The Narrow Gauge Book Cooperative is pleased to announce Kellan Jones as our December artist of the month! Please join them on December 6th from 4pm - 6pm for a come-and-go reception. During the reception, Kellan will give a demonstration of his art technique! You won’t want to miss it! 
 

Kellan’s art will be up for the full month of December. 

Kellan is a self-taught wire artist who makes jewelry & jewelry-inspired wall art out of leftover electrical wire, beads somebody else didn't want, & crap he found in parking lots, along riverbanks, & on the side of the road. He lives in the beautiful San Luis Valley in Colorado, a home to vibrant queer & artistic culture, in addition to a lot of potato fields.

He is a late-blooming trans guy, and wants you to know that it’s never too late to figure out who you are. He figured out who he is just before I turned 50 & started testosterone at 52 1/2. He often travels with his leashcats, Loiosh & Major Tom, & when they can, they attend Society for Creative Anachronism events, where he dresses as a Viking era Norseman. (The boys just wear their fur.)
 

Artist Statement:

“I started out by collecting creek glass, cool rocks, & good sticks along the edges of Fountain Creek in Fountain, Colorado. I had no idea what he was going to DO with all of this until I happened upon a coil of copper wire my brother-in-law had helped me rescue from a busted Dust Buster. The solution was obvious: use unwanted stuff to hook other unwanted stuff together to make neat stuff! Which is mostly jewelry, but I also make bigger things using the same techniques -- you could call them wall hangings, and some of them make nice suncatchers,  plus there's the candle lanterns I make from glass jars & beads -- there isn't really a proper term for them, at least not that I've found. Do they count as sculpture? Maybe?
 

In any case, this whole theme of taking what's broken & unwanted & turning it into beautiful things resonates strongly with my identity as a queer person -- it echoes how, instead of letting ourselves remain lost, traumatized, & alone, we build queer families & community, and create beautiful things of our lives & experiences.”
 

The Narrow Gauge is thrilled to have Kellan and his art in store!

Each month, the Narrow Gauge Book Cooperative features a local nonprofit that serves the San Luis Valley. This month, you can support Hospice del Valle.

 

Hospice del Valle is a hospice care provider, whose mission is: “To create a peaceful transition for clients with life-limiting illnesses, assisting clients and families in the celebration of life with love, caring, and dignity.”

 

Hospice del Valle provides palliative and hospice care, as well as grief and bereavement services. They strive to provide holistic care that considers the whole person, and their family, not just their medical symptoms.

When you shop at the NGBC this month, you'll be asked if you want to round up and donate your change. You can round up with any payment method. The change goes directly from our register to the organization. It's a simple and easy way to support local organizations that help make the Valley what it is! 

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Check out their recommended books, and visit their website for more information!

• Being Mortal by Atul Gawande
   

• Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
   

• The Needs of Dying by David Kessler.
   

• A Beginner's Guide to the End by B.J. Miller and Shoshana Berge
   

• Final Gifts by Maggie Callanan and Patricia Kelly