Those strolling The Westport Library this month will notice a new collection of artwork gracing the walls, with five remarkable new pieces gifted to the Library’s collection.
The latest acquisitions include two collage paintings and one collage illustration by the revered Fred Otnes, donated by the Robert K. Otnes Trust; a piece donated by renowned artist Charles Joyner; and an iconic image of the famed boxer Muhammad Ali donated by photographer Richard Frank.
The two paintings by Fred Otnes and the Joyner piece are all hanging in the Library’s mezzanine, with the Otnes illustration appearing in one of the conference rooms. The Ali image is located prominently in the first-floor stairwell.
“Westport has a long and rich tradition of fostering artists and honoring their work,” said Westport Library Exhibit Curator Carole Erger-Fass. “We are very proud to be part of that tradition and incredibly fortunate to receive so many amazing pieces to add to our collection. We thank all our generous donors, and we invite all our patrons to visit and see them in person.”
All three artists have connections to Westport, many dating back years.
Otnes was born and lived in the Midwest before moving to Westport in 1953 while working with the prestigious Rahl Studios in New York. Here, he found community with area’s many illustrators and remained in the area for most of his life, passing away in Westport in 2015 at the age of 89.
A native North Carolinian, Joyner came to Westport in 1964 at 16 years old as part of the American Friends Service Committee’s “Southern Negro Student Program,” a Quaker initiative that placed southern Black students in the north to complete high school and live with host families. Joyner graduated from Staples High in 1966. From March through June of this year, the exhibit, “Charles Joyner: Stepping Out on Faith,” funded in part by CT Humanities and the Drew Friedman Foundation, was housed in the Library’s Sheffer Gallery. The artist donated the title artwork from that event.
Frank, meantime, has lived in Westport for more than 30 years with his wife Leona, a painter and art teacher. In addition to his many notable works, he documented the Library’s transformation project, which was completed in 2019 and culminated in an exhibit when the Library reopened called “Transformation: The Workers.” His Ali image is one of his most famous works, taken at Jake’s Diner in Athens, Ohio, in 1969.
“I was having a cup of coffee at 11 pm, and to my surprise Muhammad Ali walked in, surrounded by an entourage of students,” Frank recalled. “Although I was awed by his presence, I summoned up the nerve and asked him if he would mind taking his picture. I quickly decided that the best vantage point would be from behind the counter and managed to keep the camera steady enough to capture this moment.”
For more on the Library’s art collection and upcoming events, visit our Art at the Library webpage.
A financial advisor for 27 years and Westport resident for 20 years, Tom Henske knows his way around his field and his town. It was thinking about the two in tandem that brought him to a realization that has set him on a new path — and launched his latest endeavor.
“Westport is an affluent community,” said Henske, “and my concern was that the shoemakers’ kids were not going to have the right shoes! I needed to teach my kids about money, or at least get them thinking about it. I went looking for material to teach my son and there was nothing out there. It only took me years and years later, but finally, with the help of The Westport Library, we were able to create this amazing project together.”
That project is Total Cents, a 12-part Verso Studios Community Partnership Podcast that delivers advice and discussion points on financial literacy for teens. Each episode tackles key concepts in digestible 6- to 12-minute segments. Season One topics include insurance, money safety, legal documents, investing, saving, spending, the value of a dollar, and charitable giving.
[Related: Total Cents Podcast, Season One]
“It’s really a health and wellness podcast when you think about it,” Henske said. “One of the most important things for your kids to learn before they go to college is learning the basic jargon around money terms. If they don’t, they will be forever behind. They’ll start their first job out of college and won’t enroll in a retirement plan or get the right type of health insurance. All these are habits that need to be learned and practiced.
“The people who are financially successful have good habits, just like anything in life — it could be good eating habits, good exercising habits — it’s just having good money habits.”
Each podcast is reinforced by funny and topical TikTok videos appealing to teens, conversation guides for parents, and anecdotes from Henske’s forthcoming book (It Makes Total Cents: 12 Conversations to Change Your Child’s Future).
Henske acknowledges that the series has some stealth teaching components that may end up helping parents realize their own financial futures while they educate the next generation. He hopes grown-up conversations around money can help galvanize and advance other generational discussion on other potentially difficult topics.
As for Henske’s experience at Verso Studios, the longtime financial advisor and first-time podcaster said that “it was daunting for me at first to walk into the recording studio, which looks like NASA mission control. But the beauty of working with The Westport Library on this project is that Verso Studios made it really easy for me. They coached me along the way. What makes this project so special is that it’s not just one person; it’s collaborative. The experience could not have been better.”
***
For more information on the Verso Studios Community Partnership Podcast initiative, contact [email protected].
StoryFest is returning to The Westport Library, live and in person, September 9-10, featuring a dazzling array of authors of all genres and for all ages.
Headlining this year’s festival are Isaac Fitzgerald, the IACP winner and How to Be a Pirate author whose debut memoir, Dirtbag, Massachusetts, is currently #2 on The New York Times best-seller list; and Saeed Jones, who was nominated for the National Book Critics Circle Award for poetry in 2014 and won the Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction in 2019 for his memoir, How We Fight for Our Lives. A conversation between the two will be the featured Friday evening session.
A celebration of reading, writing, ideas, and community, StoryFest was organized in 2018 to draw together many of the region’s most accomplished, exciting, and up-and-coming authors in Westport for a two-day celebration of all things literary. It has since grown into a national event, attracting authors from across the U.S.
This year will make the first fully in-person festival since 2019, with StoryFest having gone virtual in 2020 and staged as a hybrid event a year ago.
“What a joy to be attending the largest literary festival in Connecticut,” said Fitzgerald. “[Saeed and I] both love libraries so, so much — which means the two of us reconnecting onstage at The Westport Library is going to be all the more special. Come party with us, Connecticut!”
StoryFest will wrap up Saturday evening with a special appearance by James Beard Book Award-winning author Mallory O’Meara and filmmaker/actress Brea Grant, the duo behind the popular Reading Glasses podcast, who will host a special live event that will double as an episode of their show. The Westport Library’s own Verso Studios will support the effort, which will feature StoryFest participants Sarah Gailey, Paul Tremblay, Stephen Graham Jones, Alexis Henderson, and Clay McLeod Chapman.
Other notable authors scheduled to appear at this year’s two-day event include May Cobb, Rachel Harrison, Gabino Iglesias, Alma Katsu, Eric LaRocca, Ellen Datlow, John Langan, Bracken MacLeod, Seanan McGuire, Gwendolyn Kiste, Hugh Ryan, Mondiant Dogon, Gus Moreno, Lorien Lawrence, Alexis Henderson, Isabel Canas, LaQuette, Julia Phillips, Greg Galloway, Coco Ma, Amanda Parrish Morgan, and Kate Racculia.
“StoryFest is unquestionably one of the highlights of our year and one of the crown jewels of the New England literary experience,” said Westport Library Executive Director Bill Harmer. “It is an opportunity for us to welcome back old friends and fan favorites, all while showcasing some of the country’s brightest rising talents. We couldn’t be more excited to celebrate five years of this remarkable event with readers from across New England and the tri-state area and to welcome everyone to explore all our space has to offer.”
Past StoryFest participants include New York Times best-selling authors Mitch Albom and Michael Lewis; National Book Award finalist Jason Reynolds; Pinkalicious author/illustrator Victoria Kann; Goosebumps author R.L. Stine; young adult superstars Nic Stone, Tiffany Jackson, and L.L. McKinney; and Emmy Award winner Sheila Nevins.
For a complete list of the events, panels, and authors participating in this year’s StoryFest, please visit the StoryFest 2022 homepage. And for a history of the event, check out our StoryFest landing page.
***
For more information on StoryFest 2022, contact Westport Library Marketing and Communications Director E.J. Crawford at [email protected].
