FROM THE CREATORS
Letters from the Executive Board
Brandon Silva
President
Attention Class,
RECESS ‘26 is in session. I hope you all study this issue well, there will be a quiz on it later. It’s open notes, so be sure to note the effort and love that went into this entire project. From the creatives, to the models who pushed themselves out of their comfort zones, to those behind the camera who gave it their all. It takes a village to do a shoot, let alone a full issue.
This is my last issue as, not only the Routure class president, but also a Rutgers student. I joined Routure in my first year, and it was one of the greatest honors of my college career to not only see it grow, but also help push it to its full potential. I joined when I felt like I had no creative outlet, I felt voiceless and aimless. I owe Routure a lot. It has pushed me past my comfort zone, allowed me to collaborate with so many on such different projects, and, most importantly, has had me meet some of the nicest people I’ve ever had the privilege of crossing paths with. There is so much talent in this school. Photographers have blown my mind and made me jump for joy over the perfect photo. Set designs that have shattered my perception of reality. Models that have gone through Routure that I just know I will be seeing on billboards in the future. Most importantly, good people whom I’ve had the privilege of knowing who will go on to do the greatest things in this world.
Routure has done so much, projects that I reference and see other people reference to this day.
Where else can you get high quality main issues, to a Severance inspired shoot shot at the location of the show, to projects like Sinners that miraculously, somehow, against all odds, were pulled off. These shoots I’ve had the honor of seeing and being part of will always stay with me. Not only as works of art, but also as core memories. It’s the funnest and most fulfilling experience ever to be on set for a shoot. To see the gears turning, to see a collective group of people create something greater than the sum of its parts. I couldn’t be prouder of this club; for me, it is everything. Thank you to the team who made it all happen. I hope everyone looks back at this time of their life and says, "Well, damn. We did that’’. We transcended the limits of being a school club. Against all odds, we made art that rivals what the industry is putting out. I know this club is in good hands. I am so grateful there are people out there who live and breathe Routure. It isn’t just a magazine. It’s everything.
A person I really respect the other day told me how beautiful Routure has become, and to never stop creating.
I want to end my time at Routure with this: remember you have value. You are a star. Get out there and create, the world needs you and your art. Change for nobody. Make the things only you can make. Now and always,
Routure Forever.
Class Dismissed.
Elijah Allen
Creative Director
This semester’s issue of Routure, RECESS, explores what it means to exist in the middle of societal mistakes, including hatred, bigotry, and propaganda, while reflecting on what it was like to grow up in the early 2000s dreaming of a world where we are free, included, and truly seen. As we’ve gotten older, those dreams begin to unravel and reveal themselves as illusions sustained by only a few, as James Baldwin suggests.
“Love was never a popular movement… the world is held together it really is held together by the love and passion of very few people.”
We were not led by love, but by greed and control. RECESS reflects on what it meant to grow up within that reality, and what it means now to reclaim our freedom and our joy while making sense of the damage left behind. We inherit a world still being shaped by forces that resist love, connection, and peace. Through Routure, we explore this tension through an editorial lens, returning to our inner child, reclaiming what was ours, and choosing to move forward with love and passion at the center.
Bebe Smith
Creative Director
In creating the concepts for RECESS with Elijah, I looked back to my own childhood. What do I remember most fondly? What aspects of growing up best encapsulate what it is to be a kid? I think growing up is dirty, colorful, frightening, and fantastical.
When we were planning this issue, I did not expect the process of its creation to be as therapeutic as it was. The magazine’s title, RECESS, truly encapsulates the energy consistently brought to set. As per usual, my favorite part of shooting was working with our incredible teams of models, photographers, and directors. Shoot days were full of playing and engaging in creativity that some of us haven’t tapped into in years. We played dress up, bickered like siblings, and made messes our parents would likely have never approved of.
I had the pleasure of watching everyone involved in the magazine let go of the seriousness of everyday life, working together to create art. I find that creating space and time for these creative avenues is increasingly important in these present times of personal and global stress.
As I wrap up my time working with Routure, I’m proud to claim RECESS as my own offspring. With the help of everyone in this magazine, Elijah and my ideas were raised from mere concepts to these actualized pages. Sincerest thank yous to everyone who had a hand in this mag—nothing would get done without the passions and efforts of our peers!
I hope you get a sense of the childlike joy that went into this issue as you check out RECESS ‘26!
Love you, bye!
