Stories in Images and Words explores specific moments in the interesting and sometimes surprising relationship between two art forms - printmaking and poetry. More than two dozen poems written by Susan Gundlach are each paired with a print created by Lea Basile-Lazarus. Presented side by side, each pairing suggests a focused interplay of image and story. Readers will find their own interpretations emerging as they visit each print and poem combination in this unique and engaging gallery-in-a-book. The organization of Stories in Images and Words follows the design of a recent two-month-long exhibit of these works.
About the Author: Susan Gundlach's poems have appeared in various journals, including After Hours, The Human Touch, Dark Matter, In Plein Air, and in the walkway of the Evanston Public Library - etched in stone, or cement, actually. Some of her poems for children can be seen in Balloons Journal and Cricket magazine. Her instructional work is included in The Crafty Poet II: A Portable Workshop (Diane Lockward, Terrapin Books). Over her long teaching career, she taught English and history in grades 6-11. More recently, she has been a visiting artist at local elementary schools and has also engaged in collaborations with artist and musician colleagues. She has worked with teacher/printmaker Lea Lazarus for many years; and the "Words and Music" salons that she presented with a classical pianist offered yet another avenue for sharing her poetry. In a perhaps more unusual method of publishing, a local merchant has distributed her poems during Poetry Month. Sue lives in Evanston, Illinois, with her family, human and canine. Lea Basile-Lazarus received her BA in Art Education from The College of New Jersey and her MFA, with a concentration in Printmaking, from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. After teaching art for sixteen years in Winnetka District 36, Lea retired from public school education and is currently working at Beacon Academy, a Montessori High School in Evanston, where she teaches Studio Art and IB Visual Arts. For many years, Lea has also worked with Chicago Public Schools on collaborative social justice art projects. She was awarded a Teacher Fulbright trip to study Japanese culture, art, and education. And through the non-profit organization, Do Your P'Art, Lea was sent to Africa to visit Ghanaian schools and villages. Lea is a working artist, making contemporary prints, paper pulp collages, and sculpture. She exhibits her work throughout the Chicagoland Area. Most recently, Lea has had one-person shows at the Center on Halsted, and at the Lill Street Art Center, both in Chicago. Her latest exhibit is the two-person show presented in this book. Lea lives in Evanston, Illinois, where she owns and operates a Conrad Printing Press.