https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/arthur-sze
We have exciting news for our 50th Anniversary Celebration next year! Special Guest of Honor-U.S. Poet Laureate Arthur Sze
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/arthur-sze
Artemis Journal 2025 Launch Featuring Artist Gregory Crewdson
HOMEWARD BOUND
Foreword to the Artemis Journal 2025
by Joanne Cassullo
As I reflect on the meaning of “homeward bound,” I return to one of the places in my heart that I think of as home… the Roanoke Valley. I arrived as a freshman in the early 1970s to attend Roanoke College and was amazed to see the Blue Ridge Mountains rising in the distance from every classroom window. I watched as they turned from green to violet, then to flame red and orange, and finally faded to grayish-brown as each season passed, marking my first year in Southwest Virginia. Half a century later, I continue to spend a great deal of time there both as a trustee of Roanoke College and the Taubman Museum of Art. To this day, my heart still swells with the pleasure of sentimental memories when I fly between those mountains to return to the place in which I joyously came of age.
The splendor of my natural surroundings at college vividly reminded me of my childhood summers spent in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, at my Grandmother’s summer home outside the town of Becket, one that was perched on the edge of a large mountain pond, and is now a site populated (happily) by the ghosts of past generations of my family. This is another place I closely associate with the intimate sensation of home.
The photographer, Gregory Crewdson, shared similar summer experiences in Becket at his parents’ country home, just down the mountain from mine. Although our summers overlapped, I did not meet Gregory until decades later in New York City, as he was beginning to receive critical acclaim for his photography. I couldn’t believe I met someone who shared the same reverence and nostalgia for a geographical place that most visitors to the Berkshires overlook and never visit.
Over the decades and in various series of photographs such as Twilight (1998-2002), Beneath the Roses (2003-2008), Cathedral of the Pines (2013-2014) An Eclipse of Moths (2018-1019) and Eveningside (2021-2022), Gregory Crewdson revisits a select group of Berkshires towns (Becket, Lee, Pittsfield and North Adams) as the backdrop for his photographic fantasies. Themes of loneliness, rapture, abandonment, and self-discovery all play out in the cinematic quality inherent in his work. For Gregory, the landscape is as important as the characters who populate it. He returns home for inspiration time and again.
Two summers ago, as Trustee Liaison of the Leadership Travel Group at the Taubman Museum of Art, I felt it was only natural to explore the Berkshires on our inaugural art adventure. I love knitting together the separate pieces of my life, my childhood with my life right now; I love bringing my new friends together to meet my old ones; and I love celebrating the backdrop of my childhood summers through the vision and work of artists who live there now. Our travel group visited the studios of Cynthia Wick (whose painting graced the cover of the 2024 Artemis), and we also visited Gregory Crewdson. Jeri Rogers, the Founder and Editor of Artemis, is a member of the group. What a joy it is to see her collaborate with these gifted friends of mine, of ours.
Gregory welcomed our travel group into his studio and showed us his latest body of work called Eveningside. The series is shot in black and white, a symphony of shadow and light that is seeped in ambiguity. In particular, one image, Morningside Home for Women, captured our group’s imagination:
A young woman pauses in the middle of an empty street as her taxi rolls away; a singular, hard-shell suitcase sits behind her. Evening begins to settle in. She is wearing a hospital bracelet, loose-fitting clothing, and slippers. She faces a row of multi-family houses adorned with numerous electric meters, all connected by a tangle of telephone wires overhead – yet no one seems to be home. There are no lights inside any of the houses, save for a single ray spilling out onto a front porch. It appears to bathe the pale skin of the lone woman, momentarily elevating it to alabaster. And it barely illuminates a sign: “Morningside Home for Women.”
I ask myself as I study this photograph now:
Is the woman arriving at a new destination – or is she returning home?
Is she world-weary, or is she a warrior?
Is she searching for safety while weathering a personal storm?
Is she, like so many of us right now, searching for the familiar in a world that is shifting and changing around us?
Or….
Is hers a restorative passage, one that is just now beginning?
Will it lead her to new perspectives, a new beginning, a new way of life?
Are we on a journey, pushing forward? Or should we pause, like the woman in Gregory’s photograph, to turn inward and search for the space that can revive us instead?
This is Gregory Crewdson’s gift to us, his viewers – a singular, transcendent moment: what happens before and after in the photograph is ours alone to
ponder or embellish. He gives us the moment—and we let it lead us home.
– Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo, Guest column
About Joanne Cassullo, Born in Oyster Bay, New York, Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo is a philanthropist and an ardent patron of contemporary art. She has served as a trustee and an officer at multiple arts organizations, including the Whitney Museum of American Art, Taubman Museum of Art, Creative Time, RxArt and the Brooklyn Academy of Music. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees of Roanoke College, her Alma Mater, located in Salem, VA
Cassullo is also a freelance writer and her articles have been featured in periodicals such as the Harvard Business Review, Artspace, Countryside, Next, Decorating/Remodeling, American Homestyle, Victorian Homes and Gardens, Flair, and Miami Home. She frequently writes essays for contemporary art exhibition catalogues.
She currently resides in Austin, TX.
About Gregory Crewdson:
Gregory Crewdson’s photographs have entered the American visual lexicon, taking their place alongside the paintings of Edward Hopper and the films of Alfred Hitchcock and David Lynch as indelible evocations of a silent psychological interzone between the everyday and the uncanny.
Often working with a large team, Crewdson typically plans each image with meticulous attention to detail, orchestrating light, color, and production design to conjure dreamlike scenes infused with mystery and suspense.
While the small-town settings of many of Crewdson’s images are broadly familiar, he is careful to avoid signifiers of identifiable sites and moments, establishing a world outside time.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Crewdson is a graduate of SUNY Purchase and the Yale University School of Art, where he is now director of graduate studies in photography. He lives and works in New York and Massachusetts.
“Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo and I met many decades ago through our mutual friend, author A. M. Homes, one snowy night in New York. We then crossed paths for some years before we realized we had a mutual Becket, MA connection, which greatly deepened our friendship. I was telling her about the place I love to cross-country ski, and my favorite trail, Cathedral of the Pines, when she revealed that the winding dirt road deep in the Becket woods that leads there, Leonhardt Road, is named after her family.” -Gregory Crewdson
About Artemis Journal:
Now in its 49th year of showcasing artists and writers of the Blue Ridge Mountains and beyond, Artemis Journal highlights the creative voices who uphold the values of the Greek lunar goddess for which the journal was named. As the archetype of the mother goddess, Artemis was the protector of wild animals, the wilderness, young women, and childbirth. She was known as a carrier of light.
The Artemis mission has remained unchanged since its inception. Born out of writing workshops held for victims of domestic violence in Southwest Virginia, Artemis Journal has advocated for social justice since 1977. Artemis Journal is published yearly, supporting fair trade policies, artists, and women-based businesses. Ten percent of earnings are donated to a women’s shelter for victims of domestic violence and their families in Southwest Virginia.
Artemis Journal Launch 2025 Our Launch at the Taubman Museum of Art was a celebration of art and poetry, releasing our Artemis Journal to a full house of supporters. We honored and dedicated our journal to the acclaimed poet, Nikki Giovanni and our guest speaker, Gregory Crewdson engaged in conversation with Hollins Emeritas, photographer Robert Sulkin.
We are grateful to the Taubman Museum of Art, The Roanoke Arts Commission, The Roanoke Library Foundation and the Dorthea L. Leonhardt Foundation for making this event possible.
Artemis Journal cover art: Morningside Home for Women by Gregory Crewdson
Brief Encounters: Film Screening + Discussion with Artist Gregory Crewdson
An acclaimed photographer with the eye of a filmmaker, Gregory Crewdson has created some of the most gorgeously haunting pictures in the history of the medium.
His meticulously composed, large-scale images are stunning narratives of small-town American life—moviescapes crystallized into a single frame. While the photographs are staged with crews that rival many feature film productions, Crewdson takes inspiration as much from his own dreams and fantasies as the worlds of Alfred Hitchcock, David Lynch, Edward Hopper and Diane Arbus.
Shot over a decade with unprecedented access, Gregory Crewdson: Brief Encounters beautifully bares the artist’s process—and it’s as mesmerizing and riveting as the images themselves.
Dedication for Nikki Giovanni
This year, we proudly dedicate our journal to the remarkable poet Nikki Giovanni, whose words have illuminated countless lives. Since the 1980s, Nikki has worked with Artemis on numerous events and has served on our Board of Directors in recent years. She crafted a legacy that inspired and uplifted us all. An internationally celebrated poet, Nikki’s work resonated deeply with the fabric of our society, capturing the essence of free expression with every verse.
Home is where the heart is, and Nikki’s heart was firmly anchored in Southwest Virginia. As a dedicated Professor at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia, she became a powerful advocate for numerous causes. In 2022, she wrote her poem Fall in Love (with Artemis) for our journal, demonstrating her steadfast commitment to our mission at Artemis.
Reflecting on her legacy with heavy hearts, we honor her passing last year on December 9th, as she was embraced by her beloved partner, Virginia “Ginney” Fowler. Nikki’s spirit and artistic brilliance will continue to inspire generations, leaving an indelible mark on literature and our community.
Nikki Giovanni
Save the Date
Artemis Journal Launch 2025
September 5, 2025
Taubman Museum of Art
Artemis Journal 2019 featuring Sally Mann’s photo “On the Maury”
Attention 5 Bell alarm
Five Photos by the acclaimed photographer, Sally Mann were seized by Ft. Worth Police from The Modern Art Museum of Ft Worth, Texas
As Artemis’ Founder and editor-in-chief, I feel compelled to express my deep concern regarding the proposed ban on “obscene artwork.” This is not just about art but our fundamental right to express ourselves freely. A common tactic borrowed from authoritarian states around the world is to target artists and writers challenging societal norms.
On behalf of my Board of Directors, we stand firmly with Sally Mann and all artists/writers and will not yield in our commitment to artistic expression. We denounce any tactics to intimidate artists and museums into censorship. Jeri Rogers
Proposed Texas bill would fine museums up to $500,000 for displaying ‘obscene’ material
Read more:
https://www.dallasnews.com/arts-entertainment/visual-arts/2025/04/15/proposed-texas-bill-would-fine-museums-up-to-500000-for-displaying-obscene-material/
Read more;
Hollins Magazine
https://www.hollins.edu/magazine/turning-misery-into-beauty/
Life without Nikki Giovanni
The Artemis community shares in the deep sorrow of losing our cherished poet, Nikki Giovanni. For ten years, she served as our Distinguished Poet on the Board, and her contributions were invaluable to the heart of our poetry journal. We feel this loss deeply and will carry her spirit and legacy with us as we move forward. She will always be missed, but her words and impact will live on in our hearts.
Nikki Giovanni at the showing of her award winning documentary By Sundance Film Festival “Going to Mars” with Jeri Rogers, Editor of Artemis.
Nikki Giovanni to join Artemis Editorial Board as our Honored Board Poet
Artemis is pleased to have acclaimed poet, Nikki Giovanni to join our publication. She has been awarded an unprecedented 7 NAACP Image Awards, nominated for a Grammy; has been a finalist for the National Book Award, authored 3 New York Times and Los Angeles Times Best Sellers, which is highly unusual for a poet. She is Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech.
Artemis has had a long journey with Nikki. She has been our featured guest poet for our journals in 2014 and 2017. In 2017 we dedicated our journal to her as someone who has served as a beacon to those of us who believe in the power of art. From the 1980’s until today, she has given generously of her time and talent to nurture and support the work of artists and writers in her adopted home here in Southwest Virginia. We welcome her as our Honored Board Poet.
Artemis Journal 2024
Life without Nikki Giovanni
December 11, 2024No Comments
The Artemis community shares in the deep sorrow of losing our cherished poet, Nikki Giovanni. For ten years, she served as our Distinguished Poet on the Board, and her contributions were invaluable to the heart of our poetry journal. We feel this loss deeply and will carry her spirit and legacy with us as we move forward. She will always be missed, but her words and impact will live on in our hearts.
Nikki Giovanni and Jeri Rogers, Editor Artemis at the screening of the Sundance Film best documentary “Going to Mars”
“The door is open,” Nikki Giovanni told me, “and if I’m saying something that you don’t like, you can go out the door. Because I’m going to say what I think I should say.” The poet and longtime Virginia Tech professor, who released the “The Gospel According to Nikki Giovanni,” a musical collaboration with the saxophonist Javon Jackson, was talking about her approach to teaching difficult material.
She could just as well have been talking about her approach to life. Beginning with her first book, “Black Feeling, Black Talk” in 1968, and on through to “Make Me Rain” in 2020, Giovanni’s writing has expressed a great many forceful ideas — about love, race, politics, gender — but a large share of its power has always come from the sense that the poet is telling the truth as she sees it, to whoever happens to hear. “I cannot close my door,” says Giovanni, who was 81 when she passed. “I just can’t let that happen.”
Artemis Journal 2024 Launch featuring Pulitzer Prize Winner
Artemis Journal 2024 Launch
Friday, September 6, 2024
Special Guest Speaker
Natasha Trethewey
Pulitzer Prize Winner, Poet Laureate
Roanoke Taubman Museum of Art
110 Salem Avenue SE Roanoke, VA 24011
5:30-7:30 pm
for more information;
https://www.taubmanmuseum.org/artemis-journal-launch-natasha-trethewey
Taubman Museum of Art
Purchase Tickets
https://24531.blackbaudhosting.com/24531/Late-Night-Artemis-Book-Launch
*Artemis 23 Cover by Cynthia Wick, Joge’s View
Artemis Speaks Podcast – Dorothy Gillespie Documentary
Join the conversation with son Gary Isreal, President of the Dorothy M. Gillespie Foundation, and daughter Dorien Gillespie Bietz, children of Dorothy Gillespie, as they reflect on the many gifts their mother had in a groundbreaking documentary Courage, Independence and Color. The documentary will be shown on May 22, 2022 at the Grandin Theater in Roanoke, Va.
Artemis Journal was borne out of writing workshops for abused women. Ms. Gillespie donated her print celebrating Women in the Arts. The journal’s mission is to support, develop, and encourage the talents of artists and writers from the Blue Ridge Mountains and beyond. Now in its 48th year, Artemis Journal looks back at its beginnings.
Dorothy Gillespie, acclaimed artist, donated her pastel painting to Artemis for our first cover, which became the citie’s first mural in downtown Roanoke, Va.
To Listen to the podcast, go to our Podcast Section on this website
Jeri Rogers and the refurbished mural in year 2022 holding the first Artemis Journal with Gillespies image.
How to keep creating in the time of darkness
Jeri Rogers, Editor Artemis Journal
Emerging from the pandemic, we are reinventing ourselves and our commitments to art. How do we keep creating in these challenging times? Our current theme for Artemis Journal 24 is “Illuminating the Darkness.” Our editors are currently laying out the journal, and I am always in awe of how artists and writers respond to our calls for submission. With over 350 submissions, we have reduced our selections to over 100 entries. The elimination process is challenging as there are so many worthy entries, and we cannot include everyone for obvious reasons.
In looking at how history dealt with challenging times, I found a poem that intersects the personal with history. A poem by U.S. Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey, wrote Enlightenment after going to Monticello, Virginia, with her poet father, Eric Trethewey, to learn more about our complicated and revered President Thomas Jefferson. The poem is featured in the upcoming Artemis Journal 2024, released September 6th, at the Roanoke Taubman Museum of Art. Stay tuned for exciting news regarding the Launch Celebration.
Enlightenment
In the portrait of Jefferson that hangs
at Monticello, he is rendered two-toned:
his forehead white with illumination —
To read the full poem go to;
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/57697/enlightenment-56d23b7175cc0
Natasha Trethewey, “Enlightenment” from Thrall. Copyright © 2012 by Natasha Trethewey. Reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Many portraits were made of Thomas Jefferson. One of the most demanding and persistent artists was Gilbert Stuart, to whom Jefferson sat for three portraits.
In May of 1800, Stuart began his first portrait, and a fee of $100.00 had been paid before the painting received its finishing touches, a mistake that others had made before him. More than twenty years passed before Jefferson received an oil portrait by Stuart, and the result of the 1800 sitting had disappeared without a trace.
In the meantime, Jefferson assumed the presidency. He took up residence in the Washington President’s House where Stuart lived, and in the spring of 1805, Stuart informed Jefferson that he was “not satisfied” with the original 1800 portrait and “begged” the president to sit for him again. Stuart received another $100.00 from a grateful and generous Jefferson after producing the gouache and crayon “medallion” profile, and the second portrait was titled the “Edgehill.”
As the years passed, Stuart retained the portrait. He proceeded to forget the reason for its existence, assuming ownership of the painting until Jefferson enlisted intermediaries from Monticello to obtain ownership in 1821. This magnificent painting hangs in the parlor of Monticello. Virginia.
Natasha Trethewey served two terms as the 19th Poet Laureate of the United States (2012-2014). She is the author of five collections of poetry, including Native Guard (2006)—for which she was awarded the 2007 Pulitzer Prize—and, most recently, Monument: Poems New and Selected (2018); a book of non-fiction, Beyond Katrina: A Meditation on the Mississippi Gulf Coast (2010); and a memoir, Memorial Drive (2020) an instant New York Times Bestseller. She is the recipient of fellowships from the Academy of American Poets, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Guggenheim Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, the Beinecke Library at Yale, and the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Letters, and the American Philosophical Society. In 2017 she received the Heinz Award for Arts and Humanities. A Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets since 2019, Trethewey was awarded the 2020 Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt Prize in Poetry for Lifetime Achievement from the Library of Congress.
Dragonfly Project
Part of Artemis’s mission is to reach out to younger Writers and Artists
Teacher, Michele Evans’s class in Loudon Count was gifted Artemis Journals by donors John Keiling and Nina Schlossman
Student Eugene, John Keiling, Michele Evans, Nina Schlossman
With a litle help from our friends
As a small independent journal, we are always planning for the next great journal
Artemis Journal has showcased compelling new voices for four decades, including notable writers ranging from Poet Laureates to Pulitzer Prize winners and first-time writers and artists. Over 2000 artists and writers have appeared in our journal. Artemis has served the Appalachian Region of the Blue Ridge Mountains with a rich history that has played an integral role in the success and perseverance of our journal.We are grateful for the continuing support of the Roanoke Arts Commission, The Taubman Museum, our contributors and donors.
Please consider donating to help Artemis Journal
go to our donate page on this website
Image by Melissa Hall Always Planning
as seen in Artemis 2020