The Spotlight
August 2006 - Immedium
1. News
2. Reviews
3. Events
1. NEWS
A. Firestarter for Photographic Memories
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The kickoff for our latest book went off with a bang:
Desert to Dream: A Decade of Burning Man Photography (ISBN: 1-59702-003-6, $29.95).
We appreciate your enthusiastic support, as reflected in the photos from our July launch party in San Francisco (courtesy of www.laughingsquid.com).
Again, we thank Aidell's for providing the best sausages this side of Sierras, and appreciate the attendance of luminaries such as Les Blank, the critically acclaimed filmmaker who wrote the book's introduction.
Author Barbara Traub has gotten a great reception as she has shared her work from Oakland's fiery The Crucible to the esteemed Commonwealth Club (the podcast is available on their web site). Plus Burning Man's co-founder and director Larry Harvey and the book's editor Tracy Swedlow have joined her to enliven many presentations at bookstores and libraries in between.
Barbara's interview on "Talk of the Bay" on KUSP 88.9 FM (NPR Radio in Santa Cruz, CA) will air on August 18th at 10 am. After attending Burning Man for the 11th time later this month, she will swing through Reno to meet more of the faithful in Nevada, as the Reno-Gazette Journal features the book.
B. Pet Pride Days
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Immedium went out into the field to meet more dog lovers at the 17th anniversary of San Francisco Animal Care and Control and then at the Berkeley Humane Society's annual Bay to Barkers on July 23rd.
We enjoyed introducing our books to proud pet owners who instantly appreciated the exploits of our four-legged heroes:
The Year of the Dog (ISBN: 1-59702-002-8, $15.95)
WonderBaby (ISBN: 1-59702-001-X, $8.95).
Also WonderBaby recently earned a "So Swanky" award by www.swankymoms.com who offered this recommendation to all new moms and dads:
"A very cute book with fabulous illustration!...The author takes you through all the letters of the alphabet and explains Wonderbaby's amazing powers as he transforms into an interesting animal with each letter of the alphabet!"
We look forward to nuzzling noses with more furry friends and their companions at similar celebrations to come, such as "The Dog Days of August" sponsored by SFDog at San Francisco's Duboce Park (8/12, noon) and Dolores Park (8/26, 3 pm).
C. Oliver Chin's teaches Comics at Libraries
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Recently, San Francisco Bay Area newspapers from the Contra Costa Times, Fremont Argus, and the East Bay Express have covered author Oliver Chin's travels to local public libraries. Invited by eager librarians to satisfy their patrons' growing interest in graphic novels, Oliver has enjoyed teaching teens and adults how to create their own comic books.
On 7/28/06, Kris Noceda from the Tri-Valley Herald reported:
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As art programs continue to be trimmed in many school districts, kids have turned to outside sources for programs that meet their interests...Chin recognizes the need and has spent three years holding workshops throughout Bay Area libraries - including a session teaching kids in Contra Costa Juvenile Hall - to inspire kids to follow their dreams.
"With schools lacking resources to offer such programs, librarians recognize they can give an opportunity for kids and address these interests right here and now," he said. "It's really inspired me to do what I'm doing. I can see myself in these kids' faces."...
"When I tell a boy or girl to create a new idea, in some way I'm talking to myself," he said. "I'm always trying to motivate them and pursue their creative interest."
2. REVIEWS
Praise for Desert to Dream:
"Traub presents 10 years' worth of lavish color photography on the annual counterculture festival, Burning Man. The first Burning Man was held on a San Francisco beach and attended by a couple dozen people. Today it takes place in Nevada's Black Rock Desert and is known as the Black Rock Arts Festival. Every year Black Rock City is erected around a giant wooden statue that is immolated to much fanfare at the end of a weeklong bacchanal.
Traub's images capture the festival's spirit in lots of zany costumes and art installations celebrating off-kilter takes on contemporary culture and the participants' flights of fancy. The slight accompanying text carries the highest -countercultural-subcultural pedigree, thanks -to the authors: celebration film documentarian Les Blank and Beat poetry icon Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Of course, there are some naked folk in the photographs, though their nudity is hardly gratuitous, what with all the body paint and artfully applied mud.
Good visual fun and countercultural documentation, this is vibrant stuff in these grim days, a must for pop-culture collections."
- American Library Association Booklist
"I just wanted to say thank you for a fantastic program! Barbara, you put on a wonderful show and the audience was captivated by your photos and the way you were able to describe your experiences on the playa. Larry, thank you for sharing your inspiration, stories and how Burning Man has evolved."
- The Commonwealth Club of San Francisco
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Praise for The Year of the Dog:
"Kids + Dogs = Fun!
In this book, Daniel has lots of adventures with his friend Lin, and you can read how this pup learns to be a loyal and dependable friend."
- The Woofer Times: Local News for SF Bay Area Dog Lovers
3. EVENTS
AUGUST
- 8/03: Barbara Traub: D2D: Capitola Book Cafe, 1475 41st Ave, Capitola, CA, 7:30 pm.
- 8/7: Oliver Chin: Comic Book Class: Novato Public Library, CA, 6:30 pm.
- 8/8: Oliver Chin: Comic Book Class: Excelsior Branch, San Francisco Public Library, 4400 Mission St, 3:30 pm.
- 8/10: Barbara Traub: D2D: Books Inc., 1344 Park Street, Alameda, CA, 7:30 pm.
- 8/11: Oliver Chin: Comic Book Class: Rose Garden Branch, San Jose Library, 1580 Naglee Ave, 2 pm.
- 8/12: Immedium: Dog Days of August: Duboce Park, San Francisco, noon.
- 8/17: Barbara Traub: D2D: Readers' Books, 130 E. Napa St., Sonoma, CA, 7:30 pm.
- 8/26: Immedium: Dog Days of August: Dolores Park, San Francisco, 3 pm.
- 8/22: Barbara Traub: D2D: Fremont Public Library, 2400 Stevenson Blvd, CA, 7:00 pm.
SEPTEMBER
- 9/5: Barbara Traub: D2D: Border's Books, 4995 S. Virginia St, Reno, NV, 7 pm.
- 9/9: Oliver Chin: Comic Book Class: Belvedere-Tiburon Library, 1501 Tiburon Blvd., CA, 10 am.
- 9/20: Oliver Chin: Comic Book Class: Pinole Library: 2935 Pinole Valley Road, CA, 3 pm.
- 9/21: Barbara Traub: D2D: Barnes and Noble, The Pruneyard, 1875 S. Bascom Ave. Ste 240, Campbell, CA, 7 pm.
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Keep your light burning bright!
Immedium
P.O. Box 31846
San Francisco, CA 94131
orders@immedium.com
Immedium, Inc. inspires a world of imagination, and creates entertaining books that have multi-dimensional appeal. Based in San Francisco, CA, Immedium sits on the Pacific Rim, a vibrant intersection for crossover cultural trends from Asia and America. Embracing an increasingly diverse and "multimedia" world, Immedium publishes titles ranging from eye-catching children's books and contemporary non-fiction to commentaries on art and popular culture. Visit us at www.immedium.com.