Stella Waitzkin treated modern books as works of art, much like ancient scrolls or illuminated manuscripts. After creating molds from old leather books, she cast them in colored resin. The resulting objects can be interpreted as homages to books as vessels of wisdom and knowledge. The artist had a fraught relationship with books as things—recognizing that some provided freedom for authors to speak their minds, but also fearing that others could be misleading or untrue. Consistently returning to books as both form and subject, she underscored the extraordinary nature of this ordinary object.
Tucked in at home, we're remembering how much we enjoy the art of the written word.
Let us know what you've pulled off the shelf by posting on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter with the hashtag #WAMfamUNCG.
I'm re-reading Harry Potter. It was a fundamental part of my childhood and provides a magical escape to a place where good triumphs over evil.
ALICE CULCLASURE Assistant Registrar
I just finished "The Silent Patient" by Alex Michaelidis and am about 2/3 of the way through "Sanctuary" by Luca D'Andrea, a rather strange book I randomly picked from the UNCG library—but it has me hooked. Next on the list is "Dance" by Colum McCann, one of my favorite authors.
NANCY DOLL Director
I recently bought two new books: Patti Smith's "Year of the Monkey" and Maria Popova's "Figuring". The former is an escape into a world that exists between dream and waking, Smith's memories and the present. It's "trippy" and beautifully written. Popova's book inspires ruminations on history, science, and the meaning of life.
TERRI DOWELL-DENNIS Associate Curator of Education
"Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared Diamond and for laughs... David Sedaris' "When You're Engulfed in Flames".
ANN GRIMALDI Curator of Education
I just finished Geraldine Brooks' "Year of Wonders", about a self-imposed quarantine during the Plague, and am starting "The Paris Architect" by Charles Belfoure.
ELAINE D. GUSTAFSON Curator of Collections
I just finished "Nothing To See Here" by Kevin Wilson. It's a quirky, fun read, entertaining and compassionate.
KRISTEN MAGOD Special Assist. for External Affairs
Re-reading Jorge Luis Borge's "Collected Fictions", my favorite short story collection and a work I turn to when life becomes stranger than fiction. Only Borges can clear my mind.
LORING MORTENSEN PR + Communications Officer
Doing my bit for the homeschooling effort: I've been meeting up with my niece on FaceTime to read together. The last few nights we've been on a poetry kick, enjoying the whimsy of Shel Silverstein's "Where the Sidewalk Ends".
DR. EMILY STAMEY Curator of Exhibitions
I'm finishing up "The Dakota Winters" by Tom Barbash. It's set in NYC in the 70's and 80's and full of references of who's who in popular culture—many of whom were photographed by Andy Warhol and part of the Big Shots exhibition! It's funny to read of social interactions and unconsciously place social distancing concerns on them; how quickly I've adopted this strange new lens to view through.
SUSAN TAAFFE Preparator
I'm not really a big book reader, though I did recently pick up a few to try and start. I have been going through cookbooks to find new and interesting things to cook. I have decided to enlist my kids to help cooking, so we are looking at cookbooks together.
KIM TERBUSH Registrar
If you're in need of something new to read, Scuppernong Books is providing phone and online ordering. Support your local book shop!
