Bruce Weber

This publication accompanies the Figuration Never Died: New York Painterly Painting, 1950-1970 exhibition at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center. By about 1950, forward-looking New York painting was seen as synonymous with abstraction- especially charged, gestural Abstract Expressionism. But there was also a strong group of dissenters; artists, all born in the 1920s and many of them students of Hans Hofmann, who never lost their enthusiasm for the seductive qualities of thick, malleable oil paint. They remained, for the most part, 'painterly' painters. These rebellious artists include Lois Dodd, Jane Freilicher, Paul Georges, Grace Hartigan, Wolf Kahn, Alex Katz, Albert Kresch, Robert de Niro Sr., Paul Resika, and Anne Tabachnick. The compelling figurative work they made between about 1950 and 1970, in contrast to the prevailing Abstract Expressionism of the time, constitutes a significant chapter in the history of recent American Modernism.

Bruce Weber is the author of five previously published books of poetry: "These Poems are Not Pretty" (Miami: Palmetto Press, 1992), "How the Poem Died" (New York: Linear Arts, 1998), "Poetic Justice" (New York: Ikon Press, 2004), "The First Time I Had Sex with T. S. Eliot" (New York: Venom Press, 2004), and "The Break-up of My First Marriage" (Rogue Scholars Press, 2009). Bruce's work has appeared in numerous magazines, as well as in several anthologies, including "Up is Up, But So Is Down: Downtown Writings, 1978-1992" (New York: New York University, 2006), "Riverine: An Anthology of Hudson Valley Writers" (New Paltz, New York: Codhill Press, 2007), and "The Unbearables Big Book of Sex" (Autonomedia, 2010). He has performed regularly in the Tri-State area, both alone and for many years with his former performance group, Bruce Weber's No Chance Ensemble, which produced the CD, "Let's Dine Like Jack Johnson Tonight" (http: //members.aol/com/ncensemble).

Collectible scented sculptural candles by Maurizio Cattelan, Barbara Kruger and Bruce Weber Visionaire releases its 66th issue with a set of sculptures. Ritual comes in the form of sculptural scented candles created by three world-renowned artists and produced by International Flavors & Fragrances and is published in an edition of 200 copies. The artists are Maurizio Cattelan, Barbara Kruger and Bruce Weber. Maurizio Cattelan gave Visionaire a particular Italian plunger that was reproduced at full scale. The black wax captures the subtle wooden texture of the handle and the smooth rubber of the base. It smells of fresh roses created by Bruno Jovanovic of IFF. What better accessory for your bathroom sitting alongside your toilet paper and your Toilet Paper? Barbara Kruger transformed one of her iconic two-dimensional works into a sculpture that smells like marijuana, a scent developed by Laurent Le Guernec of IFF. The words "Buy Me I'll Change your Life" dramatically jut out of the facade. Bruce Weber embraced the latest in technology as he 3D-captured his current favorite male model Trevor Signorino. The 3D file was then transformed into an all-white sculptural portrait replete with facial features and muscle tone. Carlos Benaim of IFF created the scent of the beach on a hot summer day on the Jersey Shore where Signorino works selling ice cream.

Life Is a Wheel chronicles the cross-country bicycle trip Bruce Weber made at the age of fifty-seven, an "entertaining travel story filled with insightful thoughts about life, family, and aging" (The Associated Press). During the summer and fall of 2011, Bruce Weber, an obituary writer for The New York Times, bicycled across the country, alone, and wrote about it as it unfolded. Life Is a Wheel is the witty, inspiring, and reflective diary of his journey, in which the challenges and rewards of self-reliance and strenuous physical effort yield wry and incisive observations about cycling and America, not to mention the pleasures of a three-thousand-calorie breakfast. The story begins on the Oregon coast, with Weber wondering what he's gotten himself into, and ends in triumph on New York City's George Washington Bridge. From Going-to-the-Sun Road in the northern Rockies to the headwaters of the Mississippi and through the cityscapes of Chicago and Pittsburgh, his encounters with people and places provide us with an intimate, two-wheeled perspective of America. And with thousands of miles to travel, Weber considers his past, his family, and the echo that a well-lived life leaves behind. Part travelogue, part memoir, part romance, part paean to the bicycle--and part bemused and panicky account of a middle-aged man's attempt to stave off, well, you know--Life Is a Wheel is "a book for cyclists, and for anyone who has ever dreamed of such transcontinental travels. But it also should prove enlightening, soul-stirring, even, to those who don't care a whit about bikes but who care about the way people connect" (The Philadelphia Inquirer).

This anthology is a project celebrating The Alternative New Year's Day Spoken Word / Performance Extravaganza - the 2014 event marking the 20th Anniversary of this uniquely New York tradition. The collection features the diverse work of many of the participants in what is recognizably a very verbose affair; from the seasoned wordsmith, to the literarily licentious, to the cerebrally provocative. A. N. Y. D. S. W. P. E. takes place every year in New York City's historic East Village. Hundreds of people funnel into the venue during an eight hour marathon reading on January 1st. To make the 20th anniversary extra-special, this year it was held at the world-famous Nuyorican Poets Caf . Why does such an event exist? Well, if you are going to write poetry, you might as well read it aloud. And if you are going to read it aloud, people might as well come and listen. And if people are going to come and listen, you might as well make a party of it. And if you are going to make a party of it, it might as well be one of the biggest parties of the year, and if it's going to be one of the biggest parties of the year, you might as well invite some of the best artists, writers, and performers to come and entertain the masses. You can also get drunk and fall in love while you're at it. In the event that you cannot make the party, we've put together this convenient little volume so you can sample the wonder, wisdom, brilliance, and madness without having to go outside. And if you did come to the party, well this book was a sure-fire way to take a poet home with you at the end of the night. No need to thank us. Your happiness is the only reward we require. ... That and the price for the copy. Enjoy.

Every state in the nation has geographic divisions—upstate/downstate, urban/rural, major city/rest of the state—that loom large as barriers to common cause. Toward One Oregon examines the prospects for uniting one geographically diverse state in the years ahead. When Oregon became a state in 1859, its role in the nation and the global economy was quite different than it is today. Boundaries that made sense in the nineteenth century don’t always serve twenty-first century needs productively. Current times demand a new, strategic understanding of the state and its role in the nation and the world if its people—all of its people—are to thrive. Oregon, like many states, is faced with recovering and rediscovering a sense of shared purpose as it attempts to meet the needs of its diverse communities, peoples, and landscapes. Toward One Oregon explores Oregon’s urban and rural history and assesses the current situation through political, economic, and demographic lenses. The book’s contributors include historians, urban planners, journalists, economists, sociologists, and political scientists. They explore the links and splits between urban and rural Oregon and together offer a collaborative path forward—for Oregon and for any state faced with similar, seemingly insurmountable, geographic divisions—using the best of urban and rural policies in strategic and complementary ways.

Named One of the Best Baseball Books Ever Written by Esquire An insider's look at the largely unknown world of professional umpires, the small group of men (and the very occasional woman) who make sure America's favorite pastime is conducted in a manner that is clean, crisp, and true.​Millions of American baseball fans know, with absolute certainty, that umpires are simply overpaid galoots who are doing an easy job badly. Millions of American baseball fans are wrong. Bruce Weber, a New York Times reporter, not only interviewed dozens of professional umpires but entered their world, trained to become an umpire, then spent a season working games from Little League to big league spring training. As They See 'Em is Weber's entertaining account of this experience as well as a lively exploration of what amounts to an eccentric secret society, with its own customs, its own rituals, its own colorful vocabulary. Writing with deep knowledge of and affection for baseball, he delves into such questions as: Why isn't every strike created equal? Is the ump part of the game or outside of it? Why doesn't a tie go to the runner? And what do umps and managers say to each other during an argument, really? Packed with fascinating reportage that reveals the game as never before and answers the kinds of questions that fans, exasperated by the clich s of conventional sports commentary, pose to themselves around the television set, Bruce Weber's As They See 'Em is a towering grand slam.