Image Update: Issue #159

Musicians Anathallo

Issue #159 | December 1, 2008

Contents

Features
Image is Changing Lives... and the Culture is Listening In
Artist of the Month: Barry Moser
Image Bailout Sale
Anathallo: Canopy Glow
King Baby by Lia Purpura

Message Board
Call for Artists
New Features on the Sojourners Website
The Advent Door

ImageNews
Image Readings: Valerie Sayers
Want to Work for Image This Summer?
Now Hiring a Director of Development at Image
Subscribe to Image in Print

Features

Image is Changing Lives... and the Culture is Listening In

We'd like to invite all our ImageUpdate readers to take a moment, if you haven't already, to read our end-of-year annual appeal letter and to check out our brand new monthly giving option. Image's vision for art and faith has flourished for the past twenty years--and we know it's thanks to the folks who have believed in that vision alongside us. ImageUpdate would not exist were it not for volunteers willing to write and edit IU without pay and those generous donors who support Image with their financial gifts. We already consider you all part of the Image family. In this season of giving, we ask that you consider whether you might join the ranks of our financial supporters. It would mean more than we can say.

You can give right now by clicking here and donating over our secure server, or make a monthly donation here. Or, if you prefer to give by mail, just send Gregory Wolfe an e-mail at gwolfe@spu.edu with your mailing address and we'll send you a print version of this letter, a response card, and an envelope.

Artist of the Month: Barry Moser Artist of the Month Barry Moser

Saying that Barry Moser is an illustrator is like saying that Bach wrote ditties or that Shakespeare scribbled verse. Yes, the core achievement of Moser's career is the production of world-class illustrations to some of the greatest literary works ever produced, including the Bible, The Divine Comedy, Moby Dick, even Alice in Wonderland. But Moser's art is not merely secondary; it enters into a serious and occasionally playful dialogue with the text. It's not that Moser sets himself up as an equal partner with the authors he illustrates. But he's pretty darn close to being the ideal reader. His response is both an act of interpretation and an extension of the author's own vision--and that's a rare talent indeed. Moser is also a wonderful ambassador for the book itself. At a time when books feel like an endangered species, Moser's involvement not only with illustration but also with booksmithing--exquisite typography, hand-made paper, traditional methods of binding--is a deeply civilizing force. Also, having grown up in a world marked by the rhythm of Bible-thumping, Moser has had every reason to call himself an "agnostic" and a "reprobate." But from where we stand, he's the most honest-to-God God-haunted soul we've seen in a long time. His illustrations of the Bible always humanize what tends to get etherealized; in that sense, they are more profoundly incarnational than the work of the religiously gung-ho. If you don't know Barry Moser's particular ability to link gravitas with hilaritas, his penetrating gaze into character and scene, his appetite for meaning, you should, ASAP.

Click here for more.

Image Bailout Sale

Short on cash and wondering where your bailout is? Or just wondering what to get for the person who has everything? We're here to help. Now's your chance to stock up at imagejournal.org because we're having a huge sale on Image back issues and books! Nearly everything in our online store is marked down, with discounts from 10% to 70% off, and more on bulk orders. This sale will be available only for a limited time, and in some cases while supplies last, so order while you can.

Click here to shop at the bailout rate!

Anathallo: Canopy Glow Anathallo's Canopy Glow

With the recent release of their sophomore album, Canopy Glow, Mount Pleasant, Michigan-based musicians Anathallo have solidified their reputation as a band to watch. Taking their name from the Greek word for "to renew or refresh," the eclectic group throws everything into their latest album--even the kitchen sink. The septet, a group of self-described "marching band geeks," creates a sound similar to yet distinct from their earlier collaborations with indie favorite, Sufjan Stevens. As with their first album, Floating World (2006), the band's followup is filled with the eclectically harmonized voices of all the band members, as well as an assortment of instruments, including melodica, glockenspiel, strings, trumpets, trombones, Velcro peels, and socket-wrench spins. Combined with odd lyrical trajectories, the songs are often off-kilter, with varying meters and styles, thus allowing singers Matt Joynt and Jamie Macleod to weave through songs that are, as one reviewer says, "quirky and mystical...constantly subverting standard verse/chorus/verse construction." Topical content in the songs is wide-ranging, from the surreal ("Cafetorium") to the sublime ("The River") to the grave, as in "Noni's Field": "We saw the sky, swarming full with the light that the fireflies made / An accidental constellation / You, how will you go? / Out through your mouth in a sigh? / Into a space we don't know." Adding to the experience, Canopy Glow's cover is graced by Temma on Earth, a painting by Tim Lowly that evocatively provides the listener a visual entrance into the album's mystery. In support of their album, Anathallo will be touring in Europe and Asia throughout the remainder of the year.

For more information, click here.

King Baby by Lia Purpura Lia Purpura's King Baby

If this Advent season becomes so hectic that you find yourself talking to inanimate objects, reading King Baby may be your antidote. Lia Purpura addresses these short, untitled poems to a found object, a totem made of two gourds and decorated with cowrie shells, as depicted on the book cover. Purpura found the object, which she calls "King Baby," in a riverbed while walking with her children. In the poems, her unexpected discovery becomes a version of the classic myth of the stranger from heaven who shows up needing a place to stay, along with an unconventional meditation on motherhood. "Let me confess--I don't believe / things happen for a reason," the poem's speaker admits to King Baby, ambivalent about the discovery. But elsewhere, she asks it, "how did we live / knowing nothing / of you?" Over the course of the book, King Baby becomes a repository for secrets, prayers, and confessions--and so takes on a semi-divine quality, more than mere anthropomorphizing. "Unable to otherwise pray, / I can always apologize-- / sorry if the house is a trap, / sorry you'll never see a barn, / ocean, mountain range, prairie," one poem begins, expressing a longing to offer hospitality to this strange godlike figure. As the poems take on a contemplative tone, the event of King Baby's discovery comes to seem more like a Nativity tale, if a bizarre one. While Christians begin preparations for a season of worshipping a "King Baby," it seems fitting to reflect on the strangeness of worshipping an infant who showed up on earth under peculiar circumstances, in need of hospitality. Amid a sea of holiday clichés, Lia Purpura's poems provide a much-needed strangeness.

Buy the book here.

Message Board

Call for Artists

The parish of Our Savior Catholic Center at the University of Southern California is soliciting interest and artists' portfolios for the numerous works of sacred art to be commissioned for the new church and student center. Interested artists are invited to visit the project website for information regarding the architectural project, the artistic vision, the scope of works to be commissioned, and the submission requirements.

New Features on the Sojourners Website

Sojourners magazine, the leading publication for progressive Christians, now offers a unique poetry feature on their website, www.sojo.net. All poets featured in the print publication are also showcased online with audio clips of the poets reading their pieces and sharing about their inspiration and writing process. The most recent poet featured is Rachel Guido deVries, who teaches creative writing in New York. Her most recent collection of poems is The Brother Inside Me (Guernica Editions, 2008). She gives a moving reading of her poem, "Imperfection," and shares how a study of the word "religion" led her to write about faith in a new and surprising way. To hear more readings and interviews with Sojourners' featured poets, we welcome you to see the web exclusives at www.sojo.net.

The Advent Door

Artist and writer Jan Richardson is returning to her blog, The Advent Door, for another season of posting original art and reflections. Part of her attempt to cultivate a creative, contemplative space in these often frenzied days, the blog is an artful companion in this season. Visit The Advent Door here.

ImageNews -- The Scoop on Our Programs

Image Readings: Valerie Sayers

No one writes about the misfortunes of the body quite as wryly as Valerie Sayers, who describes herself as a "cheerful hypochondriac." In Sayers's stories and essays, pain intensifies everything about us: our generosity and wisdom, maybe, but also, frankly, our vanity, our folly, and our white-knuckled grip on life. There's nothing transcendent about the way Sayers's characters experience illness, but somehow, redemption creeps in at its own dawdling pace. And precisely because Sayers doesn't clamor for it, it arrives at last. And when it gets there, it's the kind you can lean into.

Click here to listen.

Want to Work for Image This Summer? Lucy Shaw Fellow

Are you an undergraduate student who'd like to work for Image this coming summer? Or do you know someone who might be interested? The purpose of the Luci Shaw Fellowship is to expose a promising student to the world of literary publishing and introduce him or her to the contemporary dialogue about art and faith that surrounds Image, its programs, its contributors, and its peer organizations. In short, we're looking for summer fellows who share our vision for the place art has in the life of faith, and who are also diligent, meticulous, and responsible about the daily details. There's grunt work galore in this job, but also plenty of opportunities to grasp the vision at the heart of a dynamic arts organization. The Shaw Fellow will also receive a scholarship to Image's Glen Workshop in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Applications are due February 1, 2009.

To learn more about the Luci Shaw Fellowship, and to download an application, click here.

Now Hiring a Director of Development at Image

Image is looking for a full-time Director of Development to build our charitable giving and help us grow to meet the increasing demand for our programs. By giving our fundraising efforts the attention and guidance they need, the Director of Development will enable Image to remain at the forefront of cultural transformation and broaden its influence. We are looking for a creative, hard-working professional who is passionate about Image's mission in the world of art and faith and skilled at motivating others to support that mission. The position will involve creating a development plan for Image, building relationships with donors and potential donors, making asks for major gifts, writing solicitation materials and grant proposals, and systematically evaluating the results of Image's fundraising initiatives. Qualifications include a Bachelor's degree, excellent verbal and written communication skills, excellent relational skills, and an ability to work effectively and creatively, alone or as part of a team. Previous experience in development and/or experience working for a non-profit is a plus. Is this you or someone you know? To apply, send a CV; a cover letter that states how you came to know about Image and what you envision bringing to Image's development program, outlining your particular skills or areas of interest; and a 5-10 page sample of your prose writing. Mail to: Image, Attn: Director of Development Application, 3307 Third Avenue West, Seattle, WA 98119. Or email to jmullins@imagejournal.org with the subject line: Director of Development. If you have questions, contact Julie Mullins at (206) 281-2988 or jmullins@imagejournal.org.

Click here for a complete job description and list of qualifications.

Subscribe to Image in Print and Get More Art, Fiction, Poetry, Essays, Interviews, and Every Good Thing

If you like reading about great new art and writing inspired by faith in ImageUpdate, and you're ready to get down to reading and seeing the stuff itself, it's time to subscribe to Image. Each quarter our editors comb the world of art and letters to bring you our favorite new work--work that respects transcendent mystery as well as the gritty truth of the material world that bears the divine imprint. A one-year subscription gets you four beautifully produced issues delivered right to your door. Ninety percent of the journal's content is not available on our website, but only through what we call "the sacrament of print." Click here to get the magazine Terry Tempest Williams calls "evocative and inspiring" and Bret Lott calls "the most meaningful literary journal being produced today."

ImageUpdate

Publisher: Gregory Wolfe
Managing Editor: Beth Bevis
Layout: David Rither
Contributors: Anna Johnson, Matt Malyon, Julie Mullins, Hannah Notess, and Gregory Wolfe

ImageUpdate is the biweekly e-mail newsletter from Image, a quarterly print journal that explores the relationship between Judeo-Christian faith and art through contemporary fiction, poetry, painting, sculpture, architecture, film, music, and dance. Each issue also features interviews, memoirs, essays, and reviews.

ImageUpdate brings you news about books, CDs, organizations, websites, conferences, exhibitions, and tours--all of which inhabit the intersection between faith and imagination. ImageUpdate will also notify you whenever a new issue of Image is printed, an Image event is upcoming, or new content is posted to our website.