Bookstock: Still Over, But Wait . . . Poets, Artists to the Rescue
Artistree’s Unbound to continue; what about the books?
Though Bookstock, Woodstock’s annual literary festival, is no more, no need to erase the dates from your calendar entirely. Sundog Poetry has stepped in to offer the Woodstock Poetry Festival on the same weekend originally scheduled for Bookstock, June 21 and 22, at the North Chapel, 7 Church Street, Woodstock, Vermont.
Sundog’s website currently lists a dozen poets who will be appearing at the festival—exact schedule to be determined—including the world-renowned Robert Pinsky, the first United States Poet Laureate to serve three terms. While some names may be less familiar, it’s an august bunch. Prizes and accolades among them are impressive: Guggenheim Fellowship (more than one) Pushcart Prize (more than one), National Book Award, MacArthur “Genius,” publication in The New Yorker.
Given the fact that there are more poets per capita in Vermont than any other state, as well as a poetic tradition that began with Robert Frost almost a hundred years ago, it is only appropriate, as well as natural, for Vermont to host a poetry festival that celebrates its august poetic tradition with a group reading of some of America’s most eminent poets.—Sundog Poetry
The Festival will be Vermont’s largest poetry gathering in 2024. The public is invited to meet several of the country’s highly recognized poets, greet other poetry lovers, and enjoy the beauty of Woodstock. All festival events are free.
Artistree is gearing up as well. In past years, the gallery in nearby Pomfret would host an opening of a companion-to-Bookstock exhibition, Unbound (described below.) Sans Bookstock, it will go ahead with the exhibition this year beginning June 21 and running through July 20.
The 12th year of this annual exhibit, Unbound features Artist's Books, as well as artwork of books, about books, and made from books. Viewers will experience the fascinating world of Artists' Books, objects with visual narratives and complex constructions that are one-of a kind artworks. There will also be sculptures made from books, and other works about, or of, books. [See photo, top]
Artistree has issued a call for submissions for this year’s Unbound. Due date is May 31, 2024; details on its website.
And . . . the storied, humongous used book sale from which, in past years, you may have staggered to your car, dragging shopping bags full of literary treasures and world-class bargains? Not sure. The collected books are somewhere, still awaiting their fate.
(Photo, center: Photograph taken by Jared C. Benedict archive copy at the Wayback Machine on 15 May 2005, via WikiCommons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Robert_pinsky_20050515.jpg)
——————————————————
Thank you! You’re reading Artful, a blog about arts and culture in the Upper Valley, and I hope you’ll subscribe (still free) and then share this post with your friends and on your social media. We are just over 2800 subscribers.
And in case you are wondering . . . Susan B. Apel shuttered a lifelong career as a law professor to continue an interest (since kindergarten) in writing. Her freelance business, The Next Word, includes literary and feature writing; her work has appeared in a variety of lit mags and other publications including Art New England, The Woven Tale Press, The Arts Fuse, and Persimmon Tree. She connects with her neighbors through Artful, her blog about arts and culture in the Upper Valley. She’s in love with the written word..