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A recording of the conversation with ASL interpretation, closed captions, and a transcript is available.We strive to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. If you have questions about accessibility or require an accommodation to participate in this event, please contact Accessibility Manager Helyn Marshall at accessibility@wexarts.org or via telephone at (614) 688-3890. Requests made by two weeks in advance will generally allow us to provide seamless access, but the Wexner Center for the Arts will make every effort to meet requests made after this date.
Join award-winning author Saeed Jones for conversation and insights about his new collection of poetry, Alive at the End of the World.
Based in Columbus and known for such publications as his memoir How We Fight for Our Lives (2019) and the poetry collection Prelude to Bruise (2014), as well as appearances in the New Yorker and on NPR’s Fresh Air, Jones brings a singular sense of humor, candor, and ferocity to his writing and social commentary. Alive at the End of the World—available from Coffee House Press and in the Wexner Center Store on September 13—explores our collective grief and everyday apocalypses.
A Q&A moderated by Ohio State alumna and Columbus-born poet and essayist Maggie Smith—known for her national bestsellers including Goldenrod (2021)—follows the talk. Can’t make it in person? The event also streams on this page, and online viewers can still participate through the Wex hotline at (614) 813-3416. Get your free ticket today, and we’ll send you more details!
Established in 2004 through the generosity of Bill and Sheila Lambert, the Lambert Family Lecture Series invites experts to explore global issues in art and contemporary culture with the community’s diverse audiences, often to illuminate the works on view in our galleries. To date the series has featured an impressive roster of cultural luminaries, including art historians, critics, and curators T. J. Clark, Douglas Crimp, Arthur Danto, Greil Marcus, Diana Widmaier Picasso, Robert Storr, and Lynne Tillman; filmmakers Julia Reichert and John Waters; and visual artists Teju Cole, Carroll Dunham, LaToya Ruby Frazier, Christian Marclay, Josiah McElheny, Taryn Simon, and Luc Tuymans.
Saeed Jones, image courtesy of the author.
Maggie Smith, photo: Devon Albeit Photography.
Alive at the End of the World, image courtesy of Coffee House Press.
Saeed Jones is the author of the memoir How We Fight for Our Lives, winner of the 2019 Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction, and the poetry collection Prelude to Bruise, winner of the 2015 PEN/Joyce Osterweil Award for Poetry. His work has appeared in the New Yorker, New York Times, and GQ, among other publications. His second poetry collection, Alive at the End of the World, is forthcoming from Coffee House Press.
Maggie Smith is the author of several books, including Good Bones and the national bestsellers Goldenrod and Keep Moving: Notes on Loss, Creativity, and Change. Her memoir, You Could Make This Place Beautiful, will be published by Atria/Simon & Schuster in April 2023. Smith’s poems and essays have appeared in the New York Times, New Yorker, Guardian, Paris Review, Tin House, Washington Post, Nation, and Best American Poetry. Smith is on the MFA faculty of the Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing at Spalding University and serves as an editor at large for the Kenyon Review. You can find her on social media @MaggieSmithPoet.
The Lambert Family Lecture is made possible by generous support from the Lambert Family Lecture Series Endowment Fund, which promotes dialogue about global issues in art and contemporary culture.
LEARNING & PUBLIC PRACTICE PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BYAmerican Electric Power FoundationHuntingtonBig Lots Foundation
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BYThe Ohio State University Office of Outreach & EngagementOhio Arts CouncilMilton and Sally Avery Arts FoundationMartha Holden Jennings FoundationState Farm
WEXNER CENTER PROGRAMS MADE POSSIBLE BYGreater Columbus Arts CouncilThe Wexner FamilyNational Endowment for the ArtsOhio Arts CouncilL Brands FoundationThe Columbus FoundationNationwide FoundationInstitute of Museum and Library ServicesVorys, Sater, Seymour, and Pease
ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BYMike and Paige CraneAxium PackagingCampusParcJeni’s Splendid Ice CreamsPresident Kristina M. Johnson and Mrs. Veronica MeinhardNancy KramerLarry and Donna JamesLisa BartonJohanna DeStefanoJones DayAlex and Renée Shumate
Past Talks & More
Saeed Jones
