026 bring? Meanwhile I’m still holding on to the last bits of this magical year. Great highs, some truly awful lows, and in the midst of it all, the gorgeous souls and things we’ve been able to capture and more.  For years my team has reminded me to look back on what we’ve done & accomplished, what art we’ve made year over year, and honestly we should be doing more of that on a monthly basis, but I digress. And also not to forget, what we could improve for the new year.
Letter from the Editor

The Gambler

Aleksandr Karjaka -
No this isn't a Cliff Notes version of Dostoyevsky's masterpiece. But the man did get it right. We're all gamblers at the slot machine of life. For some it's a career or business, maybe it's your family and children, personally it maybe that New Year's resolution. The list goes on and on and for us hustlers and artists it out there, we're gambling on ourselves to the point where we can't leave the slot machine. We've put it all on red at the roulette wheel of life and we're waiting for 7 to show up on the craps table. Hardest Part of the Game, Staying in the Game.

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Karjaka Magazine

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Aleksandr Karjaka
Aleksandr Karjaka
Aleksandr Karjaka came to New York for the music, but stayed for the visuals. As a classically trained musician, he’s had the honor of performing with some of the greatest musicians, and artistic houses, in the world. Often quoted as "Listening through his eyes." he's photographed the lives and stories of thousands of artists of all fields over the years. Here are their KARJAKA portraits.

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Get together and enjoy the artists of KARJAKA! You never know what you're going to get with the KARJAKA crew, but one thing's for sure, it won't be boring. Stay in the loop with us in weekly emails and mischievous musings from the characters and crew.