Russell J. Archives - Page 4 of 12 - Evanston Public Library

Poetry 365

February 28, 2014

This month for Poetry 365 we’re featuring Alex Lemon’s stellar new volume The Wish Book. Tightly coiled, kaleidoscopic, and full of heart, this fourth collection from the author of Happy blends “the energy of a carnival barker with the precise prosody of a master craftsman.” Favorably compared to the work of Lucia Perillo and Laura Kasischke, these 43 dazzling poems have been praised by Bob Hicok for “showing us what we have and how briefly we have it.” So don’t miss this terrific new book, sample a poem below, and make sure to stop back next month for Poetry 365.

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An Interview with Huey Copeland

February 27, 2014

Dr. Huey Copeland is an Associate Professor of Art History at Northwestern University and the author of Bound to Appear: Art, Slavery, and the Site of Blackness in Multicultural America, published just last year by the University of Chicago Press. On Thursday, March 6th, he will discuss his new book project In the Arms of the Negress: A Brief History of Modern Artistic Practice when he visits EPL’s 1st Floor Community Meeting Room at 7 p.m. as part of the Evanston Northwestern Humanities Lecture Series. While exploring a transnational history of modern contemporary art, Dr. Copeland’s lecture will examine how the figure of the “negress” has influenced the way black women are represented in the visual arts as well as the way they represent themselves. In anticipation of his visit, we recently spoke with him via email about the origins of the term “negress,” the Art Workers’ Coalition vs. MoMA, his forthcoming book, and the pioneering black women artists you should know.

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An Interview with Janet Trierweiler & Matthew Schaefer

February 14, 2014

Janet Trierweiler and Matthew Schaefer are Evanston painters and the latest artists to be featured in our ongoing exhibition series Local Art @ EPL. Their show – titled We do not need to leave the Earth – is currently on display on the 2nd floor of EPL’s Main Library where you can catch it through the end of February. Working collaboratively as Calaj, their deluted oil paintings on linked canvases strive to create a viewing experience “of refreshing vulnerability and psychic relaxation.” You can learn more about Ms. Trierweiler’s and Mr. Schaefer’s Calaj paintings by visiting their website, and you can meet the artists themselves at a closing reception on Wednesday, February 26th at 7 pm. We recently spoke with Ms. Trierweiler and Mr. Schaefer via email about their artistic origins, creative rituals, and philosophical interests.

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An Interview with Kyle Van Heck

January 30, 2014

kyle Kyle Van Heck is a Chicagoland collage artist who is currently featured in our ongoing exhibition series Local Art @ EPL. Using oils, spray paint, old books, electrical wire, children’s toys, and old newspaper culled from EPL’s recycling bin, Van Heck creates stunning collages that shape “small pieces of pop culture” into unified works with something to say. Ten of his thought-provoking collages will be on display on the 2nd floor of EPL’s Main Library through the end of January, and after that, you can see more of his work by visiting his website. We recently spoke with Mr. Van Heck via email about his artistic origins, “collage with a dark side,” public art, and Chicagoland’s DIY attitude.
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Poetry 365

December 28, 2013

: Poet Diane Raptosh

This month for Poetry 365 we’re highlighting Diane Raptosh’s remarkable new volume American Amnesiac. Longlisted for the 2013 National Book Award, this fourth collection from the Boise Poet Laureate follows “the manic journey of a man stripped of memory” and forced to “confront the complexities of being American in an age of corruption, corporations, and global conflict.” Mixing confession and prophesy, history and myth, these 65 haunting poems cast a linguistic spell that “compels and rewards slow reading.” So check out this riveting new book, enjoying the opening poem below, and make sure to stop back next month for Poetry 365.

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An Interview with Manvee Vaid

December 13, 2013

Manvee - Dancers

Manvee Vaid is a Chicagoland artist and the curator of the newest exhibit in our ongoing Local Art @ EPL series. Comprised of over three dozen stunning samples of contemporary Indian folk art, her exhibit features works from the Madhubani, Gond, Warli, and Bengal regions of India done in acrylics, ink, vegetable colors, red mud, charcoal, and gouache. You can catch her show on the 2nd floor of EPL’s Main Library throughout December, and you can preview additional works by visiting her online gallery Deccan Footprints. What’s more, you can meet Ms. Vaid in person on Saturday, December 14th at 4 p.m. when she visits our Community Meeting Room to discuss the creative processes behind various exhibited pieces. In anticipation of her visit, we recently spoke with Ms. Vaid via email about her artistic origins and inspirations, the distinct regional styles of Indian folk art, and her upcoming collaboration with Now Art India.

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An Interview with Marc Perlish

November 27, 2013

perlish

Marc Perlish is an Evanston photographer and the latest artist to be featured in our ongoing exhibition series Local Art @ EPL. His striking new collection is currently on display on the 2nd floor of EPL’s Main Library where it pays “poetic homage to Bookman’s Alley and the bookstore’s imaginative creator Roger Carlson.” You can catch his Bookman’s Alley series through the end of November, and after that, you can learn more about Mr. Perlish’s work by visiting his website. We recently spoke with Mr. Perlish via email about the magic of Bookman’s Alley, his creative process, and his future artistic projects.

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Poetry 365

November 23, 2013

This month for Poetry 365 we’re featuring Jaswinder Bolina’s accomplished new volume Phantom Camera. Winner of the 2012 Green Rose Prize, the Lesley University professor’s second collection nimbly navigates readers through the chaos of contemporary life in 37 poems PW called “sophisticated but eminently embraceable, a tip-off of what’s to come.” So check out this fresh new voice, sample a poem below, and make sure to stop back next month for Poetry 365.

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Talking "Compulsion" with the Next Theatre Company

November 9, 2013

compulsion Evanston’s very own Next Theatre Company isn’t afraid to challenge its audience. For nearly 35 years the company has remained committed to producing “socially provocative, artistically adventurous work,” and this season’s staging of Rinne Groff’s Compulsion stays true to that mission. Based on the true story of Meyer Levin and his obsession with Anne Frank’s diary, the complex tale explores the fictional Sid Silver’s passionate fixation on Anne’s story as he attempts to honor her legacy. You can catch Compulsion through November 17th at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center, and EPL cardholders can purchase 2-for-1 tickets using the promotional code FRANK. We recently spoke via email with Next’s artistic director Jenny Avery about Compulsion’s critical reception, the history behind the play, puppetry, and the company’s future plans.

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An Interview with Dr. Michelle M. Wright

October 5, 2013

michelle wright Dr. Michelle M. Wright is an Associate Professor of African American Studies at Northwestern University and the author of the forthcoming book The Physics of Blackness: Rethinking the African Diaspora in the Postwar Era. On Tuesday, October 8th, she will discuss her new book and related topics when she visits EPL’s 1st Floor Community Meeting Room at 7 p.m. as part of the Evanston Northwestern Humanities Lecture Series. Titled “Blackness When You Least Expect It: Understanding Racial Diversity in the 21st Century,” Dr. Wright’s lecture will center on what it means to be “Black” and how Sir Isaac Newton’s laws of motion and gravity influence our modern understanding of race. In anticipation of her visit, we recently spoke with her via email about the practical problems of undefined “Blackness”, the Middle Passage, Newton, identity as performance, and equality amidst diversity.

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