On January 22nd, 2022 at 7PM, we kick off the calendar year with a reading by essayist Barrett Swanson and poets T.S. Banks, and I.S. Jones. Barrett Swanson's work explores conspiracy theories, psychics, toxic masculinity and how these and other cultural forces shape our hope and grief. T.S. Banks's recent work examines the process of leaving, abandonment, and accessibility. I.S. Jones's poetry speaks to the power of naming as an act of reclamation, making peace with the past to find a window to the future. Join us for an evening of powerful performances by these accomplished and thought-provoking writers on our YouTube channel or the Facebook event page.
January Watershed Reading
Barrett Swanson is author of the essay collection, Lost in Summerland (Counterpoint 2021), and is a contributing editor at Harper’s Magazine. He was the recipient of a 2015 Pushcart Prize, and his short fiction and essays have been distinguished as notable in Best American Short Stories (2019), Best American Nonrequired Reading (2014), Best American Essays (2014, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2020 and 2021) and Best American Sports Writing (2017). His work has appeared or is forthcoming in many places, including Harper’s, The New Yorker, The Paris Review, The New York Times Magazine, GQ, The Believer, The Guardian, The New Republic, American Short Fiction, The Atavist, Guernica, Best American Travel Writing 2018, and Best American Travel Writing 2020. He is an assistant professor of creative writing at the University of... Read More
T. S. Banks (he/him) is a Black & QTDisabled, non-binary teaching artist, poet, and playwright from Madison, WI. He is the Founder of Loud ‘N UnChained Theater Co. His work addresses visioning for Black Liberation, a critique of the medical system, radical care + access, madness, QT Liberation, disability justice, & abolition. T's chapbooks "Call Me ill" , "Left" & "SPLIT" can all be found on his website.
I.S. Jones is a queer American Nigerian poet and former music journalist. She is a Graduate Fellow with The Watering Hole and holds fellowships from Callaloo, BOAAT Writer’s Retreat, and Brooklyn Poets. Her works have appeared or are forthcoming in Guernica, Washington Square Review, Hayden’s Ferry Review, The Rumpus, The Offing, Shade Literary Arts, and elsewhere. Her honors include the 2021 Kemper K. Knapp Fellowship as well as the Hoffman-Halls Emerging Artist Fellowship. She is currently the Director of The Watershed Reading Series with Arts + Literature Laboratory and is Editor in Chief at Frontier Poetry. Her chapbook Spells of My Name was published by Newfound in 2021.
Photo credit: Nicholas Nichols (@maruneboy)
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Arts + Literature Laboratory is located at 111 S. Livingston Street #100, Madison, Wisconsin, 53703.
Our galleries are open Tuesday through Friday 10am-5pm and Saturday noon to 5pm, and other programs take place throughout the week. Please check the events calendar and education section for details.