Dar viața ta? de Doria Șișu ▲▲▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.107, 7/2026 ▲▲▲ Noi mai credem încă în cultură! Abstract: In the excerpt from "7 ani", titled "Dar viața ta?" and authored by Doria Șișu, the text delivers an intense, deeply introspective monologue on existential solitude, maternal love, and the heavy burdens of memory. Framed through a poignant dialogue with an unseen interlocutor, the narrative explores a life viewed as accidental and uncelebrated, haunted by the realization of lost time and the painful weight of self-reckoning. The excerpt captures a raw emotional reckoning with regret, focusing on an unconditional, all-consuming love for a daughter and a partner—the two beings for whom the narrator would sacrifice everything. Through lyrical vulnerability and poignant imagery of longing, the text reflects on the inevitability of mortality, the desire to transcend physical absence to remain a comforting presence like rain or wind, and the quiet exhaustion of a soul coming to terms with its own deeply felt destiny.
Arta de a opri timpul într-o lume care se grăbește să dispară, de Eugen Matzota ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.106, 06/2026 ▲
Arta de a opri timpul într-o lume care se grăbește să dispară, de Eugen Matzota ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.106, 06/2026 ▲ Noi încă mai credem în cultură! Abstract: The Architecture of Resistance – A Manifesto for the 106th Issue of ALTCULTURE Magazine In this editorial, the author addresses a critical turning point for ALTCULTURE Magazine as it marks its 106th issue. Reflecting on nine years of intellectual pursuit, the piece serves as both a reflection on the state of contemporary society and a bold announcement regarding the publication's future strategy. The editorial explores the following core themes: • The Erosion of Depth: A sharp critique of how the "sacred intervals" of human reflection—patience, silence, and memory—are being sacrificed to the brutal speed of digital consumption and the "white noise" of screens. • The Sociological Diagnosis: A poignant observation on the transformation of the Romanian public from a collective with a cultural consciousness into a passive population, leading to the difficult decision to cease publishing dense literary works and essays exclusively for the domestic market. • The Language of Resistance: The author clarifies that while the medium of distribution is changing, the Romanian language remains the fundamental instrument of thought and the heart of the magazine. • The Act of "Building": The magazine is framed not as a nostalgic endeavor, but as an act of moral resistance. By standing against the tide of efficiency-obsessed digital culture, ALTCULTURE continues its mission to provide a space for the "slow time" where true human connection—and true culture—can still exist. The text serves as a manifesto for those who still value the sanctity of the "interval" and confirms the magazine's commitment to continue its journey wherever the spirit has room to manifest, beyond the confines of a stagnant digital wasteland.
dacă e să subliniem iubirea, de Doria Șișu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.106, 6/2026 ▲
dacă e să subliniem iubirea, de Doria Șișu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.106, 6/2026 ▲ Noi mai credem încă în cultură! Abstract: The Subversive Architecture of the Everyday – A Reading of Doria Șișu’s Poetry In this poem featured in issue 106 of ALTCULTURE Magazine, Doria Șișu proposes a radical reconfiguration of the great human themes—love, war, death, and longing—through an aesthetic of the "red marker" and playful subversion. The author does not question these concepts from a distance; instead, she intervenes directly in their mechanics, proposing a "therapy of the absurd" as a form of resistance. The poem functions as a manifesto against the gravity with which we are accustomed to viewing tragedy: - Love becomes a matter of public signaling, a necessity that must be displayed "strategically on highways." - War and violence are countered with an armor of harmlessness ("gingerbread," "lollipops"), a strategy of "brainwashing" with gentleness that exposes, by contrast, the cruelty of reality. - Death is met not with resignation, but with the playful defiance of one who understands that life, being "free of charge," is a gift worth capturing in a "photo of us laughing." The poem's ending, marked by a liberating forgetting, functions as a philosophical conclusion: true freedom does not reside in preserving pain or the past, but in the capacity to erase the traces of everything that constrains us. Doria Șișu transforms the page of poetry into a workspace where, with a red marker, the reader is invited to rewrite the priorities of an existence often stifled by convention.
Arhitectura Verticalității în Era „Conținutului”, de Eugen Matzota ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲
Arhitectura Verticalității în Era „Conținutului”, de Eugen Matzota ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 05/2026 ▲ Noi încă mai credem în cultură! Editorial: The Architecture of Verticality in the Age of "Content" "DO NOT LET THE WORLD DESIGN YOU – BUILD YOURSELF!" ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE No. 105, 05/2026 Abstract: In this issue’s editorial, the focus shifts from the mere responsibility of building within a chaotic world to an explicit declaration of war against the superficiality of the digital age. The text diagnoses a tragic confusion in contemporary society: mistaking the easy access to information for the mastery of knowledge. By critiquing the current educational and cultural landscape—which favors "surface competencies," algorithmic popularity, and hollow "engagement" over depth and character—the author calls for a return to the "pedagogy of effort." To counter the disintegration of values, the editorial proposes four radical gestures of resistance: the recovery of slow time, the embrace of rigorous discipline, the rejection of egalitarianism in favor of an authentic hierarchy of values, and the necessity of creative isolation. ALTCULTURE 105 stands not as a vessel for "content," but as a manifesto for those who refuse to be mere dust in the wind of algorithms. It is an urgent invitation to every reader to stop seeking shortcuts, to reclaim the right to think clearly, and to assume their duty as the Architects of their own destiny.
Sala de așteptare, de Viorel Ploeșteanu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 5/2026 ▲
Sala de așteptare, de Viorel Ploeșteanu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105 5/2025 ▲ Noi mai credem încă în cultură! The Waiting Room by Viorel Ploeșteanu Abstract: In this poignant narrative, Viorel Ploeșteanu masterfully delineates the slow erosion of a life through the story of Evelina, an octogenarian living in the heart of Bucharest. Her existence is inextricably bound to the physical landmarks of her past—the decaying apartment on C.A. Rosetti Street and a towering plane tree planted in her childhood. As she faces the isolation of a post-communist society where neighbors are strangers and her family has long since emigrated to the United States, the tree stands as her final companion and silent witness. The sudden destruction of this living monument serves as the ultimate catalyst for Evelina’s detachment from the world she once knew. The Waiting Room is a melancholic meditation on the fragility of memory, the pain of abandonment, and the quiet dignity with which the elderly confront their own obsolescence. It is a powerful portrait of a soul realizing that her entire history has been reduced to "sawdust swept away by strangers," leading to an inevitable, resigned surrender to the final sanctuary.
în lanțuri, de Doria Șișu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 5/2026 ▲
în lanțuri, de Doria Șișu ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.105, 5/2026 ▲ Noi mai credem încă în cultură! In Chains by Doria Șișu Abstract: In this poignant lyrical reflection, Doria Șișu explores the existential weight of living within a society defined by artifice and spiritual erosion. The poem serves as a meditation on the paralyzing nature of conformity—a "chain of grins"—where authentic human connection is sacrificed to superficiality. Through evocative imagery of waiting—words and love standing in line, waiting for the "falling of the chain"—the poet depicts the internal struggle to remain human in an increasingly hollow world. The central figure of the woman, rooted in "clay and soul," becomes a symbol of endurance, transforming years of suffering into a grounded, wingless angel. Ultimately, the work posits that true rebellion lies not in destruction, but in the radical act of forgiveness—a virtue that restores the broken human being and validates the struggle for transcendence against the constraints of a dehumanizing reality.
Arhitectul de pe Marginea Abisului, de Eugen Matzota ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.104, 04/2026 ▲
Arhitectul de pe Marginea Abisului, de Eugen Matzota ▲ ALTCULTURE MAGAZINE Nr.104, 04/2026 ▲ Noi încă mai credem în cultură! Abstract: In the 104th issue of ALTCULTURE, Eugen Matzota moves beyond the critique of digital chaos to address the imperative of construction. Having navigated the "Great Sifting"—a process of stripping away the superficial noise of the digital age—the editorial posits that true substance resides solely in one’s character. Reflecting on a life spent balancing the weight of history with the pursuit of an "Inner Temple," Matzota discusses his role not as a self-appointed mentor, but as a lantern-bearer in an era of systemic disintegration. The text serves as a manifesto for the "Architect": a call to move beyond the illusion of effortless creation, urging readers to reclaim the precision of thought and the rigor of craft. In an age of "Copy-Paste" conformity, ALTCULTURE 104 stands as a testament to continuity and verticality, inviting those in search of a compass to join a workshop where the digital tool is forced to serve the Truth.