ART Spell

On Dolly Parton and My Personal Journey Through Documenting the HIV/AIDS Pandemic

The passing of Dolly Parton took me down memory lane. First, it reminded me of an encounter I once had with the singer-songwriter. Many, many years ago, I was visiting Dollywood when, out of the blue, a carriage appeared with Dolly Parton and Burt Reynolds. It was one of those brief, don’t-blink-’cause-you’re-gonna-miss-it encounters. Second, it was Dolly Parton’s picture on the cover of an HIV and AIDS magazine that made me pick up that publication and start documenting the pandemic.

Here’s a snippet of the beginning of my journey through documenting the HIV and AIDS pandemic as published in the now-defunct A&U Magazine:

Alina Oswald

Founder of ART Spell Magazine