Main Library>NEA Big Read event

Tea Time Talk: “Contemporary Mexican and Chicano Art” with Kathryn Zupsic

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Join Kathryn Zupsic for an afternoon talk inspired by the NEA Big Read.

Starting in 1930s Mexico City with famous works by Diego Rivero and Frida Kahlo, this talk follows the thread of modern Mexican art movements through the decades and across the border, culminating in the vibrant Chicano art scene in the U.S. today.   We’ll look at art from both sides of the border, with colorful imagery lifted from ancient Mayan ruins, Mexican folk art, Catholicism, graffiti, cars, and the L.A freeways.

Kathryn Zupsic is an art lecturer and gallery guide for San Francisco’s de Young, Legion of Honor and SFMOMA art museums.  Her expertise is in bringing to life the museums’ world-class special art exhibitions, from Claude Monet and David Hockney to graffiti artist Keith Haring and tattoo designer Ed Hardy.  Kathryn has given hundreds of art presentations to museum patrons and community organizations.  She believes that looking at great art should be engaging, fun, and challenging.  She lives in San Francisco, and for twenty-five years has been a part-time resident of Ketchum.

NEA Big Read Spanish Book Discussion

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Join Sara Pettit, M.A. and Spanish Instructor for the College of Idaho, for a discussion of the NEA Big Read selection, Into the Beautiful North.  (The class will be held in the Regional History library underneath the Children’s Library.)

Screening of “The Other Side of Immigration”

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Based on over 700 interviews in Mexican towns where about half the population has left to work in the United States, The Other Side of Immigration asks why so many Mexicans come to the U.S. and what happens to the families and communities they leave behind. Through an approach that is both subtle and thought-provoking, this documentary provides a perspective on undocumented immigration rarely witnessed by American eyes, challenging audiences to imagine more creative and effective solutions. Roy Germano made The Other Side of Immigration while conducting Ph.D. fieldwork in rural Mexico with funding from the National Science Foundation.

*The film is subtitled in both English and Spanish.

NEA Big Read English Book Discussion

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Join Programs and Education Manager, Tim Price, Ph.D., for a discussion of the opening chapters of the Luis Alberto Urrea’s Into the Beautiful North. The discussion will largely take on a Reader-Response lens and format, inviting participants to share their experience in reading this text – What characters do you find yourself most connected to, and why? Where do you see your own experience (cultural, social) reflected in the text?  How does the text ‘speak’ to you, or not for that matter? 

We will also discuss the literary and historical concept of ‘borderlands‘ – how this novel reflects on those emerging literary themes and historical methodologies.

Graffiti artist Bobby Gaytan art installation and public unveiling

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Boise-based graffiti artist Roberto Gaytan will be creating a commissioned piece on a 16 X 8 ft. ‘canvas’ in the foyer of The Community Library.  His piece will be based on the NEA Big Read selection, Into the Beautiful North, as well as his own experiences as a migrant worker. He will be working all day, and invites the public to come by and watch him in action as he surprises us with his colorful and vibrant artistry.

Gaytan was born in Nampa, Idaho. He grew up as a migrant farmworker, nomadically moving throughout the United States to work in the fields. As a teenager, he was introduced to graffiti and art, and eventually pursued a career as an artist. He attended Boise State University where he earned a bachelor’s degree in graphic design in 2001. Currently, Gaytan works as an illustrator at the Bureau of Reclamation. He also owns an art and design studio called Blakbook22 where he paints murals, designs logos and creates custom artwork.

“Mexican-American Literature in the Beautiful North: An Introduction to Chicanx Literature” with Dr. Carolyn Gonzalez

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As part of the 2019 National Endowment of the Arts Big Read, Dr. Carolyn González’s presentation will examine Luis Alberto Urrea’s Into the Beautiful North (2009) as part of a broader tradition of Chicanx literature. This lecture will offer a general introduction to the genre focusing on literature produced in the twenty-first century in manifestations ranging from Chicana Young Adult (YA) literature to Chicanx Detective fiction.

Carolyn González is an Assistant Professor of Spanish in the World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures Department at the College of Idaho. She earned her Ph.D. in Hispanic Languages & Literatures as well as an M.A. in Spanish and a Concentration in Women’s Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles. Prior to her arrival at the College of Idaho, she worked as a Visiting Assistant Professor (Faculty Fellow) for the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her areas of specialization are in Latinx, Chicanx and Mexicana literatures. At the College of Idaho, she teaches a wide range of courses from Introductory Spanish Language courses and Freshmen Writing courses to advanced courses in Latin American and Latinx Literatures. She is currently working on a book project focused on the representation of prostitution in literature by Mexicana authors.

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