Here is a message from Beyond Baroque!
A historic lineup of L.A.’s leading artists, performers, poets and authors will salute Beyond Baroque, the city’s legendary literary center, at its 50th anniversary ‘Bohemian Bacchanal’ on Saturday, November 10. The gala event, located in the Venice Arts Plaza, features a dinner and will be highlighted by presentations honoring actor/poet Viggo Mortensen, a long-time supporter of the non-profit organization, and award-winning poet Will Alexander. The evening also pays tribute to Beyond Baroque founder, George Drury Smith.
- Sat, November 10, 2018
- 5:30 PM – 10:00 PM
- Beyond Baroque. 681 Venice Boulevard. Venice, CA 90291
Full details below!
This November we celebrate 50 years of Beyond Baroque with a Bohemian Bacchanal of art, music, poetry, wine, and revelry. Join us in honoring our dear friend Viggo Mortensen for his selfless support of Beyond Baroque, and our visionary poet-in-residence Will Alexander for his profound achievements in expanding the artistic possibilities of language. We’ll also recognize our founder, George Drury Smith.
The Beyond Gala begins with a cocktail reception in the Poet’s Garden at Beyond Baroque, followed by a live and silent auction in our theater. The auction includes rare literary material from our archive; art from some of the world’s most notable artists, including Ed Ruscha, Gronk, Raymond Pettibon, Shepherd Fairey, Francisco Toledo, George Herms, and many others; and a wide array of items donated by the Venice business community.
Following the cocktail reception and art auction, join us for dinner and entertainment outdoors under a lavish tent. An incredible array of musical and literary talent will pay tribute to Beyond Baroque’s literary community.
Many of Los Angeles’ seminal writers and artists have found crucial support from Beyond Baroque, often at the earliest stages of their careers. Join several of these alumni – including Viggo Mortensen, Will Alexander; John Doe and Exene Cervenka – who met at our Wednesday Night Poetry Series – in celebrating fifty years of literary and artistic life in Venice, California.
Payments are also accepted by check. Please mail to: Beyond Baroque, 681 N. Venice Blvd, Venice, CA 90291
Please consider supporting the next 50 years of Los Angeles poetry, literature, and art by sponsoring the Beyond Gala, or by placing an ad in our program book. Further information about the benefits of being a sponsor is available here.
Get your Nov. 10th tickets here!
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ABOUT OUR HONOREES:
Viggo Mortensen
Actor, painter, photographer, poet, musician, and publisher Viggo Mortensen was a member of Beyond Baroque’s legendary Wednesday Night Poetry Workshop when it was facilitated by renowned poet and performance artist Bob Flanagan. Born in New York and raised in Venezuela, Argentina, and New York, over several decades he has had roles in over 35 films. Nominated for two Academy Awards, he is currently working on directing his first feature film. Fluent in English, Spanish, and Danish, Mortensen has continued to explore and create in the fields of photography, poetry, art, and music. In 2003 he and Pilar Perez founded Perceval Press, a small, independent publisher specializing in art, critical writing, and poetry. The intention of the press is to publish texts, images, and recordings that otherwise might not be presented. A former trustee and current generous supporter of Beyond Baroque, and a longtime member of the Los Angeles poetry community, he resides now in Spain.
Will Alexander
Born in Los Angeles, Will Alexander has remained a lifetime resident of the city. He is the author of over 30 books of poetry, prose, and drama, including Asia & Haiti (Sun & Moon, 1995), The Sri Lankan Loxodrome (New Directions, 2010), Compression & Purity (City Lights, 2011), Singing in Magnetic Hoofbeat: Essays, Prose Texts, Interviews and a Lecture 1991-2007 (Essay Press, 2012) and Across the Vapour Gulf (New Directions, 2017). Over the years his work has appeared in BOMB, Boston Review, entropy, Chicago Review, Denver Quarterly, Hambone, Fence, jubilat, Chain, The Nation, and elsewhere; anthologies such as Norton’s Postmodern American Poetry, Primary Trouble: an Anthology of Contemporary American Poetry, and Nuova Poesia Americana have included his work in their pages. He received the Whiting Fellowship for Poetry in 2001, the California Arts Council Fellowship in 2002, the American Book Award for Singing in Magnetic Hoofbeat in 2014, a PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Award for Sunrise in Armageddon in 2006, and the Jackson Poetry Prize in 2016. He is currently Poet-in-Residence at Beyond Baroque.
