Bohemian Rhapsody

Featured Poet: Br. Paul Quenon The old farmers say you can hear corn growing in the night, and I borrow the expression for snowmelt and sun light. This is in my book: Afternoons with Emily – i.e. Dickenson, with Black Moss Press, Ontario. Massive Attack Poems by Brother Paul Quenon Detail of Cowls on Pegs by Brother Paul Quenon The Cowl –solemn as chant, one sweep of fabric from head to foot. Cowls hanging on a row of pegs— tall disembodied spirits holding shadows deep in the folds waiting for light, for light to shift waiting for a bell for the reach of my hand to spread out the slow wings, release the shadows and envelope my prayer-hungry body with light. A Poignant Reading Journey Longwood Gardens is a continual source of inspiration. As one of the librarians here at Longwood I delight both in the gardens’ changing beauty as well as the cultural and historical connections that our gardens represent. Often, I am surprised by how powerfully the plants connect us all globally and across time. This delight of discovery drives my curiosity and—not surprisingly for a librarian—to read and learn a bit more. Given Longwood’s current onsite and online exhibition, Voices in the Landscape: Deeply Rooted with Charlotte Blake Alston—a celebration of the strength, resilience, and contributions of the African American community—as well as the start of our 2021 Community Read—in which we ask readers to discover how one finds a passion for nature and explore what can become of that spark— there is undoubtedly much to learn and consider. Ebook free for Longwood Members

Distance Noguchi - The Noguchi Museum In an interview with a filmmaker preparing to make a movie about his work, Noguchi explained, “[I]t is your contact with reality that is the sculptural experience, and I wish you could get this into the movie and into this film. If you’ll find, for instance, some way of making it not a monologue, I’d appreciate it so much because a monologue is so boring. I mean, I would suggest, if you just cut out everything I’ve said, practically, and replace it with silence if you will, or music—if you can’t have silence or something…[Some other kind of noises than me, I mean, you know, any kind of noise, you could have crickets, or what have you, anything but just not me…] Shock people into appreciation that sculpture is a matter of silence, and that all the noise in the world doesn’t help one little bit and speech is a real hindrance, because it puts ideas into people’s heads that don’t belong there.”1

Sway The Royal Irish Academy is closed to protect the public, as are the museums and cultural institutions who had planned to host our touring exhibition this year. We have put together the exhibition virtually so that you can still enjoy these ten words while staying safe. Ruth Ruth Hegarty, Managing Editor, Royal Irish Academy One Fine Day: David Byrne Performs His Hymn of Optimism and Countercultural Anthem of Resistance and Resilience with the Brooklyn Youth Chorus In the spring of 2019, when David Byrne (b. May 14, 1952) took the stage at the third annual Universe in Verse to read a science-inspired love poem to time and chance titled “Achieving Perspective,” I introduced him as one of the last standing idealists in our world — a countercultural force of lucid and luminous optimism, kindred to Walt Whitman, who wrote so passionately about optimism as a mighty force of resistance and a pillar of democracy. Two weeks later, Byrne took the stage at the National Sawdust gala to celebrate their largehearted mission of using music as an instrument of change, as a movement toward a more beautiful and inclusive world.

Digital Jigsaw Puzzles – Smithsonian Libraries / Unbound Need a fun mental break? We’ve created six digital jigsaw puzzles through Jigsaw Explorer that feature a few favorite images from our collection. Play them right here on our blog or use the links to expand an individual puzzle. Each puzzle is set to contain about 100 pieces, but they are customizable for any skill set. Hit the question mark icon on a puzzle for more information.