PCA Blog

The Virginia Arts of the Book Center (VABC) hosts an exhibit titled The Circular Ruins in its Art on Ivy Gallery. The exhibit was installed by VABC gallery curator Dean Dass.

Based on a short story from 1942 by Jorge Luis Borges, The Circular Ruins is the sixth annual publication from The Printmakers Left, and that group’s first bound publication. The present exhibition includes unbound excerpts, working proofs, alternative endings, out-takes and debris.

The Printmakers Left is the name of a loose collection of artists born in the University of Virginia printmaking studios and continuing as a creative collaborative for the past decade. Other works by the group have included The Labyrinth, and The End of Language.

Over the past year these artists set themselves a new challenge: an examination of Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges’ short story in which the circle figures prominently, The Circular Ruins. The Circular Ruins was a project of some eighteen months, and has resulted in a bound volume of prints, poems and prose of about 200 pages. The work on this project was collaborative in that on many pages two, three or more participants have worked together. Many diverse printing technologies were employed, including etching, lithography, letterpress, screen-printing, and inkjet. These media are layered throughout the leaves of the book, and constitute a veritable history of means and expression. Yet this constructed history of collaboration provides only one approach to the many layers of allegory in Borges’ story The Circular Ruins. For in the end of the story, Borges’ protagonist, who would dream into existence another human, discovers that he himself is already but the dream of another.

Participants included: Adam Wolpa, Akemi Ohira Rollando, Alan Harmon, Anne Beck, Bogdan Achimescu, Chris Pace, Chris Thomas, David Bendernagel, David Swan, Dean Dass, Debra Fabrizzi, Eleanor Hanson, Elizabeth Stark, John Leahy, Justin Quinn, Ken Wood, Lisa Russ Spaar, Maggie Booth, Robert Glasgow, Roland Lusk, Sanghee Yoo, Sarah Marshall, and Thomas Doran.

There will be a live reading of The Circular Ruins and a gallery talk on Thursday, May 17, at 6:00pm. Jorge Luis Borges’s story will be read by storyteller Browning Porter and a discussion with curator Dean Dass will follow. Light refreshments will be served. Please bring a circular snack to share!

The Garage, an unusual music venue and art gallery next to Lee Park one block off the Downtown Mall (it is literally a one-car garage), has a packed calendar of events for May.

If you are a newbie to attending events hosted by The Garage, audience members typically sit on the hill facing the venue and toss a donation in a jar to support the performing musicians.

While the door is rolled up, wander inside The Garage to check out the current art exhibit on display: “A Visual Exploration of Texture, Tone, and Form” by Pia Donovan and Chad Van Pelt. The exhibit features paintings with vivid colors and lots of texture. The artists’ goal is to challenge the viewer to consider the foundations of painting with new eyes. Read on for the full schedule of concerts. Continue reading →

“The best way to start writing is to start writing.” We saw that quote somewhere recently and it resonated. If you feel similarly, check out these upcoming events at WriterHouse.

Next Friday, May 18th, WriterHouse is hosting a FREE event: a talk called “Learning How to Laugh” with Jim Minick, the author of The Blueberry Years, (which was called “delicious reading” by none other than Naomi Wolf). Mr. Minick will discuss what he learned about writing humor while toiling away in the field. He will read excerpts from this memoir about one of the first, certified-organic, pick-your-own blueberry farms in the mid-Atlantic. Now that sounds like summer-appropriate literary event.

The day after that, you can opt to attend a workshop titled “Polishing your Prose by Minding Metaphor and Tending Time” led by Mr. Minick from 9:00am to 1:00pm. The cost is $55 for WriterHouse Members and $60.00 for Non-Members. Here’s what you can expect: “In every genre, metaphors sweeten the writing, making an ordinary scoop of a sentence into a deluxe banana split. How do you play with language to find original metaphors and see the world anew? We’ll tackle this question in hopes of finding metaphors wherever we look. Likewise, how do writers ride that horse called time and manipulate it without losing control? The diverse ways prose writers play with time, from the micro-level to the macro, will be explored in this workshop.”

If you have an aspiring writer who happens to be in grades 5 through 8, you can send them to “Stories that Fly,” a summer writing camp. Classes for youth in grades 5 and 6 will happen during the week of June 18th and classes for youth in grades 7 and 8 will happen during the week of June 25th. Scholarships are available for students from low-income families. Full details and enrollment information, please click here.

Finally, have you ever heard those personal commentaries on NPR stations and wonder how it’s done? In “The Art of the Radio Essay,” a workshop led by Janis Jaquith, you can learn the techniques of this performance art. At least two students from the winter-version of this class have already had their essays aired on the radio! The cost is $55 for WriterHouse Members and $60 for Non-Members. The workshop takes place on Saturday, June 23rd from 9:00am to 1:00pm.

Now you have no excuses left – get to writing!

Local bike collector and enthusiast, Ken Margolius, is exhibiting some of his more artful bikes during the month of May. The beautiful vintage bikes will come from all parts of the world, including England, Sweden, Denmark, The Netherlands, and the good ol’ U S of A.

While most of the bikes will be cleanly displayed on the gallery walls, a few will be showcased on the floor for handling and possible riding. Come learn about these fantastic bikes ranging from English 3-speeds, American Flyers, and some very rare Work Bikes.

There will be an opening reception on Friday, May 11th from 5:00pm until dark with food from The Farm and libations from Brother Beerworks.

There will also be an exhibit discussion with Mr. Margolius on Wednesday, May 23rd from 6:00-8:00pm. These events are FREE and open to the public.

For more information, please visit The Bridge PAI’s website.