Art at the Library



One of the four exhibits of the 8th Annual ARS POETICA is being hosted this year for the first time at the Bainbridge Public Library, from March 1 to March 30. This exhibit will feature the work of fourteen photographers and fourteen poets. On display will be the photographers' artistic interpretations of the poems, along with the printed poems that inspired them.
 
Overall, ARS POETICA celebrates the fusion of poetry and art from March through May in Kitsap County. For this project, West Sound poets (from Kitsap, Jefferson, & Mason Counties) submit their poems to be jury selected for West Sound artists to choose and respond to artistically in any medium. Over the past years, Collective Visions Gallery in Bremerton, Front Street Gallery in Poulsbo, and the Poulsbohemian Coffeehouse have hosted ARS POETICA Exhibitions in the spring-where poets and artists gather to celebrate with a reading of the poems, a display of the artworks, and a slide show for the public to enjoy.

Participating poets:   Amy Genova: Janetmarie Valiga; Marsha Cutting; Judy Drechsler; Diane Lee Moser; Junay Johanson; Cindy Vandersluis;  Beverley West; Rebecca Rekow; Dawn Henthorn; Kenneth Enright; Jayne Marek; Anne Kundtz; Sue Hylen
Participating photographers:  Gerald Young; Pat Egaas; Genevieve Moyer; Diane Hutchings; Rob Wagoner; Norm James; Steve Hannuksela; Cindy McGregor; Paul Brians; Bob Rosenbladt; Irma Suplee; Dawn Bockus; Betsy Leuner; Adelia Ritchie

Please join us on March 1st from 5-7 pm at the Bainbridge Public Library for a First Friday Ars Poetica Celebration. This will include an exhibit and a slideshow of images by local photographers to illustrate the displayed poems they have selected to interpret. There will be a scheduled reading at 6PM.

You can view this exhibit all of March during regular library hours and online at  www.bainbridgepubliclibrary.org.  A podcast interview with Sue Hylen, organizer, is available at    https://www.bestofbcb.org/arts-034-ars-poetica-at-the-library/

As always, thank you for supporting your Bainbridge Public Library and local artists.

~ Linda Meier, art coordinator

PS:  If you have interest in exhibiting your work, feel free to contact me at  lindameier2000@gmail.com
Book Lovers Night Out


The 2nd Annual Book Lovers Night Out took place on Thursday, January 31st. The evening was a community gathering of local authors, book lovers, library champions, and Eagle Harbor Books-who supported the event with ticketing and book sales. 
 
Appetizers, delicious desserts provided by Sweet Dahlia, and a variety of beverages for the over-21 crowd were served prior to an entertaining panel discussion moderated by the inimitable Kevin O'Brien.  He and Deb Caletti, Anna Quinn, Elizabeth George, and Lynn Brunelle shared stories about their own writing and careers, favorite books for book groups, and answered questions from the audience. All members of the panel are part of Seattle7Writers, a nonprofit collective of Pacific Northwest authors whose mission is to foster and support a passion for the written word in our community and everywhere. After the lively discussion, the books purchased could be signed by the authors. 
 
BPL is grateful to the enthusiastic crowd of book lovers, library supporters, and the time and energy donated by the panel for making Book Lovers Night Out a continuing success.
BPL Staff Profile - John Fossett

Any library patron who has interacted with John Fossett at the Bainbridge Branch of the Kitsap Regional Library knows he's an extrovert, a man of many words and  is particularly knowledgeable about music and movies.  But few know of John's fishy past; the Merchant Maritime Academy in Maine, where he received a B.S. in Nautical Science and Engineering and a US Coast Guard 3rd Mate License to work on ships. Jobs were scarce after he graduated so John took a position with a company in New Orleans and worked on supply boats servicing oil rigs.
 
As soon as possible and following his family's tradition of commercial fishing, John pulled on his rubber overalls and jumped at the chance to take up commercial fishing in Alaska, where he met his first wife. They married in 1990, settled in Suquamish and had two children. After she passed, John and the children moved in with John and his girlfriend on Bainbridge Island.
 
John became a stay-at-home-Dad. His decision unexpectedly lighted a footpath directly to KRL and Bainbridge Public Library. Volunteering with other parents at Odyssey, a multi-age classroom program through the Bainbridge Island School District, John joined field trips to the library with others. At the same time, John was researching: "What work is next and right for me?" "No more fishing in Alaska, for sure." John had been taking career tests to answer his own questions. Guess what? Probably not a surprise to know that the test result said, "Librarian."
 
As you might expect, high-energy John quickly applied to U-dubs' library school the next year and started a part time job with the Kitsap Regional Library while in school. Upon graduation John was hired by KRL to buy movies and music for the library collection and to work on the reference desk. Then a position at the Bainbridge Branch opened up and John's been here ever since. John has been a music and movie selector, a branch manager, a collection manager and now a reference librarian. He celebrated seventeen years with KRL and he continues to enjoy his job and his compatriots so much that it still doesn't seem like work!

~ Judy Tingley
What's New in the Garden

Though winter snow and ice did some damage in the BPL gardens, most of our beautiful trees and shrubs survived. As we tidy up the broken branches, we'll also begin restorative pruning on older woody plants that need a little help to regain their natural beauty. Among the most damaged are the elderly cherry trees that line Madison Avenue. Already struggling with pests and diseases, these old gals are becoming dangerous and are overdue for replacement. Once their rootballs are dug out (no small task), we'll plant Venus dogwoods, new beauties that offer spring flowers, summer fruit, and autumn color as well as lovely winter silhouettes.
 
They will frame our Japanese Haiku garden, which is being renovated slowly, with respectful care. Now that the refreshed meeting room is finished, the garden is being replanted as just the right plants are sourced and placed. The goal is to create a seamless transition between the building and the garden. However, it's always best that plants not actually touch the walls and rooftops of buildings, and few if any plants flourish in the dry shade under deep eaves. Rivers of rock will encircle the building walls, and the plantings will be layered from low growers near the windows to taller background trees that help create a sense of intimacy and enclosure despite the zooming traffic nearby. Peace! 

~ Ann Lovejoy
A library is proof that you can never have too much of a good thing
Books Worth Sharing

Rupture  
 by Ragnar Jonasson

A cold case in a cold country! In 1955 two couples move to an uninhabited, remote fjord in Iceland. Soon after, they abruptly leave when one of them dies under mysterious circumstances. The case is was never solved. Fifty years later, a photograph surfaces indicating that the four people may not have been the only ones living on the fjord. This intrigues young policeman Ari Thór, assigned to Siglufjörður, a nearby town. The town is under quarantine for a flu-like virus, no one is leaving their home, and Ari is bored and antsy, determined to find a crime to solve. But no one wants to help him. Secrets are a way of life for the townsfolk, and to their way of thinking this old mysterious death is best left unsolved. But Ari is undaunted, and the case slowly moves forward as he persuades the locals to speak. This is a deft blend of Nordic Noir and British Golden Age mystery!  Haunting, frightening and complex, Rupture is a dark and atmospheric thriller from one of Iceland's foremost crime writers (who translated the Agatha Christie mysteries into Icelandic).

~ Susan Braun

The Mystery of Bainbridge Public Library's Swamp Bird...Episode 7
 
Phil A. Sisk and the "Swamp Bird" story is still sitting still on its pedestal. A new fact may move it forward. Milly and Walt Woodward were the owners of The Bainbridge Review during WWII.  They strongly supported the Bill of Rights which had been violated for many of their neighbors on the Island.*  The  Review  was the only newspaper on the coast to repeatedly remind its readers about the Bill of Rights violation.
 
Late in the 1940s, the Woodwards left the island and moved to Washington D.C.  leaving the Review in the hands of Phil Sisk. They were still owners, but Sisk was the Editor. Perhaps, the 1948 memorial plaque on James Washington's sculpture at BPL was donated by the Woodwards to Phil Sisk for taking over?

~ Judy Tingley

* Bainbridge History Museum tells newcomers and long-timers the Island's core tale.
Friends of the Library Book Sales

The Bainbridge Island Friends of the Library book sales offer gently used books, CDs, DVDs, audiobooks and magazines to support the Friends, who in turn reinvest in the library through endowment gifts, programming and special events, magazine subscriptions, the aquarium in the Children's Library and much more. Daily, scores of donated books, magazines, CDs, DVDs, and other items arrive in our book room.  A crew of volunteers work three days a week to sort, price, organize, and shelve these donations for our sales.  As a result, our stock of books and other items on display for sale is constantly renewed. Over a year's period, we receive several hundred thousand books and we are proud that we have only gently used, often new appearing books on our shelves.

Mark your calendar for book sales at Bainbridge Public Library:

Saturday, March 9th 10:00am - 4:00pm
Thursday, March 14th 1:00pm - 4:00pm
Tuesday, March 26th 10:00am - 4:00pm

Did You Know?

Bainbridge Public Library, a nonprofit organization, owns, operates, and maintains the Library building and grounds through community donations and grants.  Kitsap Regional Library provides the library staff, collection, classes, and a virtual library at KRL.org with funding from property tax revenues.  Together we provide the quality library our community wants and has come to expect.  Thank you for your support!