Poetry Scores Art Invitational logistics for May 18

"The mind of hungered innocence must turn to strange cuisine - kebab of houseflies"

by JoAnne Houle

for Ever-Ready Bank Accounts

Poetry Scores has invited 50-plus artists from St. Louis, Hawaii, New York and Texas to make art to the same Wole Soyinka poem. Come see their work at Ever-Ready Bank Accounts, a one-night-only art exhbit and auction this Friday, May 18 at Mad Art Gallery, 2727 S. 12th. St. in Soulard,

This will be the 7th annual Art Invitational for Poetry Scores, a community-based arts organization based in St. Louis that translates poetry into other media. Our shows have a few quirks that take some explaining.

First, the basics: it's a free event, open to the public, with a cash bar operated by Mad Art and some free snacks. The art is all for sale on silent auction.

We say the event runs 7-10 p.m., but people will start wandering in before 7, we will start closing bids before 10, and we will continue to party after all the art is sold.

It is a one-night-only event and sale on Friday, May 18. If you can't make it that night but really wish you could support Poetry Scores and local artists and buy some great new art, we have a proxy bidder program. Contact creative director Chris King at brodog@hotmail.com and he will appoint you a proxy bidder to conservatively manage your money under a bid ceiling set by you.

It's a silent art auction where the artist sets the opening bid and people are welcome to bid against each other. When we see a bidding war break out, we will move to close it out, make the sale, and let the people who got outbid know they still have some cash in hand.

There will be no live auction component this year. We have experimented in the past, and couldn't make it work.

We accept payment by cash, credit card, PayPal and Square. No checks.

We split any money from art sales evenly three-ways: artist, Mad Art and Poetry Scores. Mad Art is an artist-run gallery we consider our community partner. We use our income to print multi-media projects. Any money we make Friday will fund an LP release in Istanbul of bicycle day's poetry score to Ever-Ready Bank Accounts.

Poetry Scores is a Missouri non-profit corporation with 501(c)3 federal tax status. All donations are tax-deductible. It has an all-volunteer board and staff. For more information, email creative director Chris King at brodog@hotmail.com.