GROTTO CLASSES RETURN! MARK YOUR CALENDAR TO MEET THE TEACHERS ON THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4
The very popular Grotto classes are returning! Beginning the week of January 12, 2009, we'll be offering weekly evening classes, as well as weekend workshops. Classes will cover every genre from fiction to non, muck-raking to memoir. Visit the Classes page of the Grotto website at http://www.sfgrotto.org/classes.html for more information and to register. (These classes always fill early.) And remember, a Grotto class makes a fabulous holiday present!
Also, save the date. Thursday, December 4, 2008, will be Meet the Teachers Night. Come by the Grotto, have a glass of wine, and find out more about our classes. Instructors will be on hand to talk about their classes and answer questions. 6:30 pm until 7:30 pm at the Grotto.
DON’T MISS STEVE AT WRITERS WITH DRINKS THIS SATURDAY AT THE MAKEOUT ROOM
Stephen Elliott will be reading at Writers Wiith Drinks at The Makeout Room, 7:30pm, Saturday, November 8. The evening, “Writers In Drag: Writers read works they've written outside their normal genres!” features not only Steve, but Michelle Tea, Jaime Cortez, Halo Hopkinson, Austin Grossman, and Annalee Newitz. For more information, see http://www.writerswithdrinks.com/
JD’S “SECRETS” INSTALLATION AT THE GARAGE BIENNALE ON NOVEMBER 15
Grotto dweller JD Beltran’s video project, “Secrets” will be featured along with other film-based work in the one-night exhibition “Girls On Film” as part of the 2008 Garage Biennale. The exhibition and reception are on Saturday, November 15th, from 7 pm – 11 pm at the Garage Biennale, 2830 Pacific Avenue, San Francisco, CA. For details, call 415. 425.1647 or see http://garagebiennale.com/current.htm
Also, this weekend the Garage Biennale hosts a special fund-raising exhibition “Overlap In Green” for Greenmuseum.org on Saturday, from 7 – 9 pm. For details on looking at some cool artworks for a good cause, see http://www.greenmuseum.org/
RODES’ ELECTION DAY PIECE IN THE NEW YORKER – AND HIS NEW NOVEL GETS A STARRED REVIEW
Check out Grottoite Rodes Fishburne’s election day piece in the New Yorker online at
http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/tny/2008/11/bullwinkles-revenge.html
And further congratulations out to Rodes – his new novel “Going To See the Elephant” just got a starred review in the November 15th edition of Book List! Watch this space for an announcement on when it will be out in bookstores, or see http://rodesfishburne.com/
CHRIS WRITES IN THE NEW YORK TIMES ABOUT HIS LAST HURRAH
Grotto dweller Chris Colin writes in the New York Times this month about a last- hurrah trip to the Russian River, before he and his wife descend into parental hibernation.
Read the piece at http://travel.nytimes.com/2008/11/07/travel/escapes/07ritual.html
CHECK OUT STEPHANIE’S Q & A ON THE BOOK “THIN IS THE NEW HAPPY”
Look for Grottoite Stephanie Losee’s Q&A with her friend Val Frankel, author of the new book “Thin is the New Happy,” coming up at http://www.alternet.org
CHECK OUT THE CASITA LAURITA AS AN OASIS FOR FINISHING YOUR LATEST BOOK
Grotto dweller Laura Fraser has just finished building her writing retreat in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, and already written about 50,000 words there. If you need a retreat to finish your latest book, you can rent Casita Laurita. Check out the website here: web.me.com/phraze
CHRIS WILL BE OFFERING WEEKEND WORKSHOPS THIS SPRING
Grottoite Christopher Cook will be teaching a couple of weekend workshops this spring, one on investigative journalism, another on political writing and op-eds. check out his course descriptions on the grotto site. He's also teaching reporting at SF State, and speaking at Brown University Nov. 13. Check out his recent feature in the Bay Guardian titled Just Food Nation: http://www.sfbg.com/entry.php?entry_id=7342&catid=&volume_id=398&issue_id=402&volume_num=43&issue_num=04
CHECK OUT THE PICTURES FROM THIS YEAR'S LITQUAKE EVENT
Yes, there are some great pictures of the Litquake Grotto Nights and Litcrawl events, plus some priceless shots of steamy, celebratory dancing at the post-party. Check them out on the Grotto's website at http://sfgrotto.org
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JD’S ART PICKS FOR NOVEMBER
THE ART OF PARTICIPATION AT THE SF MOMA:
Looking back nearly 60 years across a wide spectrum of genres and media, this engaging and compelling exhibition curated by Rudolph Freiling examines how artists have engaged members of the public as essential collaborators in the art-making process. On view are works by more than 40 artists, from early performance and conceptual pieces to contemporary sculpture and web-based projects. Encompassing restagings of historic installations as well as new commissions that invite your direct participation, the exhibition reveals how artists pioneered many of the collaborative tactics now associated with the Web 2.0 zeitgeist. The presentation will change in form and content as you and other visitors contribute — either at the museum or online.
For more information, see http://sfmoma.org/exhibitions/306
MAYA LIN’S SYSTEMATIC LANDSCAPES AT THE DE YOUNG
Maya Lin: Systematic Landscapes is a major exhibition of new sculptures, drawings, and installations by renowned artist Maya Lin. In 1981, Lin's Vietnam Veterans Memorial dramatically changed the language and form of commemorative sculpture by infusing minimalist design with the emotional charge of memory. Her subsequent work, whether monument, sculpture, design object, or building is equally characterized by its harmony of message and material. In recent years, Lin has focused on a reconsideration of landscape in a time of ecological tension and change. This new body of work engages the issue of our fragile connection to the environment in timely and poetic ways.
For more information, see
http://www.famsf.org/deyoung/exhibitions/exhibition.asp?exhibitionkey=936
A PLACE CALLED POETRY AT THE SAN FRANCISCO ART COMMISSION GALLERY:
What happens when poetry comes into your life? Can words make a difference? Meet 11 San Francisco youth who’ve embarked on a lifelong journey with words. This exhibition of art and films tell the stories of young people finding and claiming their place.
In celebration of its 15th anniversary, WritersCorps, a project of the San Francisco Arts Commission, presents This Place Called Poetry. Multimedia artist Katharine Gin and sound artist Kjell Nordeson lead this comprehensive installation along with 11 young writers who developed their poetic voices in the WritersCorps program.
For the past year, Gin and Nordeson worked with these 11 writers to create a bold collection of short film and audio portraits. These portraits introduce visitors to an eclectic group of San Francisco poets, diverse in their artistic visions and life experiences, but connected by their love of poetry and their belief in art’s transformative ability.
The opening is on September November 13th, from 5:30 – 7:30 pm.. For more information, see http://www.sfacgallery.org/exhibitions_detail.fsp?id=431702
BAY AREA NOW AND THE GATHERERS AT THE YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS:
“Bay Area Now,” YBCA’s fifth triennial exhibition of Bay Area art explores questions around how to re-imagine a regional survey in the midst of globalization. What continues to draw artists here and makes the Bay Area a unique place to live and work when more and more of us are traversing the globe and becoming international citizens? How does the physical geography of the Bay, both natural and constructed, influence the Bay Area as a site of artistic production? How does the history of this region, including its legacy of social activism, shape Bay Area residents’ understanding of themselves and the rest of the world’s notion of this place? What are the contrasts between the myths, ideals and realities of the Bay Area and the aspirations of its residents? The Bay Area Now 5 (BAN 5) survey exhibition asks these questions to explore the many ways artists are influenced by their experiences both inside and outside of the Bay Area.
This year’s exhibition features a signature group survey of Bay Area artists organized by YBCA curators Kate Eilertsen and Berin Golonu. Twenty-two BAN 5 artists were selected after extensive studio visits throughout the Bay Area. [Artists in the exhibition include JD’s former students Ana Teresa Fernandez and Lauren Woods, and one of her mentors, John Roloff. JD’s work was exhibited in BAN 2.]
THE GATHERERS is an exhibition that brings together a diverse group of practitioners who combine art with cultural activism to explore questions of how we ensure sustainability for our growing urban populations. Since our relationship with nature varies so much from one culture or locale to the next, The Gatherers provides an opportunity to explore not only the differences, but also the similarities, of their attempts to green our urban spaces. In doing so, it touches upon a broad range of interlinking matters, from environmental issues to urban spatial justice, through interactive programs, urban interventions and public dialogue.
BAY AREA NOW 5 runs until November 16, 2008, and THE GATHERERS runs through January 11, 2009. For more information, see http://www.ybca.org
