February 27, 2020
The legendary Elliott Bay Bookstore in Seattle – in conjunction with Conjunctions Magazine – will host a reading featuring my new work and new texts by Rae Armantrout on 13 April, 2020. Conjunctions has been a longtime home for my hybrid works from various books and books-in-progress…this reading will feature selections including FOSSOYEUR/GRAVEDIGGER from THE BLUE AT THE BASE OF THE FLAME, a ten-year, multi-continent project supported by Creative Capital, the Center for Cultural Innovation, the Pollock Krasner Foundation, Yaddo, the Puffin Foundation, Artists’ Resource for Completion, the Durfee Foundation, Catalysis Projects (Los Angeles), the Center for Jewish History (New York City).
THE BLUE AT THE BASE OF THE FLAME has been supported by residencies and fellowships at Yaddo, Millay Colony, Djerassi, and include the Oberpfalzer Kunstlerhaus (Germany), Ebenboeckhaus (Germany), Haut de Fee Centre in Serecourt (France), Ragdale (USA), Ucross (USA), Can Serrat (Spain).
Supporting publications for THE BLUE AT THE BASE OF THE FLAME include the Kenyon Review, New American Writing, Denver Quarterly, Drunken Boat, and others. Exhibitions include Berlin Jewish Museum, the Jewish Museum Munich, LA MOCA, The Museum of Modern Art (Ceret, France), Yeshiva University Museum (New York City), the Museum of Jurassic Technology (Los Angeles), Deborah Martin Gallery (Los Angeles), 610 Isis (Los Angeles), and Terrell Moore Gallery (Los Angeles). Performances include The Museum of Modern Art (Ceret, France), Monkspace (Los Angeles), Atelier de le Main d’Or (Paris), Center Theater (Philadelphia), Yeshiva University Museum (New York City), Kebbel Villa (Germany).
EXCERPT FROM FOSSOYEUR/GRAVEDIGGER
In this village, bones are found in every soup, and who ever stops to question the source of stock. He eats cherry pie, but there is no sweet of fruit in it. It tastes instead of afterbirth.
Les os apparaissent dans toutes les soupes du village et qui donc s’interroge sur l’origine du bouillon? Il mange la tarte aux cerises mais il n’y a aucun fruit doux dedans ; le goût est plutôt celui de placenta.
At night, the bats hunt in the roof beams above the gravedigger’s lonely bed. The bats hunt the crystalline lacewing flies, severing away the meaty thorax with a slice that frees the wings, which float down softly through the air.
La nuit, les chauves-souris chassent entre les poutres pardessus le lit isolé du fossoyeur. Les chauves-souris chassent les mouches aux ailles dentelles cristallines. Les thorax tranchés libèrent leurs ailles qui doucement dans l’air culbutent.
(c) 2009-2020 Quintan Ana Wikswo
The Elliott Bay Book Company is an independently owned bookstore founded by Walter Carr in 1973, at 109 Main Street. Over the next three and half decades, the bookstore shifted and expanded within the Globe Building adding event space for author readings as well as Seattle’s first bookstore café.
In 2010, Elliott Bay relocated to 1521 10th Ave in the Capitol Hill neighborhood near downtown Seattle. We brought with us the unique selection of books, original cedar shelves and the same knowledgeable staff, to ensure the same unique and welcoming atmosphere. The reading events as well as the café have remained a vital part of our business.
Part of the daily life of Elliott Bay for over four decades, our author reading series now hosts more than 500 author readings a year. While we have had the pleasure of hosting some of the world’s preeminent writers, from its inception, our reading series has sought to feature diverse, lesser known, new, famous, infamous and sometimes controversial writers. Cohosting events with other community partners has been fundamental to the series and helped to put writers and readers together throughout the Seattle area to ensure that new, interesting and diverse voices continue to be published and translated. A monthly list of our readings, with information on the month’s authors and books, dates, times, and admission information, is always available at the store and on our website.