TIM CONROY's New Book NO TRUE ROUTE Launches Tuesday Oct. 24th at BAR NONE in 5 Points! Read Conroy's interview by MIHO KINNAS & Join Us at Bar None!

Poetry grounds us to the ordinary miracles around us - Tim Conroy

Tim Conroy’s second collection of poetry, No True Route (Muddy Ford Press, 2023) launches Tuesday night, October 24th at Bar None in 5 Points at 6 pm.

Tim Conroy is a poet and former educator. His work has been published in journals, magazines, and compilations, including Fall Lines, Auntie Bellum, Blue Mountain Review, Jasper, Marked by the Water, and Our Prince of Scribes: Writers Remember Pat Conroy. In 2017, Muddy Ford Press published his first book of poetry, Theologies of Terrain, edited by Columbia, South Carolina, poet laureate Ed Madden. A founding board member of the Pat Conroy Literary Center established in his brother’s honor, Tim Conroy lives in Florida.

Advance Praise for No True Route:

Poetry at its best gives the head and heart direction. In No True Route, Tim Conroy sends us straightaway to his life's truths, as he feels them. Words bitter, sweet, brutal, and blunt -- but always beautifully spun, make this intensely personal and pathfinding work worthy of taking along on your own journey. -- J. Drew Lanham, author of Sparrow Envy - Field Guide to Birds and Lesser Beasts 

“How not to be a body / suspended alone”: in poem after poem, Tim Conroy’s No True Route investigates that state of potential isolation, of fatal disconnection narrowly avoided… this “rope knotted to adolescence,” becomes for Conroy a life-line. “Do you recall the moment you first belonged?,” he asks, and the question – amid these “oyster cuts of memory” – is satisfyingly both poignant and affirming. -- Nathalie Anderson, author of Held and Firmly Bound and Stain 

Tim Conroy's second collection, No True Route, continues self-investigation from his past that began in his first book, Theologies of Terrain. Through personal and poetic journeys, the poems have gained more profound insights into the heaviness of life's burden and the possible ways to lightness. -- Miho Kinnas, author of Waiting for Sunset to Bury Red Camellias, Move Over, Bird, and Today, Fish Only.

~~~~~

Interview Question from poet Miho Kinnas, author of Waiting for Sunset to Bury Red Camellias (2023, Free Verse Press), Move Over, Bird (2019), and Today, Fish Only (2019) from Math Paper Press.

 

What was it like to put together the second collection?

The second collection, No True Route, took six years of writing, revision, and difficult choices. Ed Madden, former poet Laureate of Columbia, South Carolina, helped me hone and order the poems. I am fortunate to continue to work with Muddy Ford Press and publishers Cindi Boiter and Bob Jolley, who have an unyielding ethic to connect regional writers with a community of readers. I hope readers find the poem in the collection meant for them. Or better yet, they will pick up a pen and write poems about their journeys. In No True Route, some poems express loss, brokenness, strength, and how we hold onto each other. Memories can fool and change us. My brother, Pat, would have recognized these themes in the collection as familiar terrain.

How did the changes in your life (retiring, moving to Florida) affect your writing?

COVID and Moving and Loss sharpened my perception of time and how we live during periods of significant change. One thing I tried to write about because of this change was that no matter where you live, you must never hide or forget your deceased family and friends. It is perilous to deny their presence in our lives.

What poetry are you reading now?

I have been reading and searching for poems with spiritual themes for a project. It is an attempt at an existential spiritual search questioning our relationship to the Divine in all our metaphors of beliefs and doubts. My Genesis or creation poem to enter this discussion is Ode to Dirt by Sharon Olds, then Ode to the Clothesline by Kwame Dawes, an excerpt from the Song of Solomon, Ask Me by William Stafford, Have You Prayed? by Li-Young Lee, Upstairs the Eulogy, Downstairs the Rummage Sale by Yehoshua November, A Violin at Dusk by Lizette Woodworth Reese, The Vast Ocean Begins Just Outside Our Church: The Eucharist by Mary Oliver, Kerr’s Ass by Patrick Kavanaugh, The Call by Ron Rash, A Prayer by Max Errman and Thank You by Ross Gay.

But I am still collecting and refining. I don’t know the shape of the final product, but I will hold “poetry worship” services using these poems where the poets are priests. The congregation will read these poems and explore the human need for something after death and an explanation of divinity. After all, we are “muckers” searching for the Kavanaugh’s “God of imagination.” Perhaps my poem in No True Route, Visitation, fits this mold. 

Why Poetry Matters. Figurative language is how we make sense of our creation, our moment. Poetry compromises the text of all faiths and beliefs. Poetry explores the ground of being like a hungry mole cricket. It’s the stirring language of the Cosmos and the soup spoon. It rises from dirt to sunflower to hearts. Poetry is our first and last breath in our brief lives of verses. Poetry grounds us to the ordinary miracles around us. But I warn you, it’s a mouse in the hole trembling to rush out to nibble on a crumb; satisfying, so risky.

Muddy Ford Press Announces Launch of New Book LOW COUNTRY LAMENTATIONS by Frank Malmsteen with Party at Bourbon Patio

Broad River Books, an imprint of Muddy Ford Press, the boutique publishing house located in Chapin, SC and the original underwriter for Jasper Magazine, announces the release of their newest novel, Low Country Lamentations by Frank Malmsteen. Lauded by Kirkus Review as “[a] striking, character-driven tale. . ,” Low Country Lamentations may be this year's favorite summer read for anyone who enjoys a tongue-in-cheek take on the likes of Dorothea Benton Frank, Anne Rivers Siddons, or Pat Conroy. As an added bonus, Malmsteen offers an atypical take on the classic book-within-a-book trope by fully integrating excerpts from a second Southern novel, a road novel not-coincidentally entitled Lowcountry Lamentations and ostensibly written by Erica Edwards, within the pages of his larger and more encompassing volume. 

The release of Low Country Lamentations will be celebrated with a launch party on the Bourbon Columbia patio, 1214 Main Street, on Thursday May 18th from 5 – 7 with food, music, and a cryptic theatrical element.

 A scholar of literary tradition, the reclusive author, Frank Malmsteen, has studied the genre of Southern fiction for decades and created a tome that will not only engage and enthrall, but will keep readers questioning long after consuming the final pages of the book. This will be the only North American appearance by Mr. Malmsteen, whose previous work includes Recondite Oblivion (2022), an enigmatic look at aesthetics that generated vast opportunities for interpretation. Only recently, the ascetic Malmsteen has agreed to come out of his self-imposed seclusion for one night only and we are thrilled that he has selected this specific launch party on Main Street, Columbia, SC as the singular location at which he will meet with the public to sell and sign his newest book, Low Country Lamentations.

 

Jasper Presents Fall Lines - a literary convergence Volume IX at Richland Library

Join the Jasper Project on Saturday, March 25 from 2 - 5 pm for the release of Fall Lines - a literary convergence Volume IX at the Main Branch of the Richland Library on Assembly Street.

Poetry and prose accepted for publication in this year’s Fall Lines journal include the following

Fruit – Gil Allen

The turning – Ken Autry

The last battle in Alabama – Ken Autry

Bachman's Warbler – Ken Autry

Bird – Libby Bernardin

with spoiled fruit – Evelyn Berry

Dear Raphael – Al Black

Porcelain doll – Al Black

If I were a man – Cindi Boiter

Prudent – Cindi Boiter

Seamstress – Carolina Bowden

Signs that say what you want them to say (not signs that say what someone else wants you to say) – Lucia Brown

Before we turn on the table saw – Lucia Brown

walking a half-marathon through your hometown – Lucia Brown

Members of the backyard church – Tim Conroy

Nasty Bites – Tim Conroy

How to cut up a chicken – Susan Craig

Touching Wyse's Ferry Bridge – Susan Craig

The Older Poet Yearns to Carpe the Diem – Debra Daniels

Dream Three – Heather Dearmon

Bring Me Something – Heather Dearmon

Across the River - Marlanda DeKine

talking to themselves -  Marlanda DeKine

For my cat, every Sunday afternoon – Graham Duncan

Ghosts in Poems – Jo Angela Edwins

Stricken – Jo Angela Edwins

Nana Lencha – Vera Gomez

You don't know what you don't know – Vera Gomez

Coattails – Kristine Hartvigsen

River – Kristine Hartvigsen

A Quiet Love – Jammie Huynh

A ghazal to my father – Jammie Huynh

Bad Idea Boyfriend, or White Jesus – Shannon Ivey

D. – Suzanne Kamata

Red Bird / Blue Bird – Bentz Kirby

Hunter's Chapel Road – Len Laurin

I love you 3000 – Len Lawson

Crown – Terri McCord

Space – Terri McCord

For a 20% Tip – Rosalie McCracken

"Yes, please" – Melanie McGhee

Cycles – Joseph Mills

Office hours – Joseph Mills

Those of us with bushy white beards – Joseph Mills

So long, Greenie – Eric Morris

Chopin all over her – Eric Morris

Old photos (for Ahmaud Arbery) – Yvette Murray

Thundering shadows – Frances Pearce

Gone to the birds – Glenis Redmond

"Praise how the ordinary turns sacred" – Glenis Redmond

Strangers in a Strange Field – Aida Rogers

Pre-Columbia Intersections – Lawrence Rhu

Meaningless – Michael Rubin

Small things I notice – Randy Spencer

Next Day Now - Randy Spencer

Above the poplars – Arthur Turfa

For the Love of Mz. Joe – Ceille Welch

The Broad River Prize for Prose this year goes to Tim Conroy for his short fiction, Nasty Bites and the Saluda River Prize for Poetry goes to Jo Angela Edwins for her poem, Stricken.

Carla Damron was the adjudicator for the prose prize and Lisa Hammond judged the poetry prize.

Both contributors and the public are invited to attend. Contributors are also invited to read from their included works during the event in the order in which it is published.

Thank you to Carla Damron, Lisa Hammond, Richland Library, the Friends of Richland Library, One Columbia, and Muddy Ford Press for their support of this project.

PRESS RELEASE: THE JASPER PROJECT PRESENTS A STAGED READING OF COLBY QUICK’S NEW PLAY, MOON SWALLOWER, WINNER OF THE 2022 PLAY RIGHT SERIES PROJECT

Sunday, August 28th at 4pm

Columbia Music Festival Association

914 Pulaski Street

Panel Presentation and Reception to Follow

The Jasper Project is excited to present the staged reading of MOON SWALLOWER a new play by Sumter playwright Colby Quick. MOON SWALLOWER is directed by veteran theatre artist Chad Henderson and features Michael Hazin, Lonetta Thompson, Richard Edwards, Becky Hunter, and Chris Cockrell.

MOON SWALLOWER is the winner of the Jasper Project’s 2022 Play Right Series, an endeavor in which unpublished playwrights are invited to submit their work in competition for a cash prize, publication of their play in book form, and workshopping and development of the play with skilled professional theatre artists, culminating in a staged reading. Dr. Jon Tuttle, playwright in residence at Francis Marion University and member of the Jasper Project board of directors, is the director of the Jasper Project Play Right Series.

MOON SWALLOWER is an alternative coming-of-age story of a young man who finds himself stuck somewhere between small town ideologies and big world expectations with a heavy influence of social media, domestic awkwardness, and the possibility of werewolves. It is a comedy that has kept the case laughing throughout rehearsals.

The Play Right Series is a unique machination for bringing new plays and playwrights to the forefront of local performing arts by calling on Community Producers to invest a modest amount of money in the workshopping and ultimate staged reading of the play in exchange for their intimate involvement in the processes involved in taking a play from page to stage. Community Producers for MOON SWALLOWER are Bill Schmidt, Bert Easter, Ed Madden, Paul Leo, Eric Tucker, Kirkland Smith, James Smith, Wade Sellers, and Cindi Boiter.

The first iteration of the Play Right Series involved a new work from SC playwright Randall David Cook whose play, SHARKS AND OTHER LOVERS was produced in 2017 and directed by Larry Hembree. SHARKS AND OTHER LOVERS has gone on to win multiple awards and be presented throughout the US.

The Staged Reading for MOON SWALLOWER will be held Sunday afternoon, August 28th at 4 pm (doors at 3:30) at Columbia Music Festival Association, 914 Pulaski Street. Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door. The performance will be followed by a panel discussion including cast and Community Producers, hosted by Jon Tuttle, with a reception following. Copies of the play, MOON SWALLOWER, will be available for purchase at the event or online at Amazon.com.

Tickets are available at  The Jasper Project.

 

Happy Hour Release Party for Jasper Magazine Spring 2022 - Thursday, June 9th at Black Rooster Rooftop Bar

Join us as we celebrate all the artists honored in the spring 2022 issue of Jasper Magazine for the official release event at 5:30 on Thursday, June 9th at the Black Rooster’s beautiful rooftop bar.

Among the artists we’ll be celebrating are cover artist Lindsay Radford (written by Kristine Hartvigsen) and centerfold Michael Krajewski (which was shot by Brad Martin in the Black Rooster itself!)

In a jam-packed 64 pages you’ll find another piece by Kristine Hartvigsen on Mike Miller’s new novel, The Hip Shot, as well as excerpts from Jane Zenger and Angelo Geter’s new books of poetry from Muddy Ford Press.

Music editor Kevin Oliver put together a detailed section of new music called “10 to Watch” featuring new work from Saul Seibert, Katera, Desiree Richardson, Tam the Vibe, Rex Darling, Space Force, Admiral Radio, Hillmouse, Candy Coffins, and Lang Owen, with contributing writing from Kyle Petersen and Emily Moffitt.

Tam the Vibe

Stephanie Allen writes about Josetra Baxter and Tamara Finkbeiner’s Walking on Water Productions and their new series Secrets in Plain Sight, with photography by Bree Burchfield.

And we highlight Columbia artist Quincy Pugh as well as feature Will South’s interview with Tyrone Geter all the way from Gambia.

The Three Graces by Quincy Pugh

USC filmmaker Carleen Maur helps us understand more about the art of experimental filmmaking.

Emily Moffitt profiles visual artists Rebecca Horne, Lucy Bailey, and designer Diko Pekdemir-Lewis.

Ed Madden curates poetry from Juan David Cruz-Duarte and Terri McCord.

Christina Xan details the incredible success of Cooper Rust and her non-profit organization, Artists for Africa.

Cindi Boiter profiles SC Arts Commission executive director David Platts, with photography by Brodie Porterfield, and writes about the new public art, Motherhood by Nora Valdez, with exquisite photography by Stephen Chesley.

Motherhood by Nora Valdez, phot by Stephen Chesley

And finally, we memorialize two pillars of the Columbia arts community, Mary Bentz Gilkerson and Wim Roefs, whose loss this spring we are still reeling from.

——

We look forward to seeing you Thursday night.

The event is free and Black Rooster’s regular rooftop bar will be serving drinks and food. Come by for happy hour and grab a drink, a magazine, and a hug from your favorite folks. Or plan on staying a while and grabbing dinner or snacks.

Thanks to restauranteur extraordinaire Kristian Niemi for hosting us.

We can’t wait to see you and show off these exceptional artists who call Columbia, SC home!

Launch Announced for Jane Zenger's New Book of Poetry - Night Bloomer from Muddy Ford Press

Saturday, May 21st

5:30 - 8 pm

Stormwater Studios

Muddy Ford Press is pleased to announce the publication of the latest book in the Laureate Series, Night Bloomer by Jane Zenger.

Zinger will welcome guests to Stormwater Studios on Saturday May 21st from 5:30 - 8 pm for readings from her debut poetry collection. Included among the guests will be city of Columbia poet laureate (and Jasper Poetry Editor) Ed Madden, who edited Night Bloomer, working closely with Zenger on the composition and structure of the book. Night Bloomer is the third book in the Laureate Series following works by Tim Conroy and Ann-Chadwell Humphries. Angelo Geter’s More God Than Dead, the fourth in the series, will be published in June.

“It is a delight to see Jane's work coming into print,” Madden says. “I love the way that her voice ranges through memory, from tragic loss to humor and anger (sometimes both at once). The loss of her husband grounds this book, the poems range widely through a lifetime of experience.”

Of Night Bloomer Zenger says, “This book is a compilation of poems written during several distinct periods in my life. Several poems chronicle my early days as a rambunctious student and traveler, others are based on people or events that influenced or upended my life. The book celebrates and reflects both my real life and my imagination. Having a book published is a dream come true for me.”

Night Bloomer is available at Amazon, WOB, Walmart. Books-a-million, and a number of additional outlets. Zenger will be offering the book for sale and signing at the event on Saturday afternoon.

Announcing the Winner of the Inaugural Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer BIPOC Chapbook Prize - Maria S. Picone

Maria S. Picone (photo courtesy of the artist)

It is with great joy that the Jasper Project announces that the winner of the inaugural Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer Poetry Chapbook Prize is Maria S. Picone of Myrtle Beach, SC for her chapbook entitled, Sky Sea Edict.

Maria S. Picone/수영 is a Korean American adoptee who won Cream City Review’s 2020 Summer Poetry Prize. She has been published in Tahoma Literary Review, The Seventh Wave, Fractured Lit and Best Small Fictions 2021. Her work has been supported by Lighthouse Writers, GrubStreet, Kenyon Review, and Tin House. She is a 2022 Palm Beach Poetry Festival Kundiman Fellow and Chestnut Review and The Petigru Review's managing editor. 

Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer (1868-1936) was a teacher and social activist in Orangeburg, SC. Born in Pickens, SC, she taught at the Normal and Grammar Schools at Claflin College for 40 years. Her published anthology of poems Prejudice Unveiled, and Other Poems (1907) examined the Jim Crow South’s propensity for lynching, racism, and social injustice. Moorer was also an advocate for women’s suffrage in South Carolina, especially in the Methodist Church. 

The purpose of the Lizelia August Jenkins Moorer Prize, affectionately called the Lizelia Prize, is to offer a BIPOC poet from SC a publishing contract with Muddy Ford Press to publish their debut chapbook under the guidance of an established poet. The inspiration of Dr. Len Lawson, who is a member of the Jasper Project board of directors and the author, editor, or co-editor of four books of poetry, Lawson will also serve as editor of Picone’s chapbook and will collaborate with them on the construction of the book. Picone will receive publication via Muddy Ford Press, a cash prize, and ten author copies of the book.

This year’s judge of the more than 10 submissions was Raena Shirali. Shirali is a poet, editor, and educator from Charleston, SC. Her first book, GILT (YesYes Books, 2017), won the 2018 Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award, and her forthcoming collection, summonings, won the 2021 Black Lawrence Press Hudson Prize. Winner of a Pushcart Prize & a former Philip Roth Resident at Bucknell University, Shirali is also the recipient of prizes and honors from VIDA, Gulf Coast, Boston Review, & Cosmonauts Avenue. She holds an MFA in Poetry from The Ohio State University and is an Assistant Professor of English at Holy Family University, where she serves as Faculty Advisor for Folio—a literary magazine dedicated to publishing works by undergraduate students at the national level. Her work has appeared in American Poetry Review, Academy of American Poets’ Poem-A Day, The Nation, The Rumpus, & elsewhere.

About Picone’s work, Shirai writes, “What does it mean to belong—to a country, to a culture, to oneself? Maria S. Picone’s work is defined by these questions, and her work joins a storied lineage of Asian American authors who have wondered the same. Dense, insistent, and endlessly rewarding, Sky Sea Edict studies loss through identity and identity through loss in poems overflowing with language and yet marked by their empty spaces. These poems defiantly experiment, crossing text out, attempting language by repeating, iterating, attempting, scrapping it all and trying, again, to learn a mother tongue. Sky Sea Edict is a glorious declaration of oppositional existence, a vibrantly musical exploration that—as Picone herself writes—“weigh[s] these lucks against the lacks.”

Lawson is also delighted with the outcome of the inaugural poetry competition, saying, “Maria S. Picone translates her experience as a Korean adoptee in the South into the language of poetry, filling in any gaps with compelling verse, connecting her timeline with her original and adopted tongues. She braves the unknown in her life with these courageous words, offering a free-spirited narrative we must observe from all angles of both sky and sea. Picone has a voice to remember going forward.”

Lawsone continues, “The legacy of South Carolina poets of color became the impetus of this project with the example of Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer at the forefront. Her poetry and service to South Carolina presents a beacon for any artists of color seeking to make a permanent mark in their communities. My hope is for this project to endure as more gifted voices emerge from our state.”

For more information about Maria S. Picone please visit her website.

Announcing a new Jasper Project Endeavor -- the Lizelia August Jenkins Moorer Poetry Chapbook Prize for SC BIPOC Poets

In honor of the 20th century poet, Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer, the Jasper Project is delighted to announce a new project, the Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer Poetry Chapbook Prize for SC BIPOC poets.

Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer (1868-1936) was a teacher and social activist in Orangeburg, SC. Born in Pickens, SC, she taught at the Normal and Grammar Schools at Claflin College for 40 years. Her published anthology of poems Prejudice Unveiled and Other Poems (1907) examined the Jim Crow South’s propensity for lynching, racism, and social injustice. Moorer was also an advocate for women’s suffrage in South Carolina, especially in the Methodist Church. 

The purpose of the Lizelia August Jenkins Moorer Prize, affectionately called the Lizelia Prize, is to offer a first-time BIPOC poet from SC a publishing contract with Muddy Ford Press to publish their debut chapbook under the guidance of an established poet. The vision of Dr. Len Lawson, who is a member of the Jasper Project board of directors and the author, editor, or co-editor of four books of poetry, Lawson will also serve as project manager as well as editor of the winner’s chapbook and will collaborate with the winner on the construction of the book.

SC BIPOC poets who have yet to publish a book of poetry are invited to submit 30-40 single spaced numbered pages in Times New Roman 12pt and include a cover sheet with your name and manuscript title. Your name should not appear on the manuscript. The winning submission will receive publication via Muddy Ford Press, a cash prize of $250, and ten author copies of the book. Submissions should be in the form of a Word doc and should be sent to lizeliapoetry@gmail.com no later than February 28th, 2022.

JIM CROW CARS.

by Lizelia Augusta Jenkins Moorer

If within the cruel Southland you have chanced to take a ride,

You the Jim Crow cars have noticed, how they crush a Negro's pride,

How he pays a first class passage and a second class receives,

Gets the worst accommodations ev'ry friend of truth believes.

'Tis the rule that all conductors, in the service of the train,

Practice gross discriminations on the Negro—such is plain—

If a drunkard is a white man, at his mercy Negroes are,

Legalized humiliation is the Negro Jim Crow car.

'Tis a license given white men, they may go just where they please,

In the white man's car or Negro's will they move with perfect ease,

If complaint is made by Negroes the conductor will go out

Till the whites are through carousing, then he shows himself about.

 

They will often raise a riot, butcher up the Negroes there,

Unmolested will they quarrel, use their pistols,rant and swear,

They will smoke among the ladies though offensive the cigar;

'Tis the place to drink their whiskey, in the Negro Jim Crow car.

If a Negro shows resistance to his treatment by a tough,

At some station he's arrested for the same, though not enough,

He is thrashed or lynched or tortured as will please the demon's rage,

Mobbed, of course, by "unknown parties," thus is closed the darkened page.

If a lunatic is carried, white or black, it is the same,

Or a criminal is taken to the prison-house in shame,

In the Negro car he's ushered with the sheriff at his side,

Out of deference for white men in their car he scorns to ride.

 

We despise a Negro's manhood, says the Southland, and expect,

All supremacy for white men—black men's rights we'll not protect,

This the Negro bears with patience for the nation bows to might,

Wrong has borne aloft its colors disregarding what is right.

This is called a Christian nation, but we fail to understand,

How the teachings of the Bible can with such a system band;

Purest love that knows no evil can alone the story tell,

How to banish such abuses, how to treat a neighbor well.

Raena Shirali will be serving as the adjudicator for the Lizelia Prize.

Raena Shirali is a poet, editor, and educator from Charleston, South Carolina. Her first book, GILT (YesYes Books, 2017), won the 2018 Milt Kessler Poetry Book Award, and her forthcoming collection, summonings, won the 2021 Black Lawrence Press Hudson Prize. Winner of a Pushcart Prize & a former Philip Roth Resident at Bucknell University, Shirali is also the recipient of prizes and honors from VIDA, Gulf Coast, Boston Review, & Cosmonauts Avenue. She holds an MFA in Poetry from The Ohio State University Shirali and is an Assistant Professor of English at Holy Family University, where she serves as Faculty Advisor for Folio—a literary magazine dedicated to publishing works by undergraduate students at the national level. Her work has appeared in American Poetry Review, Academy of American Poets’ Poem-A Day, The Nation, The Rumpus, & elsewhere.

Columbia Poets Al Black and Randy Spencer Featured in Piccolo Spoleto’s Sundown Poetry Series

Al Black and Randy Spencer are effervescent poets, speakers who refuse to hold back or look away from what asks to be gazed upon. In their work, readers are taken on a journey of intertwining rivers where you learn about their histories, intimate parts of yourself, and the spaces and places in which we dwell. Keep reading to learn more about Piccolo Spoleto’s Sundown Poetry Series and Black and Spencer—and discover two poems from the artists. 

Former Charleston Mayor Joe Riley launched Piccolo Spoleto in 1979, two years after Italian composer Gian Carlo Menotti founded Spoleto Festival USA. Piccolo, alluding to the smallest woodwind and thus the smaller festival within the larger Spoleto, has reflected the City of Charleston’s desire to showcase local art and artists. 

The Sundown Poetry Series is one of the oldest events in Piccolo history, with the goal of featuring a select number of local poets. The current selection committee consists of Ed Gold, Katherine Williams, and Curtis Derrick. According to Derrick, the application process for poets parallels the process for all Piccolo Spoleto artists and is based on a submission of work. At times, however, the selection committee directly invites applications from poets who have “achieved particular notoriety or had recent book publications.”  

The original venue for the Sundown Series was the courtyard at the Dock Street Theater—so drama patrons could enjoy poetry as an art “appetizer” before a performance—but this year Sundown is being held in the Lenhardt Garden of the Gibbes Museum of Art to accommodate more efficient social distancing. 

Eight poets are being featured this year, one per evening, in the following order: Al Black, Valerie Nieman, H.R. “Randy” Spencer, Lola Haskins, Dr. David B. Axelrod, Kwoya Fagin Maples, Grace C. Ocasio, and Ren Ruggiero—two of the poets, Black and Spencer, are Columbia-based. 

Al Black has published two poetry collections: I Only Left for Tea (2014) and Man with Two Shadows (2018), both with Muddy Ford Press. He co-edited Hand in Hand, Poets Respond to Race (2017) and has been published in several anthologies, journals, periodicals, and blogs. He hosts various arts events, co-founded the Poets Respond to Race Initiative, and was Jasper Project’s 2017 Literary Artist of the Year. 

Black expresses anticipation for the reading—while often not the type to seek out readings and more so the one to host them, he deeply enjoys being a part of them. Derrick reached out to Black in 2019 and asked if he would be interested in reading for Sundown, and Black accepted and was slated for 2020, but when the festival was cancelled due to COVID-19, the poets were moved to 2021. 

Spencer was also originally slated to read in 2020 and is looking forward to reading this week. H.R. “Randy” Spencer is the author of several chapbooks, and his first full collection, The Color After Green, was published in 2019 by Finishing Line Press. As stated on Piccolo Spoleto’s Facebook, “Recently featured on SCETV’s By the River, this collection of contemporary nature poems is both personal and reaches for larger concerns around climate and ecological changes, sometimes set in the South Carolina Lowcountry.”

Spencer previously read as part of the Sundown Series in 2012 and had such a positive experience that, after the required waiting period between reapplying, he immediately applied to read again. “I don’t do many readings, and my favorite are small groups where we can sit and talk,” he divulges, “I’m looking forward to sharing my work with whoever comes.”   

Spencer says that he will start off the reading with poems from his collection but will mix up what he reads to fit this event. “I change it up due to where I am,” he shares, “Since it’s in Charleston, I’ll do more poems that have to do with the coast and the low country and traveling.”  

He will also read outside the book, reading some books from a chapbook of poems about the COVID-19 pandemic. He also recently wrote a poem in the Gullah language as a means to preserve and honor the lyrical language, and he hopes to read it during the event as well. 

Black also likes to switch readings up based on where he is performing. He will have the time it takes to read a work at the top of each poem’s page to ensure he fits within the time limit—each reading is approximately 40-45 minutes with time for a Q&A after. 

“I never have a set list of poems to read—I’ll have 2-3 poems in my head that I might open the night with, but I’ll walk in and try to get a feel for the night,” Black intimates, “based on people’s reactions I may end up reading a poem I’ve never read before.” 

Black intends to start “edgy,” potentially touching on racism and/or women’s issues. He will likely start with his first book (I Only Left for Tea), then move to the book about his father (Man with Two Shadows), then various publications, then a book about his mother—which he is currently prepping for publication—before ending with new work. 

Both Spencer and Black look forward to sharing work new and old in a fresh space. In that vein, both poets have offered a poem for the audiences of this blog. Spencer’s poem is from The Color After Green, and he feels it is a companion piece to the Gullah poem he may read at the event. Black’s poem is a recent one he was compelled to write after watching an ad card fall from a magazine.

Al.png

Beatitudes

 

Blessed is the morning.

Blessed is the coffee.

Blessed is the sun before the rain.

Blessed are the birds

that dampen traffic noise.

Blessed is the train that wails

and the siren song that fades.

Blessed is the drone of the plane that stays aloft.

Blessed are the dog walkers, the couples,

the skateboarders, the bike riders,

the joggers, the mommies pushing strollers,

and the daddies carrying daughters on shoulders.

Blessed are the lonely.

Blessed is the greening tree.

Blessed are the flowers that grow wild.

Blessed is the broken fence rail

I step over to enter the park.

Blessed is the cat that chases the squirrel

and the dog that scares the cat.

Blessed is the silent leaf blower

when the neighbor takes a break.

Blessed is the moss that fills

the empty spaces with color.

Blessed is the blue recycling bin

that sits outside our kitchen door.

Blessed is the card stock magazine ad

that falls at my feet

for it shall become a bookmark.

 

—     Al Black, 2021

 

Randy Spencer.png

Wind

                        September 23, 1989:

 

I can still feel it. The wind last night

sucked the breath out of me, flung it screaming

over the live oak and limbless pine.

Then the water swelling, some deep voice

sliding up to us, a dark face, its white woolen beard

spilling over us, straining the ballast

that kept our house rooted like a stiff barnacle

to some tether in the sand

My ears still roar like a seashell.

 

The ominous calm coming next. That calm

without even the random rustle of life,

birds appearing, silent in the dead air.

When the eye came, I walked outside.

There was a hole straight up

through all that darkness, like a tunnel,

starlight like pinhole punctures in a black screen.

I could barely see the pines, stunted, still straight,

but snapped off midway up, all clipped

the same height, bodiless legs

left planted in clay boots. I could see

cuts opened up in hardwoods, limbs broken

from live oaks, shrubs uprooted, scattered, terrifying.

 

It came back worse than before,

blowing oppositely, humming its tune

differently over the stringed forest. Inside,

when I could fall sleep I dreamed my ankle

braceletted by a whirl of rope leaping overboard

after an anchor, dragging me after it,

dreams of fish flying, their silver pancaked scales

covering my eyes, cutting into me like razors.

 

Then, this morning. Coming out

seeing sailboats piled like cordwood,

battered and strewn over the marsh,

masts stepped vertically yesterday

laying over now, angled north

as if they were still carrying sail,

reduced to sundials marking shadows in the morning sun,

birds blown north, vagrants, wounded, dazed,

Shells everywhere, freshly gutted open,

still slick with gristle or beaten white

and smooth, broken on some rock,

then carried inland, a whelk settled in a cowshed,

a purplish clam in a seaside garden

where chrysanthemums should be in bloom,

with my neighbors empty house half lifted

from its foundation and nesting in spartina grass,

on an ordinary autumn day

               with bright sunshine, mild sea breezes, soft breakers.

 

—    H.R. Spencer, from The Color After Green (in reference to Hurricane Hugo)

If you’re interested in potentially hearing these poems out loud and in hearing more from these poets, both readings occur in the coming days in Charleston. Black opens the Sundown Series tomorrow, June 1st, and Spencer reads Thursday, June 3rd. Both events begin at 6:30pm.  

Spencer’s collection can be purchased at larger retailers or directly from the publishing house, Finishing Line Press: https://www.finishinglinepress.com/product/the-color-after-green-by-h-r-spencer/  

Black’s books can also be purchased at larger retailers or the publishing house, Muddy Ford Press: https://www.amazon.com/Man-Two-Shadows-Al-Black/dp/1942081162

-Christina Xan

Muddy Ford Press Releases Second Collection in Laureate Series with Ann-Chadwell Humphries’ An Eclipse and a Butcher

“I'm in awe of the masterful clarity, the perfectly weighted brevity of Ann Humphries' poems. There's an immense comfort in her vivid scenes, her people and places so rich in presence, and her clear gaze. … A stunning collection!”

Naomi Shihab Nye, Young People's Poet Laureate

Humphries cover 300cmyk (1) (1).jpg

This month, local poet Ann-Chadwell Humphries is releasing her first collection of poetry with Muddy Ford Press as the second feature of their Laureate Series.

Muddy Ford Press is a family owned publishing company dedicated to providing boutique publishing opportunities particularly to, but not limited to, South Carolina writers, artists, and poets. The founders of the press, husband and wife team Bob Jolley and Cindi Boiter, created the Laureate Series with the goal of initiating relationships across South Carolina poets.

“We wanted to promote mentorship between established poets and beginning poets,” Jolley describes, “So we invite all the poets laureate in SC to choose an emerging poet who they are willing to work with, and the laureate then helps build and edit their protégé’s first book.”

The selection of poets for the Laureate Series is the decision of the South Carolina laureates. The first book in the series, as well as this upcoming collection, were both written by poets selected by Columbia Poet Laureate Ed Madden.

The first collection, Theologies of Terrain, featured poet Tim Conroy. Conroy ruminates that, through this series, Muddy Ford Press provides the guidance and care that only poet laureates can deliver to a poet's first collection.

“I am so happy that Muddy Ford Press selected Ann-Chadwell Humphries as the second poet in their Laureate Series,” Conroy shares, “Ann's poetry raises the bar for all to follow. Her award-winning poetry is lyrical, deeply observed, and sound haunted.”

Ann-Chadwell Humphries - photo courtesy of the author

Ann-Chadwell Humphries - photo courtesy of the author

Several years ago, Humphries was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa, a genetic condition that caused her vision to get smaller and smaller until she could no longer see. However, while this was an obstacle, it carried with it a gift with which to see the world anew.

While always a lover of literature, Humphries, who had worked in the medical field, had never tried her hand at creative writing. Then, she started taking creative writing classes at the Shepherd’s Center with her friend.

“I remember where I was sitting,” Ann reflects on the day she was first introduced to Mary Oliver’s poetry, “and I thought, ‘I have to do this’.”

This emerging love for poetry became concrete when, in Fall 2016, Humphries audited a graduate poetry workshop with Nikky Finney at the University of South Carolina. This workshop was one of the first times Humphries had the chance to work so closely with her ideas and form.

“It demands careful attention, it demands truth, honesty, and essence,” Humphries remarks on the writing process, “It helps me find goodness.”

Since that workshop, Humphries has published poems in Jasper Magazine, Emrys, Indolent Books, The Collective Eye and more. When Madden and Boiter approached Humphries about the Laureate Series, she had a mix of surprise and pride.

“’What? Really? Me?’ a voice in my head said,” Humphries recalls, “But then I said, ‘Why not me’—I dropped self-doubt at 65.”

With an arsenal of poems and a constant thirst for writing, Humphries knew she had the materials to make a collection, but stitching them together into a book was a different story. Luckily, she had Madden by her side to edit the collection.

"Ann Chadwell Humphries is a poet of many eclipses—celestial, such as the unexpected 'metallic light' beheld with solar glasses, but also eclipses of vision as her sight was lost later in life to the ravages of a recessive gene. And though these poems beautifully document that loss and its attendant difficulties, An Eclipse is the record of a woman who sees with her entire being.”

Nickole Brown, author of Fanny Says and

Jessica Jacobs, author of Take Me With You, Wherever You’re Going

Madden says that when Humphries first sent him a selection of poems, his priority was to give her a sense of her voice and an idea of some overriding themes that were running through her work. Specifically, his work as an editor is a two-fold process.

“I divided poems into yes and no and maybe, and I started arranging poems around my living room in groups that seemed to work together, to speak to each other,” Madden reflects. “Ann was a master at revising, always attuned to line and sound and image, and I enjoyed working with her.”

What stood out for Madden in this collection were the poems about solar eclipses. Once he read them, he knew they could anchor the book, punctuating it with the seen and unseen.

“Thinking how one thing can eclipse another seemed such a resonant theme for her memory poems, her family and relationship poems, and her poems about coming to terms with blindness,” Madden shares. “Once I had those three anchor poems, the book seemed to almost organize itself, like iron shavings organizing themselves around the poles of a magnet.”

From her experience with Madden, Humphries learned valuable lessons, not just about this collection but herself as a poet.

“It was a willingness to say yes, and to put myself in the position where I allowed myself to receive kindness,” Humphries says of the experience, “It was better than I ever imagined. To be in the company of good writers who are helping me grow, I really flourished in that.”

Of course, there is more than just the poems. Humphries worked with her dear friend, Susan Craig, and her niece, Eleanor Baker, and together they crafted a cover, featuring an image from Humphries’ childhood on the front.

Once Madden and Humphries finalized selection of poems and a cover, it went to Boiter and Jolley for edits. Boiter copyedited, proofed, and built the book, then Jolley laid it out in In Design before sending it to the printer, where he ensured the final product was as it was supposed to be.

“Ann Humphries’ debut collection of poems, An Eclipse and a Butcher, is anchored by poems about the solar eclipse, which serve as the perfect metaphor for the blindness experienced by the poet.  But Humphries tells us that “blindness provides insight.” … Humphries is a survivor, and we are so lucky she has chosen to share her words and her wisdom.”

Marjory Wentworth, former South Carolina

Poet Laureate

Now, after months of work from all parties, a book, a collection of stories, recollections, dreams, and hopes has come together.

From the titular poem, “An Eclipse and a Butcher,” that recalls a July childhood day in 1963 to a reminisce of her own father’s birth to the experience of tracing the waves of Van Gogh’s art, Humphries’ collection takes the reader through the throws and thrills of life with a final promise to walk with you wherever you may go.

“It’s myself. It’s a piece of me. It’s an honest gift,” Humphries declares. “It’s a piece of beauty in the world where there’s a lot of ugliness.”

The launch event for An Eclipse and a Butcher will take place via Zoom on November 22nd at 4:00pm. Muddy Ford Press will not sponsor any public readings until after pandemic precautions in the area have been lifted. The book will be $15 and available for purchase via Amazon, BandN.com, and via the author.

By Christina Xan

Al Black's New Book of Poetry, Man with Two Shadows, Launches Saturday Night

Praise for Man with Two Shadows

“Black’s experiences are universal, and there is comfort in looking at this profound loss through his eyes.” - Marjory Wentworth, SC poet laureate

“Al Black has put together a gorgeous and heart-breaking collection that is a testament to the dutifulness and responsibility we feel to and for parents we find difficult to understand.” - Ed Madden, Columbia, SC poet laureate

“Al Black’s poetry is astonishing, defiantly original; scrubs our ears with dirty bathtub water; roars with love for a leather belted father and battle-proven mother.” - Tim Conroy, author of Theologies of Terrain

Man with Two Shadows photo.JPG

When asked what inspired his earlier poetry, local poet, Al Black, answers, “Where you’re at. Sometimes you’re angry. Sometimes you’re happy. Sometimes you just see a situation and a metaphor goes through your head.”  This inspiration provides Columbia locals with a captivating voice to not only experience but to feel through Black’s stunning craft.

 

Local poet and supporter of the literary arts, Al Black, moved to Columbia, SC, nearly 10-years-ago.  Originally from Lafayette, IN, the father of 4 worked at The University of South Carolina in facilities management before retiring to become a full-time writer.

 

“My wife and I had four children and when the youngest one got old enough- my wife went back to school in her late 40s and got her PHD at 55 and wanted a career,” Black says, “So, I said, ‘I can work anywhere and I’ll go anywhere as long as it’s not further north,’ and so we ended up down here … I worked at The University of South Carolina for a while; I just left them. I’m 66, so I can be a full-time writer now and a trophy husband.”

 

Black attended college at Ball State, where he was an athlete who studied voice.   “I was one of those weirdos in college,” he says, “I was a voice major and an athlete.”   The poet not only played sports in college, but he would go on to coach college, high-school and semi-pro.

 

However, most Columbia locals know Black for his stunning craft of poetry and for the near 100 literary events that he hosts and co-hosts in a given year.  The poet crafted his first poem at the age of nine-years-old; however, he didn’t share his first poem until age 58, which resulted in the publication of his first book, I Only Left for Tea, published by Muddy Ford Press in 2015.

 

“I started really writing at eight or nine, but I never shared … I don’t know if I was afraid to share or if I just didn’t care to share,” Black explains,” When I came here, I didn’t see an event I liked, so I started what’s called Mind Gravy about eight and a half years ago.  I wanted to make sure I stirred it up as far as style, race, culture … about a month or two in, I shared a poem … I read it in a gallery and Cindi [Boiter] and her husband [Bob Jolley] heard me and said oh, they’d like to publish me and I was like, ‘I don’t know,’ but I eventually agreed to it.  And it’s gone from there.” Cindi Boiter and Bob Jolley are the publishers at Muddy Ford Press, a boutique publishing house just outside of Columbia.

 

Black’s first book was edited by Ed Madden and published by Muddy Ford Press. Madden is the Columbia city poet laureate as well as a professor of English at USC and the director of the university’s Women’s and Gender Studies Program. Since then, Black has co-edited a poetry anthology, titled Hand in Hand: Poets Respond to Race, with fellow poet Len Lawson, where several of his poems were published along with those of a number of local writers. Black and Lawson founded the Poets Respond to Race Initiative, and the anthology originated from the initiative.

Poet Al Black (photo by Forrest Clonts for Jasper Magazine)

Poet Al Black (photo by Forrest Clonts for Jasper Magazine)

Black has been very involved in issues of race and reconciliation.  This is work that the poet has always been passionate about, even while working at Perdue University in Indiana. “… I worked at a private business but mostly I worked at Perdue.  I was trained as a diversity trainer, and so, it’s been work that I’ve always been passionate about.  And, I believe whatever you do should reflect your values,” the former Indiana NAACP Vice President explains.

 

Today, most wait in anticipation for the poet’s newest publication, a collection of poems entitled Man with Two Shadows.  The book release will be held at Tapp’s this Saturday, September 22nd at 7pm.  At the release, you can expect live entertainment from jazz band, Vasaboo group, along with poem readings by the author, followed by a book signing.

 

The new book is a collection of poetry inspired by his father.  After his passing at age 94, the poet wrote for 120 days, eventually compiling a book with the poems he had created during the time-period before and after his father’s death.  Ed Madden, Black’s friend and first publication’s editor, edited this collection of poetry, as well.

 

“Well, it’s basically shortly before my dad’s passing and then it’s in two parts.  You know, that period shortly before when he’s getting sick and you’re going back to see him … and you’re beginning to worry,” the son says, “and then I was with him when he passed.  He passed a little after one o’clock in the morning.  And then it’s that time and then immediately after … that’s what the book’s about.  It’s about, you know, everybody has a different relationship with their parents.  It’s never all smooth sailing … So, yeah, my dad was the old-world way and you know, I was a baby boomer.  It’s dealing with that relationship, you know, that feeling that’s there.”

 

Months after the passing of his father, the poet lost his mother who was 93.  Both parents surface throughout Black’s latest poetry, and he is currently in the editing process for a book inspired by his mother.

 

“My father died at 94 in October. My mother was lonely and died in April at 93,” Black explains, “And so, I wrote for 120 days there, too.  So, now I’m in the editing process of her book.”

 

When he isn’t writing, you can find Black hosting and co-hosting multiple events, including Mind Gravy (Wednesdays at 8pm), Poems: Bones of the spirit (held once a month at a yoga studio), Blue Note Poetry (every first Tuesday of the month) and Songversation (monthly), along with multiple events surrounding the Poets Respond to Race initiative.  Each event is unique until itself.

 

Black also hosts and organizes three workshops, where poets, through invitation, work on a prompt, share their work and critique it.  Black stays busy and as evidenced through his dedication and involvement in the literary arts.

 

At age 66, the poet is still following what he is passionate about and living through his talent.  As said best by Black himself, “You know, if you have the talent for something, you should do.” Most are happy to know that this kind, humble soul lives through these words.

 by Hallie Hayes

______________

If You’re Going

Book Launch - Man with Two Shadows

by Al Black

Saturday, September 22nd - 7 pm

Tapp’s Arts Center

1644 Main Street, Columbia, SC

For more information on Muddy Ford Press go to www.MuddyFordPress.com

 

Ony's Bands - Boo Hag

boo-hag Ony Ratsimbaharison is a local musician, writer, and blogger and member of the band fk. mt. Jasper asked Ony to write a regular feature profiling local bands -- getting at what they're doing, why they're doing it, and how it's going. If you'd like to see your band profiled in What Jasper Said, send Ony a message at JasperProjectColumbia@gmail.com with the word ONY in the subject heading and she'll, you know, take it under consideration.

Ony's first few bands are a half dozen talented groups who will be working with the Jasper & Muddy Ford Press franchises over the next few weeks by playing at in-house sponsored events. Boo Hag, Los Perdidos, and Jackson Spells are all performing next Sunday at Tapp's Arts Center (7 pm) for the launch party for Tommy Bishop's new book, The Incredibly Strange ABCs. Here's a look at Boo Hag, by Ony.

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Boo Hag, which formed in June 2015, is a local hard rock band consisting of drummer Scotty Tempo and guitarist and songwriter Saul Seibert. Their latest self-titled album, which came out July 30 of this year, is a collection of macabre-influenced psychedelic songs, with song titles like “Monster,” “Hokus Pokus,” and “Crypt Keeper,” just to name a few.

Their interest in the macabre and horrific is evident in their name, which is derived from a Gullah legend. A Boo Hag is a mythical creature of the Gullah culture that, according to folklore, is masked in a person’s skin, which it sheds at night to ride living victims in their sleep, draining them of their energy. Their music aims to evoke the spirit of this myth through concepts like ritual and horror.

Seibert recently moved to Columbia and is from New Orleans, where, he says, a lot of his musical influence comes from. “Plain and simple we are kick-you-in –the-teeth, kerosene-driven, lightning-in-a-bottle rock and roll,” he states. Their writing process is somewhat unique and specific, which Seibert informs us of in the following excerpt from an interview.

Boo Hag will be performing alongside local psych-rockers Jackson Spells and surf rock band Los Perdidos on Sunday September 18 at Tapp’s Arts Center for the book launch of The Incredibly Strange ABCs by cartoonist Tommy Bishop.

art by Tommy Bishop

Six Qs for Boo Hag

Can you describe what your music is like? Boo Hag dabbles with the macabre and psychedelic aspects of rock n roll. We are loud, hard, dangerous, and serious. Boo Hag doesn't really come with a lot of bells and whistles… We do what we know to do.

What are your songs typically about? Some of the songs are simple and straight forward and not overly complicated… but most of the songs take on a narrative approach, and deal with a range of social issues and/or personal struggles.

What is your songwriting process like? I usually hide. I engage in ritual. I get up at 3:30-4 am every day to meditate and then write music or do personal journaling for a few hours every day. I also smoke copious amount of marijuana and walk my dog in the woods. After I have completed a song, I record it and send it to Scotty to listen to. We play through it a few times during practice and then move on. We let songs breathe and rest, and then when they are ready to be played again, we work on them. Scotty gets me in a way a lot of players don't and when you have that as a writer, you don't really fuck with it too much. He plays an equal part in the music of Boo Hag and a powerhouse. He is also my friend.

Who/what are some of your main musical influences? New Orleans jazz and Memphis Blues... What else really matters in the end?

What is your overall philosophy as a band, if you have one? As a band, I believe our philosophy is to simply create and have fun doing what we love doing. We are a live act and that is where we thrive. In the end, we just want people to celebrate the music with us.

What is your vision for the band/the band’s future? We will see what happens. We have no intention of slowing down, we’re both driven people.

Cartoonist Tommy Bishop Returns to Columbia to Launch First Book

TOMMY a

"Albert the Appleworm absolutely adores accounting."

~~~

When he left for the West Coast in 2008, cartoonist Tommy Bishop left his mark on Columbia via quirky album cover creations and his unique brand of almost otherwordly illustrations. After much encouragement, the artist is finally releasing his first book of drawings, and he's starting simple -- simply creepy, simply bizarre, simply strange. The Incredibly Strange ABCs by Tommy Bishop is a children's book with illustrative art adults are going to both appreciate and get a kick out of sharing with their children.

A two-part book launch that has every member of the family covered is going down on Sunday, September 18th, and like Bishop's work, it'll take you for a ride.

At 3 pm, bring the little ones to Tapp's Arts Center where they can (literally) sit at the artist's feet as he reads to them with musical accompaniment from Reno Gooch, and then enjoy a cookie and lemonade reception while Bishop signs copies of The Incredibly Strange ABCs for the children.

Then return at 7 pm (sans children) for a launch party with performances from Boo Hag, Los Perdidos, and Jackson Spells -- a cash bar, snacks, and continued signing of The Incredibly Strange ABCs. Ten dollars admission includes price of book, concert, and launch party. Afternoon attendees who purchase a book will receive a voucher for admission to the concert and launch party on Sunday night, and the publisher will provide a convenient signing and storage system so patrons won't have to pick up their purchases until the end of the evening.

An art poster from the archives created by artist and author, Tommy Bishop.

Bishop is looking forward to returning to his old stomping ground where he left his mark on Columbia's media art scene. "I used to put out music zines, bootleg comps, and a music blog under the name Force of a Revolving Toilet," Bishop says. But he may be best remembered around Columbia for creating art-inspired album covers for such bands as the Unawares, Boo Hag, Los Perdidos, and more.

Album cover for The Unawares created by Bishop.

The 36 year old cartoonist wrote and illustrated The Incredibly Strange ABCs as both a gift for and a way of sharing his art with his 17-month-old daughter, says Bishop, who is expecting another daughter with his wife, Nassim Lewis, later this year.

A founding member of the Greater Columbia Society for the Preservation of Soul, as well as the Christmas in July celebration at The Whig, Bishop returns from his current home in Portland, Oregon, after a stint in California, to a number of friends and family members who look forward to his visit and the launch of his first book.

GCSPS

"Tommy was in attendance for our very first live performance and approached us asking if he could design our flyers. We agreed, but could not ever have imagined the visual/design creative brilliance that was to follow for the duration of The Unawares run," says James Wallace, formerly of the Unawares. "That run included hand inked covers for three CD's, one LP, and dozens of flyers. A newly designed flyer for each show. He refused payment for his generosity, so we sent him steaks and whisky to show our deep appreciation for who we referred to as 'Our Genius.' We had folks interested in our music just from seeing his artwork. Thank you, Tommy Bishop!"

Musician and long-time friend Scott Tempo agrees. "I've watched Tommy create state of the art work for about 20 years now. I've seen how he labors for hours over the smallest details. I've always been a big fan and have come to Tommy numerous times for band artwork over the years. He's always delivered unique pieces that stand out above the crowd,” says Tempo, whose band Boo Hag is one of three bands playing for the book launch concert. “To be able to be a part of his book release is an honor.”

Tommy unawares art bar

An early example of Bishop's work advertises The Whig, North America's greatest dive bar located at the corner of Main and Gervais Streets in Columbia.

 

In advance praise of the publication, Julia "Liz" Elliott, author of The New and Improved Romie Futch and The Wilds, writes, "Combining the subversive silliness of underground comix with the elegant grimness of Edward Gorey, The Incredibly Strange ABCs will enchant both children and adults with addictive tongue twisters and surreal scenarios. Roused from a stupor produced by reading too many humdrum alphabet  books, parents will laugh along with their tots as they explore Bishop's absurd and wondrous world."

Filmmaker and segment director of Drafthouse Films anthology ABC's of Death 2.5, Steve Daniels, writes, "As a father of two budding weirdos, Bishop's The Incredibly Strange ABCs was a revelation; far more fun that the stuffy, homogenized alphabet books I grew up with as a kid. These strange illustrations and clever wordplay never fail to illicit giggles or downright maniacal laughter from my children. The weirder, the better, and this book has it covered."

A selection of the illustrations found in The Incredibly Strange ABCs by Tommy Bishop

Published by South Carolina boutique publishing company, Muddy Ford Press, The Incredibly Strange ABCs is being printed as a limited release and the author will be on hand at both events on the 18th to sign and personalize the book. Pre-orders are available at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com.

Tommy ABCs

The Limelight - A Compendium of Contemporary Columbia Authors, volume II Launches on Wednesday

limelight 2

Join Jasper Magazine and Muddy Ford Press as we celebrate the release of The Limelight: A Compendium of Contemporary Columbia Artists, volume II with readings, refreshments, and signings.

Twenty local authors and artists write about twenty other artists whose work has influenced them, inspired them -- and sometimes changed their lives.

Tapp's Arts Center

Wednesday, August 19th

7 - 9 pm

Admissions is free.

Essays by

Clair DeLune, August Krickel, Brandi Perry, Debra A. Daniel,Jennifer Bartell, Jon Tuttle, Kara Gunter, Kristine Hartvigsen, Kyle Petersen, Laurie Brownell McIntosh, Michael L. Miller, Rachel Haynie, Randy Spencer, Susan Lenz, Tom Poland, Will Garland, Susan Levi Wallach, Don McCallister, Jane Gari, and Chad Henderson

about

Cynthia Gilliam, Cassie premo steele, Drink Small "The Blues Doctor", Ed Madden, Deborah Deck, Darion McCloud Storyteller, Marion Mason, Gina Langston Brewer, Sam  Beam, Lynne Burgess, Pappy Sherill, Boyd Saunders, Carrie McCray, Wim RoefsRobert Clark, George Singleton, Ray McManus, Bentz Kirby, Jean Bourque, and Paul Kaufmann.

With cover art by Matt Catoe. Edited by Cindi Boiter. Published by Muddy Ford Press.

Art from the Ashes Book Launch and Gallery Opening on February 1st at Tapp’s - A JASPER Project

art from the ashes jpeg  

Over the course of four evenings in the summer of 2014, more than two dozen literary, visual, and musical artists gathered in the Jasper Magazine office with experts on the February 17th, 1865 burning of Columbia. The artists immersed themselves in the events that took place the night of the burning as well as the days and nights leading to and immediately following it. Six months later, their inspirations have come to fruition in a multi-disciplinary series of arts events – Art from the Ashes.

Art from the Ashes cover

 

Art from the Ashes: Columbia Residents Respond to the Burning of Their City is a collection of poetry, prose, and even a screenplay by some of Columbia, SC’s most dynamic writers, including Ed Madden, Tara Powell, Ray McManus, Susan Levi Wallach, Tom Poland, Al Black, Jonathan Butler, Rachel Haynie, Debra Daniel, Will Garland, Betsy Breen, and Don McCallister. Edited by Jasper Magazine’s Cynthia Boiter, it is a publication of Muddy Ford Press and the first in the press’s new series, Muddy Ford Monographs.

 

In concert with the book launch, Art from the Ashes: The Gallery will open on the same evening, also at Tapp’s, and will run throughout the month of February. Participating visual artists include Susan Lenz, Kirkland Smith, Christian Thee, Michael Krajewski, Jarid Lyfe Brown, Whitney LeJeune, Mary Bentz Gilkerson, Cedric Umoja, Michaela Pilar Brown, Alejandro Garcia-Lemos, and Kara Gunter.

artist - Kirkland Smith

 

Join us as we celebrate the book launch and gallery opening from 5 – 7 pm. Visual artists will be on hand to answer questions about their work and literary artists will be signing and reading from their writings. Musician Jack McGregor, who created a three movement musical composition in response to the burning, will premiere his work as well.

artist - Jarid Lyfe Brown

artist - Kara Gunter

artist - Michael Krajewski

artist - Christian Thee

 

Additional events include a Visual Artists Panel Presentation on Thursday, February 5th at 7 pm and a Reading and Book Signing on February 17th at 7 pm, followed by a concert by Columbia-based musical artist, the Dubber.

 

All events take place at Tapp’s Arts Center on Main Street and are free and open to the public

 

DEADLINE = MARCH 1

Fall Lines

2015

 

Fall Lines – a literary convergence is a literary journal based in Columbia, SC and presented by Jasper Magazine in partnership with the University of South Carolina Press, Muddy Ford Press, Richland Library and One Columbia.

With a single, annual publication, Fall Lines is distributed in lieu of Jasper Magazine’s regularly scheduled summer issue. Fall Lines will accept submissions of previously unpublished poetry, essays, short fiction, and flash fiction from December 1, 2014 through March 1, 2015. While the editors of Fall Lines hope to attract the work of writers and poets from the Carolinas and the Southeastern US, acceptance of work is not dependent upon residence.

Please limit short fiction to 2000 words or less; flash fiction to 350 – 500 words per submission; essays to 1200 words; and poetry to three pages (Times New Roman 12 pt.)

Submit your work to Jasper Magazine’s Fall Lines – a literary convergence at  https://jaspermagazine.submittable.com/submit.

While you are invited to enter up to five items, each item should be sent individually as a single submission. Please include with each submission a cover sheet stating your name, email address, and USPO address.

There is a five dollar reading fee for each short story; for up to three poems; for up to three flash fiction submissions; or for each essay.

Publication in Fall Lines will be determined by a panel of judges and accepted authors will be notified in May 2015, with a publication date in June 2015. Accepted authors will receive two copies of the journal.

___

The Columbia Fall Line is a natural junction, along which the Congaree River falls and rapids form, running parallel to the east coast of the country between the resilient rocks of the Appalachians and the softer, more gentle coastal plain.

Gallery West – Call for Submissions “Selfies, Real or Imagined: An Exhibition of Visual and Literary Art"

  Call to Artists

Gallery West is currently accepting submissions for its exhibition, Selfies: Real or Imagined, which will be held in late April of 2015. This exhibition will present a broad range of contemporary art and literature using all media in one, two or three-dimensional works. The exhibition is organized by Sara Cogswell, Director of Gallery West, and will include works by both emerging and established artists, internationally and from across the United States.

Social media and the mobile web have given rise to a strange phenomenon called the selfie. What is a selfie? A portrait of yourself, visual or written, usually shared on a social networking website. There are many selfie styles, and numerous psychological factors that might drive any specific person to create a selfie and share it.

This exhibition will explore the wide arena of selfies, either from the perspective of the artist or writer themselves, or an alter ego, as if from another person, animal, mythical or fantasy character…anything the artist or writer can imagine. Writers might share their visions of themselves in poetry or short verse.

REQUIREMENTS AND ELIGIBILITY

 

  • Only unique, one-of-a-kind works of art and literature will be accepted. These may include drawing, painting, collage, prints, photography, sculpture, fiber, and ceramics. Multiples are not accepted.
  • A literary component has been added to expand the scope of this exhibition. Flash fiction, poetry, or prosetry, 500 words or less, will now be accepted. Accepted submissions in literature will be compiled into a chapbook, which will be edited by Susan Levi Wallach and Ed Madden, and published in limited edition by Muddy Ford Press.
  • A literary prize in the amount of $250 will be awarded to one writer. All writers whose work is accepted and included in the chapbook will receive two copies of the publication. Additional chapbooks will be published for purchase.

 

  • Artworks selected for inclusion in the exhibition must be suitably framed and/or made ready for installation, no exceptions.
  • All artworks must be for sale. A “Price on Request” designation is not acceptable. 
The submission of and entry to “Selfies: Real or Imagined” will constitute agreement by the entrant to all conditions set forth in this prospectus.
  • All submissions must be received by 5 p.m. on Friday, January 16, 2015. Materials received after January 16 will not be considered. Gallery West assumes the responsibility of insuring and caring for works of art selected for exhibition at the gallery. The artist will cover shipping costs, arrange for transportation of art works to and from the gallery, and insure works while in transit. After works are selected for exhibition, the gallery reserves the right to photograph and reproduce images of selected entries for publication, education, and publicity purposes.Each artist may submit up to five jpeg images on CD (200 dpi or larger at 1024 x 768 pixels) to the Gallery West address, or via email (gallerywest.sara@aol.com). Writers may submit up to five pieces, each 500 words or less, via email to (gallerywest.sara@aol.com), or by mail to the Gallery West address below.Artists will be notified of their status by mid-February, 2015. A contract will be sent when participation is confirmed.
  • ENTRY CHECKLIST
  • NOTIFICATION
  • All images must be of works made within the past two years (between 2012-2014), and must be accompanied by a checklist of the works submitted for review, including title, date, materials, dimensions and price. Slides are not accepted.
  • IMAGE SUBMISSIONS
  • EXHIBITION ARRANGEMENTS
  • Up to 5 images of recent work in jpeg format
for visual artists
  • Up to 5 submissions of written word, each 500 words or less
  • Detailed image list (including title, year, media, dimensions, and price)
  • Current resume or C.V. (please include mail and email address)
  • Artist statement

 

All submissions must be received by 5pm, January 16, 2015.

Please address submissions to:

 

Sara Cogswell, Director

Gallery West

118 State Street

West Columbia SC 29169

or gallerywest.sara@aol.com.

 

LOCAL POET AND ARTS ADVOCATE, AL BLACK, LAUNCHES HIS FIRST BOOK OF POETRY, I ONLY LEFT FOR TEA: POEMS

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Local poet, arts advocate, and arts organizer Al Black releases his first book, I only Left for Tea:  Poems, on Friday, August 29th with a 7 pm party at the historic Equitable Arcade Building at 1332 Main Street.  Edited by Ed Madden, I Only Left for Tea:  Poems is a publication of Muddy Ford Press, underwriter for Jasper Magazine. It is the press’s 11th publication.

Black, a native of Indiana, moved to the Columbia area in 2008 when his wife accepted a teaching position at Newberry College. A life-long poet, Black, who is also a former coach and athlete, had never shared his work with others—not even his wife, Carol—but he craved the community of writers so he soon began establishing poetry groups to meet various needs in Columbia’s growing writing community. Now, Al leads Mind Gravy, a combination music and poetry group that meets at Drip Coffee in Five Points, as well as two other groups, Bones of the Spirit and Songversation, both of which meet in West Columbia.

The celebration of I Only Left for Tea will feature a signing and reading by Black as well as a musical performance by local music group Daddy Lion, light refreshments, and a cash (donation) bar. The public is invited to attend.

 

About Al Black

A Hoosier in the land of cotton, Al Black was born and raised in Lafayette, Indiana.  He has been married 42 years to Carol Agnew Black; they have four grown children and nine grandchildren. Black was drafted and served as a Conscientious Objector during the Vietnam era, attended Ball State and Purdue Universities, and is a Baha'i. By day he has worked in various management positions and been a business owner; by night he has been an athlete, coach, community activist, and town gadfly. Black began writing verse at age nine, but kept his poems strictly to himself. In late 2008, he moved to South Carolina so his wife could accept a job as a professor of Sociology. Unemployed for the first time and free from family and community expectations, he publicly shared his first poetry four years ago.  Black considers himself a northern born Southern poet because it was here in the South that he felt free to blossom.

 

Ed Madden on Al Black's I Only Left for Tea

“We return here often,” says Al Black in the book’s title poem, “to resume mid-sentence our conversation upon my deck.” That’s the feel of this book, a kind of wide-ranging conversation with a friend. Even as the book teases out in confessional poems the relation between the past and the present, the author’s origins in the Midwest and his life now in the American South, and even as it opens out into broader perspective in voices and stories that spin through the heart of the book, it comes back to the quiet intimacy and vulnerability that drives this collection.  Leavetaking and loss haunt the book, but a desire for connection and continuity keeps us coming back to the deck for that “gift of time together.” – Ed Madden, author of Nest

 

 

I Only Left For Tea

We return here often

To resume mid-sentence

Our conversation upon my deck

Paisley patterned spinning backward

Then forward – narrowing and swelling into its self

Like designs upon a blanket

 

Is time a straight line?

Postulated geometry – point A to point B

Or maybe, it is a long and colorful ribbon that ties

Our gift of time together

Moments that are more than anniversaries

To etch upon our gravestones

 

You and I return here often

To resume our full-flight soaring

On communion’s thermal zephyrs

What is yesterday – today – tomorrow?

I only left for tea

We return here often – wrapped in our paisley blanket

To resume mid-sentence

 

From I Only Left for Tea:  Poems by Al Black, Muddy Ford Press, 2014.