Inkberry Presents Houston & Nields

From The Women's Times, August 1, 2001

New Berkshire Arts Organization Bears Fruit

August 12 brings bestselling author Pam Houston (Cowboys Are My Weakness, Waltzing the Cat) and Nerissa Nields of eclectic folk rock band The Nields (“Gotta Get Over Greta,” “If You Lived Here You’d Be Home Now”) to North Adams, Mass., in an evening of story and song, the only East Coast performance of their acclaimed West Coast tour. The duo will perform at 6pm in MASS MoCA’s B-10 theater; they’re coming here thanks to Inkberry, a new literary organization based in northern Berkshire County. Founded by Emily Banner, Rachel Barenblat and Sandy Ryan, Inkberry began programming in April.

Inkberry’s three founders met at Williams College; in the years since graduation they’ve worked in publishing (Ryan got her start at Beacon Press in Boston; Barenblat is an editor at TWT) and nonprofit arts management (Banner interned at the Guild Complex in Chicago). None of the three could resist the pull of the Berkshires, though, and they’ve all put down roots here—just like their organization’s namesake. (The inkberry is an evergreen native to northern New England; it grows “even by roadsides and in waste places and still bears fruit. Just like writers do,” Barenblat says.)

Inkberry’s mission is to foster the literary arts in and around Berkshire County. “We’re all working writers, and that can be such a solitary vocation,” Banner begins. “-It doesn’t have to be,” Ryan adds.

“The Berkshires has long been the home of great arts organizations. Why can’t there be one for writers to form a literary community?” Banner asks. In that spirit, Inkberry offers writing workshops, book discussion groups and a monthly reading series. “Our readings alternate between those that feature local talent and those that allow established writers to interact with our audience.”

The evening with Nields and Houston is the third event in Inkberry’s reading series. “This event is especially neat because it’s a mixed-genre performance,” says Barenblat. “We’re thrilled to be a part of this artistic cross-pollination.” In the same multimedia vein, Inkberry will be offering a free one-day workshop on ekphrastic writing (writing inspired by art) at the Contemporary Artists Center in North Adams on August 4. Learn more about Inkberry’s programming at their website, www.inkberry.org, or call 413-664-0775 for a calendar.

Tickets to the Nields/Houston event are $10; visit the MASS MoCA website at www.massmoca.org or call the MoCA box office at 413-662-2111.