Shout it out! Last month, Northwesterners got the chance to experience The Last Vispo Anthology: Visual Poetry 1998-2008 in person, and it was indeed, a hoot and a holler! (That's editor Nico Vassilakis leading the call, and Fantagraphics co-founder Mike Catron helping out in the background!)
A fleet of poets descended upon the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery on Saturday, November 24th, and throughout the evening, they performed small batches of readings.
Contributor Gustave Morin traveled all the way from somewhere in Southern Ontario — "Let's just say, Detroit," he told us — for his performance.
Another Canadian, poet Donato Mancini, braved the border crossing for a reading with us. He had a very touching moment when he was flipping through the book to find his piece, and just exclaimed, awestruck, "I still can't believe this thing exists!"
In between the batches of readings, we were fortunate to have musical performances from Lori Goldston (former Nirvana and Earth cellist, and recent Stranger “Genius Award” recipient) with former Black Cat Orchestra band mate Kyle Hanson.
Sadly, this evening was also a farewell party for Nico, a longtime co-worker of ours, who is moving to New York with his new bride. This shot is blurry, but I love the proud round of applause he's getting from Gary Groth here. We'll miss you, Nico!!!
Warehouse hero Ajax Wood prepares to bitchslap the young Conrad Groth. Just kidding, I have no idea what is going on. You can see more photos from the opening reception at the Fantagraphics Flickr.
The next day, the posse of poets headed north for an event at the STAG (Strathcona Art Gallery) Library. The following photos were shot by Steve Calvert, and you can see more in this Facebook gallery.
Thank you to all the poets for participating in this very special weekend for a very special book!
Our exhibit of prints from the anthology will continue to be on display at the Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery through tomorrow Thursday, December 6th, and are for sale for the ridiculously low price of $25 each. Drop by to see them at 1201 S. Vale Street in Seattle's Georgetown district. Open daily 11:30 to 8:00 PM, Sundays until 5:00 PM. Phone: (206) 658-0110.