The Long Shadows of Summer

It's a very eventful week at the bookshop!

  

Tonight (Tuesday, Aug 11th) is the fourth and final segment of the Marshall Auricular Hour's "Summer Series 2009", at the FBI's beautiful artspace on Main Street. Formerly a church, the acoustics in the room are sweetly resonant, perfect for the enjoyment of readings and music. 

Shadow of poet Keith Flynn, reading at the first Auricular Hour.

Last week's "Ballads and Counter-Ballads" drew quite a crowd, doubling the previous two week's respectable attendance numbers.   The evening's performance was a very interesting blend of traditional and non-traditional balladry.

Visiting experimental-folkstress Ilo Mar performing a "Counter-Ballad".

Tonight's Auricular Hour features local poet Erin O'Neal accompanied by local artist Jimmy O'Neal on crystal bowls, local songwriter Patti Waltz, and visiting writers Ester Amy Fischer and Dorothy Friedman.  Back here at Lapland Bookshop, we host a wine reception directly after the performances, where folks have a chance to meet and mingle with the artists, and purchase signed copies of their work.  More layers of cultural texture than you might expect to find in downtown Marshall on a Tuesday night!  

Poet Lee Ann Brown hosting Ballads and Counter-Ballads

This is the last weekly Auricular Hour before our friends Tony Torn and Lee Ann Brown, founders of the French Broad Institute of Time and the River (FBI), leave Marshall to return to the Big Apple with their little daughter Miranda for another school year.   Tony and Lee Ann, along with Joel Friedman of Zuma Coffee, invited us to collaborate on what became the "Auricular Hour" series, and they have generously donated many hours of their time this summer, as well as the use of their venue, to make the events a success.  Hope you can join us to give them a big send-off tonight!

Miranda enjoying a book during the Auricular Hour reception at Lapland.  Photo by Lee Walker.

Also, tomorrow night, the FBI is hosting a movie night featuring the filmmakers of Marshall.  If you're in the area, that is an event you won't want to miss!

And don't forget...this Friday night is the Town of Marshall's French Broad Friday "Dog Daze" event.  Suzanne Kline, author of "Cosmo's Great Adventures Series" is coming to the bookshop to sign copies of her picture book from 5:30 till 7pm -- and she's bringing the star of the series, Cosmo himself!  More about that in our next post....  

A Sign of Things to Come

Very exciting progress at the bookshop this week...our new sign is complete!

Great thanks to local artist Francesco Lombardo, (aka Frank), who created this beautiful double-sided sign painting for us. Frank's sign work has been the talk of our little town since his recent jaw-droppingly-gorgeous work appeared on Main Street at Bacchus Bistro. We are so glad he was eager to work with us, and willing to collaborate on design ideas. We love our new bookshop sign and logo, and hope it adds to the cherished look of our historic town.

Wrestling sign paint into new depths is a sideline for Frank, who is an accomplished painter of portraits and landscapes in the classical tradition. He graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art with a major in painting, and was awarded a Fulbright grant to study in Iceland from 2004-2005. Frank has spent time teaching painting and drawing in the U.S. as well as overseas, lived and studied with the painter Odd Nerdrum in Norway, and furthered his studies in Florence, Italy. He is currently at work on several new projects in his island studio, a part of the Marshall High Studios art community on the French Broad River, just across from our bookshop.

Big thanks also to Matthew Lucas and crew, who showed up at a moment's notice to help us hang the sign. You guys are the best!

These men are a fine example of the generous, supportive community that exists in our town, which makes it such a pleasure to live and do business here. Thanks again, y'all!

Mermaid Parade

The mermaids of Marshall, filmed by Tony Torn.

Celebrating our "first ever" French Broad Friday event!

Mermaids, mermen, pirates and river-loving revelers of all ages gathered at Lapland Bookshop on June 12th to kick off Marshall's second annual Mermaid Parade, during the first French Broad Friday event of 2009. 

Led by the "In Sunshine Or Shadows" caravan by Tasmanian artist Patrick Hall, the junior mermaids sashayed down Main Street to the sounds of Steve Davidowski and friend on soprano sax and clarinet.  Our very own Mick was recruited to provide the rhythm on snare drum. 

After making their way across the bridge to the island, the little mermaids and their friends met up with the mermaid elders.  Together they danced....

Later that evening, back at the bookshop, Mick soothed the tired and happy paraders with some gentle flowing music in our riverside courtyard.

After savoring a couple of good stories (merfolk LOVE books!), the sleepy mermaids and mermen headed home, ready to drift off to the shores of dreamland.

Don't miss next month's French Broad Friday, July 10th, for some "Bike-a-licious" fun! 

Once Upon a Time...

on a fine day in May, Lapland Bookshop

 opened it's doors ...

and so our tale begins....