Yebwiersma - Storyville Library
STORYVILLE
LIBRARY
Work: Library Book Collection¹ + Bookcase + Manual Publication².
Commission: The New Library Almere + Museum de Paviljoens, 2010 NL
- During my adolescence age I spent endless hours in the library. At the English literature section. Reading through- and escaping my puberty. Longing for far away lives and destinations. The newly built library and freshly constructed suburban city of Almere – with lots of open territories, wastelands and room to roam - reminded me strongly of the American way of life captured by writers like Raymond Carver or John Fante. I wanted to celebrate the idea of pioneering, of the ‘makeable new land’ by donating my favourite stories and novels to the reading citizens of the city of Almere; the ones I enjoyed reading myself.
My contribution to the reading citizens of the city of Almere was an additional book section called: 'Storyville Library'. This Storyville section exists of 20 volumes [American novels and short stories], which can be borrowed by the library members - a personal bookcase in a public library.
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___________→ The Publication
consists of 5 chapters [ÉTAGES] -
corresponding with the 4 floors + the roof [ÉTAGE V] of the library building.
I - I Heard What Buddy Bolden Said
II - It's The Beginning Of A Great Adventure
III - I Slept On The Pillows Of My Wanderlust
IV - Raise High The Roof Beam, Carpenters
V - And Decks To Seat The Skies
- Page 47, Fragment in Dutch: - Overal waar ik kijk staan ze. Zij aan zij. Dicht tegen elkaar aan gedrukt. Vanaf hier kan ik moeilijk zien wat ze me willen vertellen. Nieuwsgierig kom ik dichterbij. En strijk met mijn hand over hun rug. Geen idee wie hier achter zit. Wie weet is de hoofdpersoon in zijn auto gestapt en weggereden uit het leven dat hij leidde. Zomaar. Of overweegt het personage naast hem een donutshop te openen. In Los Angeles. Alles is mogelijk. Als een visitekaartje laten ze mij hun titel en nummer zien 'mocht je geinteresseerd zijn, neem dan contact met ons op'. Dat ga ik zeker doen, Maar met wie. Het zijn er zoveel. De bibliotheek als Supermarkt voor de Geest. -
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Chapter II, Page 22 - Storyville Library, 2010.
Chapter IV, Page 45 - Numerous books of the Storyville Collection are flying over the adjacent wastleand area next to the New Library, Almere. Books as construction material, 2010.
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1. Some titles from the Storyville Book Collection. The New Library, Almere [NL]
2. To accompany the Storyville Book Section I created a publication for display - a manual for all ages with short stories, drawings and photographs. To provide some playful background information on this personal collection. The Publication contains full color photo pages - black and white pages and mimeographed typeface pages. Image Above: Page 26, 2010.
Title of
Chapter IV is taken from Salinger's similar novel. - All chapter titles from the publication are taken from existing references.
Chapter I refers to
Charles Buddy Bolden, an African American cornetist from New Orleans. Bolden is regarded as a key figure in the development of a
New Orleans style of rag-time music. He's associated with Storyville, a vibrant nightlife area in the late 1900's in New Orleans, notorious for it's brothels and music scene.
Chapter II - Lou Reed Song,
Chapter III - Joni Mitchell Song,
Chapter V - Emily Dickinson, 2010.
Chapter II, Page 25, 2010. Veronica sleeps on Céline's volume: Voyage to the End of Night - On the first page he wrote: - Travel is very useful and it exercises the imagination. All the rest is disappointment and fatigue. Our own journey is entirely imaginary. That is its strength. It goes from life to death. People, animals, cities, things, all are imagined. It’s a novel, simply a fictitious narrative. -