We have all endured months of uncertainty and challenges. Come out and celebrate Arion Press's broadside of Chun Yu's poem "The Map 地圖" (purchase here) with an introduction of the publication by Arion Press and a poetry reading by Yu, followed by a live conversation between Yu and poet Michael Warr on culture and community connections. This event is co-presented by the Two Languages / One Community project (founded by Yu and Warr) as a public dialogue about the importance of cross-cultural exchange and story-telling. The event will be followed by a light reception and brief tour of Arion’s unique letterpress printing facility.
The event will be presented both in person at the Arion facility and digitally via Zoom. (Please register for Zoom link.)
Co-sponsored by the Chinese Culture Center Center of San Francisco, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, and Mechanics Institute.
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ABOUT THE ARION PRESS: Described as an “irreplaceable cultural treasure” by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Arion Press is a complete, fully-integrated hot type foundry, letterpress workshop, and book bindery in the United States and one of very few such facilities in the world. More at https://www.arionpress.com/
ABOUT CHUN YU 俞淳: Chun Yu, PhD, is a bilingual poet, graphic novelist, scientist, and translator. She is the author of the multi-award-winning memoir in free verse “Little Green: Growing Up During the Chinese Cultural Revolution” (Simon & Schuster) and a historical graphic novel in progress (Macmillan). She is a recipient of San Francisco Arts Commission grants for her poetry and graphic novel projects and an honoree of the 2020 YBCA 100 award for creative change-makers and community leaders, and more. Her work is taught in history and culture classes around the world. Chun holds a B.S. and M.S. from Peking University 北京大學 and a Ph.D. from Rutgers University in biomaterials. She was a post-doctoral fellow in a Harvard-MIT joint program.
ABOUT MICHAEL WARR: San Francisco poet Michael Warr's books include Of Poetry & Protest: From Emmett Till to Trayvon Martin, The Armageddon of Funk, and We Are All The Black Boy. His many literary honors include a 2021 San Francisco Artist Grant, 2020 Berkeley Poetry Festival Lifetime Achievement Award, San Francisco Library Laureates, NEA Fellowship, Black Caucus of the American Library Association, and Creative Work Fund Award. He is translated into Chinese by poet Chun Yu for their Two Languages / One Community Project. Michael is a former Deputy Director of the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) and a board member of the Friends of the San Francisco Public Library.
ABOUT TWO LANGUAGES / ONE COMMUNITY: Two Languages / One Community began as a workshop that uses writing and translation to exchange culture and life experiences between Chinese/Asian American and African American communities. These communities are often culturally isolated from each other, even though they live in the same neighborhood or work together. We believe that sharing stories and language facilitates understanding, connection, and support. More at https://twolanguagesonecommunity.com/
