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Tuesday, Sept 7, 2021 | View in browser
With the kids in school and the weather starting to turn less humid, Fall isn't too far away. But don't break out your winter coats yet! There are plenty of outdoor events and celebrations happening with your library. This September 9th look for us at the Kits, Cats, and Kids Block Party and on September 11th at the Robert Crown Community Block Party. We'll be there!
“I’m working to be the me I’m meant to be at this time in life”.
That’s the retirement mantra Jevoid Simmons lives by as he fully devotes himself to making his art. Over the years Jevoid has exhibited his work locally at the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center (April – October 2019), Evanston’s Noyes Cultural Art Center; the Evanston Art Center, the Garrett Theological Seminary (Northwestern University, and The Art Institute of Chicago and Creative Coworking Gallery. Now he’s pushed Up From Down Home, a deeply personal story of family told alongside seventeen of his paintings. We caught up with Jevoid to ask him more about this important work.
EPL: I wonder if you could tell us a little about yourself. How did you become the artist you are today? How long have you lived in Evanston?
Jevoid Simmons: I'm a 40-year resident of Evanston, IL.As long as I can remember I’ve been an art maker. I’m not grounded in any specific artistic system. Art classes were a part of my educational experience from grade through junior high school. Of all the schooling received in those years, the art classes resonated with me; they fed my soul. I’m always amazed with the art produced by others, past and present and incorporate learnings from them where it makes sense. When painting I enjoy working in a primitive style. It’s not tied to the necessity of precision. This style has a certain warmth and innocence. I have an affinity for the work of Grandma Moses (Anna Mary Robertson). Her work and that of similar artists capture a snapshot of life and tell a story.
EPL: Your first book Up From Down Home, A Family's Journey North is out now and contains seventeen of your paintings. Tell us a little bit about the origin of this story and these artworks. What's the story behind the book?
JS: My recently published book, Up From Down Home, shares my family’s migration story out of rural Alabama in the early 1950s to escape racial violence from the Klan. Seventeen paintings were completed to support the book’s written narrative. As you view the paintings, you may see similarities to Grandma Moses’ work. The paintings were executed over a seven-year period with the last one completed in 2015. My hope was that the warm style will invite the viewer into the picture; while the related written narrative conveys the extraordinary hardships faced by Black folks living under Jim Crow in the South.
EPL: I know that in addition to painting you also carve and work in other crafts. Where can people see your works? And what do you have coming in the future?
JS: I'm working on a few things that are related to social justice. I just completed a painting to announce/promote a play that Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre will put on in mid-September on the R. King incident and resulting LA riots. I'm also going to participate in a curated show related to social justice that will open in mid-october at Noyes Cultural Art Center. Got to get to work on that piece. More long term, I will continue with social justice work. I also intend to create paintings that reflect on my experiences going back to the south with my parents and siblings. We left a huge contingent of kinfolks in Alabama when we left. There are some interesting paintings that I have in mind.
To see more of Jevoid's work, go to: http://www.sugarcreekfolkart.com/
His book is available at http://www.upfromdownhome.com.
Up From Down Home: The Journey North is available at Evanston Public Library for checkout.
What are the books Evanston readers want to see the most? If you read ebooks then you know that the Libby app is a good place to go to put something you want on hold. Here are some of the top books with the highest holds right now:
AALBC.com, the African American Literature Book Club, is a website dedicated to books and film by and about African Americans and people of African descent, with content also aimed at African-American bookstores. AALBC.com publishes book and film reviews, author profiles, resources for writers and related articles. AALBC.com is the oldest, largest, and most frequently visited web site dedicated to books by, or about, people of African descent. Here at EPL we rely heavily on their newsletter and recommendations. If you haven't visited them before, be sure you remedy that situation today!
Did you know that there are free services available for blind and low vision patrons? You or someone you love may be eligible and not even know it. Here are two services that are free and worth checking out if you know someone with a vision impairment:
BARD Mobile - An app that allows access for eligible users who have enrolled in the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) at the Library of Congress. People who sign up through this app receive free audio and braille reading materials. It’s eligible to residents of the United States and American citizens living abroad who cannot read standard print. As the site says, “If you are blind or have temporary or permanent low vision or a disability that prevents you from reading or holding the printed page, you may be eligible for this program. For more information on eligibility, visit https://www.loc.gov/nls/about/eligibility-for-nls-services.”
Bookshare - This site allows you to customize your reading experience with ebooks in audio, audio + highlighted text, braille, large font, and other formats. Again, it’s free, and can be useful to people with dyslexia, blindness, as well as cerebral palsy.
New to Kanopy: The Must See Films You Shouldn't Miss
Remember that you can stream all of these films through the library's Kanopy subscription, absolutely for free. View this tutorial to show you how. Try it today!
Here's what's new on Kanopy this month:
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Luce
LUCE is a smart psychological thriller about an adopted all-star student and athlete, whose reputation is called into question when his teacher makes an alarming discovery.
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Not Even in a Wildest Dream
The challenges of the present, expectations for the future, and the dreams of those who experience the reality of public high school in Brazil. Through the voices of students, principals, teachers and experts, "NOT EVEN IN A WILDEST DREAM" offers a reflection on the value of education.
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Dope Is Death
The story of how Dr. Mutulu Shakur, stepfather of Tupac Shakur, along with fellow Black Panthers and the Young Lords, combined community health with radical politics to create the first acupuncture detoxification program in America in 1973 - a visionary project eventually deemed too dangerous to exist in America.
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