Today at 4:30

The second location of Library! is at Kennedy Library for Science Café on October 27th. Also in attendance: The Reading Chair.

Science Café is an informal speaker series on scientific topics, led by an expert. The series stimulates discussions in the arts and sciences; encourages open, easy-to-understand conversation exploring scientific topics and interdisciplinary interactions.

The topic for Tuesday, Oct. 27th: Is it still a book?
This informal discussion will focus on what makes a book a book. Participants can cozy up and test drive a new Kindle or handle beautiful bound books to compare and contrast this idea.

Cal Poly Graphic Communication professors Lorraine Donegan and Ken Macro, along with Cuesta College Fine Arts Professor David Prochaska will lead the discussion that runs from 4:30 to 6:00 pm, at the 2nd floor Café Lounge.

Please join us. Go visit Library! (and the reading Chair) in the 2nd floor cafe lounge.

(Read the press release here)

Borrow a book to read in the park

(More photos on Flickr)

Library! is an abandoned newspaper rack, repurposed into an informal traveling book and culture exchange within the city of San Luis Obispo, a venue for creative readers who care that reading not become a lost art.
Readers of all ages will be able to find books, magazines, sketchbooks, or an actual piece of book art, and borrowers are encouraged to leave an item for lending. Each piece will have a library card documenting its travels. When a reader checks a piece out, they're asked to sign the card and leave those in a box located on top of the rack. We welcome creative annotation to all the art pieces, and we encourage personal notes in the books left by readers.
Each new location of Library! will be posted here.

Current location of Library!
Jan. 4-15, 2010: Arts Obispo, SLO Creamery, #165 (10am - 4pm)
Saturday Nov. 14: Leaving Cal Poly and headed for Steynberg Gallery
Oct. 27: Science Cafe at Cal Poly -- Is it still a book? (Science Cafe Blog)
Oct. 12-26: The Sanitarium, 1716 Osos Street in San Luis Obispo, California
The New York Times on the Sanitarium:
Article in the Travel section, and photos


(Image: http://www.lapl.org/)

Where is the reading chair?

5. Back in Catherine's van!
4. Week of Oct. 27: Science Cafe at Cal Poly -- "Is it still a book?"
3. Catherine's van :)
2. The Central Coast Book & Author Festival
1. Steynberg Gallery

Thank you, everyone

On Saturday, one of the questions we were repeatedly asked was how this all started. Where did the idea come from? The project began with a May 12th e-mail from Ashley Schwellenbach (below), arts editor of New Times, San Luis Obispo. Ashley wanted some help "brainstorming and executing performance art and art installations around the county, in as highly visible a manner as possible. The goal was to explore what possibilities art affords when you take away the stage and canvas, to ask how we define art, and to question whether San Luis Obispo had the necessary critical mass for such projects (which usually take place in more urban venues)."



We met on Thursday, May 14th, and Reading In Public was born a few days after that first meeting. Reading In Public is the combined efforts of four people: Mignon Khargie and Catherine Trujillo, the creators and organizers of the project, Chris Allen, designer of the Reading Chair, who was also an invaluable collaborator as the project grew, and Allan Cooper, our mentor. Catherine and Mignon were also busy with another project, Live! On Aisle 9, which sadly never came to fruition. Reading In Public itself lost some traction when the original concept of a larger, single-location event was scuttled (we couldn't afford a million dollar insurance policy -- we were, after all, two working moms on no budget). Catherine brilliantly suggested we shift gears and rethink the project. So, the reading chair downsized, gained a couple of roller-blade wheels, and we became SLO booksters (not buskers, since we were doing this only for smiles).



There are so many great moments that remain with us from our first event on Saturday, August 1st, and we'll list a few of them here, in no special order:
♥ Brett Bodemer, lugging the ottoman around when we had trouble navigating uneven pavements. Chris built us a tank: A lovely chair, but formidable in its construction. We think it's earthquake-proof :) Brett stayed with us all day and never complained even though the ottoman got heavier as the day wore on
♥ Dawna Davies who brought some of us to tears with her delivery of the tale of an aged mother unable to sing her special song to her son, who then sings it right back to her. And all the brave readers at the Children's Museum who were battling a building full of loud, colorful distractions
♥ Don Swearingen, who gave cloth life
♥ Jennifer Allen-Barker, a visually impaired reader, whose contribution caused the littlest member of our audience to break into dance
♥ Linnaea Phillips (pictured above), who read from a book by Carl Sandburg, signed by Carl Sandburg, and given to her by her parents
♥ James Darden (pictured at the end of this post) who sang, got busted and was very gracious about it
♥ Francesca Nemko who brought her own bass player, Clint Iwanicha
♥ Margie Noble Englund who read her heart out at the creek when exhaustion peaked and audience dwindled
♥ Mauria Lynn Betts and Heidi Harmon (below), and Kevin Patrick Sullivan, who read in a metered parking spot (our thanks to Rebar for the inspiration)
♥ Shy Ariel Weininger with her amazing pink hair, who yelled out, "Books are cool!" as she cycled past us on her way to work, after she'd finished her stint on the chair
♥ Michael McLaughlin, a lovely man and our final reader, whose choice of location served as a coda of sorts: Bubblegum Alley, where our feet stuck to the ground if we strayed too close to the walls. We did the only thing we could do: We stuck one of our buttons to the wall, with a wad of gum :)
♥ Everyone who carefully selected the works to which they wished to pay homage, and some of whom, unable to decide on just one, brought a stack of well-loved books (see all of our WONDERFUL readers here)
♥ The reader who just signed up online! and left this message: "I WOULD LIKE TO BE CONSIDERED FOR 2010
AS I LEARNED OF THIS PROJECT TOO LATE FOR THIS YEAR. THANK YOU. YESTERDAY WAS WONDERFUL."



It was truly great, and we had a blast. We have a few smaller (stealth) projects in the works, and we definitely think we need a repeat of this event for next year. In the meantime, if you see someone reading outdoors and they're willing to have their photo on our site, do e-mail one to us. We especially love photos taken with your cellphones :) Don't forget to bookmark us on Flickr to see who's reading out in the wide-open public, and you can also follow us on Twitter.

Our readers, times & places for August 1st!

There are a few tbds, so do look for updates to happen throughout the day. Except for when we start at the SLO Library, all times are approximate. You can find a Google map here. If you live in San Luis Obispo, the chair is at Steynberg Gallery at 1531 Monterey, and will be there until 9:30 am on Saturday. Please feel free to sit in it and read. And send us a photo, we'll post to Flickr.

9:45 SLO Library
Sara McGrath, Bob Banner and Jennifer C. Allen-Barker
"On the day you were born" by Debra Frasier
"Thirteen Senses: A Memoir" by Victor Villasenor
Extracts from "Edible SLO"
Audiobook: "The Musical Life of Gustav Mole" narrated by Patrick McNee, story by Kathryn Meyrick

10:35 SLO Little Theater @ Bee Bee
Brett B. Bodemer, Britta Swearingen
A group of brief essays, collectively titled, "Back and There" by Brett B. Bodemer (written after spending a year in Hanoi, Vietnam)
Britta's new play, "Humble Boy"

11:00 Humankind at 982 Monterey
Catharine Krupp, Linnaea Phillips
"Papa, do you love me?" By Barbara M. Joosse
"Rootabaga Stories" by Carl Sandburg

11:30 Millennium Clock at Monterey and Osos
Mike Miller, James Darden
"The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" from the Complete Short Stories of Mark Twain
Poetry by James Darden

12:15 Children's Museum on Nipomo
Dawna Davies, Margie Noble Englund, Verla Neel, Don Swearingen
"I Love You Forever" by Robert Munsch
"Where the wild things are" by Maurice Sendak
Mouse making demonstration
"Town Mouse, Country Mouse"

1:00 Anam Cré Pottery at the Creamery
Kevin Patrick Sullivan, Bob Banner
"What Shall We Do Without Us" by Kenneth Patchen
"The Sacred Matrix: From the Matrix of Violence to the Matrix of Life -- The Foundation for a New Civilisation" by Dieter Duhm
(a 15 min section called "Night Thoughts about a New Friendship between the Sexes")

2:00 Blackhorse Espresso on Higuera
Ryan Miller, Ashley Schwellenbach, Tom Di Santo
"The Phantom Tollbooth" by Norton Juster
"The Youngest Doll" by Rosario Ferre
"The Dharma Bums" by Jack Kerouac

2:30 Higuera at Court Street
Catherine Trujillo & Mignon Khargie
Silent reading

2:45 Marsh at Downtown Center
James Darden, Catherine Trujillo & Mignon Khargie
Poetry by James Darden and silent reading

3:15 The garden at Linnaea's Cafe
Josephine Crawford, Francesca Nemko, Brett Bodemer
"The Alphabet Versus The Goddess" by Shakti Gawain
"Living in the Light" by Shakti Gawain
"Childless Mother" and "Of Parrots & Paradigms" by Francesca Nemko
A group of brief essays, collectively titled, "Back and There" by Brett B. Bodemer (written after spending a year in Hanoi, Vietnam)

4:00 Creek by Mission Mall
Hannah Fowler, Margie Noble Englund
For kids, tbd

4:15ish Nothing Happened Here (at all)
Mauria Lynn Betts, Heidi Harmon

4:45 Mission Plaza, Amphitheater
Ariel Weininger, Hannah Fowler
and the general public (anyone wishing to sit on the chair and read)
Science fiction short stories, tbd
A Chet Gecko mystery
and whatever you like

5:30/duskish Bubblegum Alley
Michael McLaughlin
"Book of the Dead Man" by Marvin Bell


Map by Mignon

The Reading Chair

We saw it today, and posted more photographs. It is just absolutely wonderful. The best part was realising how much fun Chris was having. And we're not making a cushion, it doesn't need any. The slight curvature of the seat and the back rest being at just the right angle all obviated the need for any cushion. It's perfect just the way it is.
Chris is adding another set of endcaps to conceal the screw holes, and constructing an ottoman for the cavity. Should all be done by this coming weekend, a full week before Saturday, August 1st.



See our specifications in the post below.

And now, the chair

Online applications are now closed, and it's on to finishing the chair and mapping readers to venues (a schedule of readers and locations will be posted on Friday, July 24th). We've gotten to know so many lovely people along the way, thank you all so much! A special thank you to Linnaea Phillips, who really does know everyone in San Luis Obispo :) And to Allan Cooper, whose lovely house we invade every Sunday. Most of all, we'd like to say a HUGE thank you to Chris Allen. Words are not enough here, so we'll show you pictures. Here he is, hard at work. We've posted more images on Flickr (or click on any image below) so you can follow along as he finishes the reading chair.





Update: The chair was designed to the specifications below.
• Event marker: The design needed to have a connection to reading. The lid opens to form a chair (and closes into a cube), and both seat and back rest gently curve at the hinge, which are all design elements drawn from the shape of books. Chris Allen used laminated plywood, the striations of which are a reference to book pages. We installed the chair at Steynberg Gallery in San Luis Obispo before the event so the public could sit on it.
• Mobility: We needed to be able to wheel it around easily, but not have it move once it was set down. Chris built in 2 rollerblade wheels at the rear, and we pushed/pulled it by the open lid/chair back.
• Size: It had to have a small footprint so as not to obstruct pedestrian traffic on city pavements as we wheeled it around
• Stability: Sturdy enough that it won't tip over if a kid climbed on it (they did, it didn't move)
• Comfort: The gentle curvature of the seat and backrest makes it comfortable to sit on
• Storage: For any reading material our readers brought with them. The space under the seat works as a small bookcase. Chris also made an ottoman which fits into that space, essentially a box with a lid, which functions as additional storage and seating (we used it for both, and we had all the readers sign the underside of the ottoman's lid). Chris Allen sawed a book in half and used the halves as handles for the ottoman. The name of the book was "Hand Luggage" by John Bayley, on the recommendation of our book-loving friend, Karen Templer.
• Ease of transport: The chair folds to a cube so we could lift it in and out of a car (the top edge of the lid is notched to prevent pinched fingers)




More photos are available here.
To see more of Chris Allen's work, visit CWA Studios.

Ready, set, read!

Location: San Luis Obispo, California. Applications close on Thursday, July 16th are now closed, and a schedule of readers and locations will be posted on Friday, July 24th.

Name:
E-mail address:
In 140 words or less, tell us why you've earned a place on the book chair:
And a few optional bits and pieces.
Favorite author:
All-time favorite book:
And we're curious about how you read. Nothing can substitute for the feel of paper? You love your Kindle? Can't stop tweeting? Tell us, we'd love to know.
Terms: I will abide by all the rules set by Reading In Public for the duration of the project in which I am involved. I will not do anything that breaks the law and interrupts the peace. Reading In Public has the right to stop me from taking part in the project at any time for any reason. I agree that Reading In Public can photograph me taking part in the project, and can publish photographs of my performance on the internet.
I have read and understood the terms

Volunteers needed

A very fun flash mob is being planned for the evening of July 2nd, in San Luis Obispo. We need exactly 18 people (we'll take more, and older kids are very welcome). The event will last for roughly 45 minutes of your time (6:45 to 7:30 pm) if you have it to spare, and of course it will be tremendous fun, we promise. E-mail us if you want to be part of RIP's inaugural ceremonies!

We do have one requirement, that you'll let us post pictures of the event, with captions (only first names), here and over there.

Hard at work on the reading chair

A new sketch from Chris: The chair is now smaller, and mobile, and has a pop-out ottoman which can hold books. The recess into which the ottoman fits is potential book storage also.



Above: One of three sketches from Chris Allen (see the rest here).

Who we are

Reading in Public is a project created and managed by Nothing Happened Here.

Chris Allen is a LEED accredited designer at the San Luis Obispo firm of Kornreich Architects, and an award-winning furniture designer. He is a graduate of the Architecture program at Cal Poly and is currently working towards his architectural license. Chris is an avid furniture builder and has begun to expand his portfolio of work into residential cabinetry.
Website: CWA Studios
Favorite author: Tolkein
All-time favorite book: Ishmael by Daniel Quinn
Can't live without: Dwell

Allan Cooper, FAIA, is a professor of Architecture at Cal Poly, and has served as Director and Associate Dean of the department. He is the recipient of a multitude of professional and teaching awards, including the AIA Presidential Citation (awarded four times) and the AIACCC Award of Merit for design of the Cooper Residence. Allan has given many years of service to the community of San Luis Obispo, serving on the boards of various local organizations, including the San Luis Obispo Planning Commission and the San Luis Obispo Arts Council. He is the current president of Obispo Beautiful.
Favorite author: Kenneth J. Gergen
All-time favorite book: Always the next book on my list, and this week it's The Lost City of Z : A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann
Can't live without: Pistachios

Mignon Khargie is an illustrator and designer. She (and her daughter Hannah) loves to draw animals.
Favorite author: Roald Dahl
All-time favorite book: Cider With Rosie by Laurie Lee
Can't live without: The New York Times Sunday Magazine

Curator Catherine Trujillo has worked with designers, artists, architects, and photographers to create long-standing contributions to the cultural life of the Central Coast. She believes reading is an art and is not lost.
Favorite author: This week -- Reif Larsen (The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet)
All-time favorite book: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Can't live without: My Sunday Morning Newspaper ritual of the Los Angeles Times + New York Times + a large soy, no-foam latte

Welcome

This is the inaugural post for the Reading In Public project. We invite you to stay tuned as we finalize our plans for a celebration of the written word. In a couple of weeks, hopefully sooner, members of the public will be able to apply for a thirty-minute fifteen to twenty-five minute spot on the Reading Bench Chair, specially designed and built for the occasion by Chris Allen. The bench will be centrally located wheeled around to various locations within the downtown area of the city of San Luis Obiso, but its exact location locations will not be revealed until shortly before the day of the event. Reading In Public will take place around the middle of July on Saturday, August 1, and we'll make an announcement here when our dates are set and we're ready to do online signups.

Get as creative as you like -- spend some time thinking about what you would do to proclaim your love of reading, and let us know how you'd fill your 30 20 to 25-minute spot on the bench. We'll publish the full schedule here one week before the event, listing all the people selected to sit on the bench chair, what they'll be doing, and when. We hope you'll drop by. Bring something to read.

Updated to reflect change of plan/venue: The original concept for Reading In Public was a round-the-clock, multiday, single location event, where the Reading Chair would be accessible to the community. We wanted to sign up people online, each reader for 15-20 minutes at a time, and have the chair peopled by a continuous stream of readers.