Join Julissa Emile and Jasper A. Sanchez for an evening of queer poetry inside the Boston Art Review office just in time for Valentine’s Day!
Welcome back loverbois!
Reemerging from a pearlescent seashell draped in luscious reds and soft pinks, artist, herbalist, and poet Julissa Emile invites anyone who has ever embraced the role of loverboi to the second annual queer Valentine’s Day themed open mic event, Sonnets for Loverbois 2.0!
All are invited to share their musings on queer love at this intimate gathering where heart shaped snacks and rose petals will set the stage for poetry and writing from those who are obsessed, enamored, or otherwise entrenched in desire.
Hosted by Boston Art Review and co-curated by Jasper A. Sanchez and Julissa Emile (who will be your MC), this event will also include featured poet Kenn Crestwell.
Please RSVP to ensure your spot at this sonnet affair. This event will sell out!
Community Guidelines:
– Reading is open to all on a sign-up, first-come basis. BIPOC voices, or those of folks from groups that have been historically marginalized and underrepresented, will be uplifted and at the forefront.
– You don’t have to read! Guests, dates, secret crushes, polycules, and more are encouraged to attend.
– This space is LGBTQ friendly. Love knows no bounds…unless you’re into that. (No kink-shaming!)
– Marginalizing and oppressive language is not ok. This means any language that is racist, transphobic, homophobic, sexist, ableist (including language that stigmatizes those navigating mental illness), sizeist, ageist, classist, victim-blaming or slut-shaming that is directed towards a specific person or group is unacceptable.
– Respect the mic & respect the space. Readers are asked to take no longer than 3-5 minutes on the mic to ensure others have time to read, and all are expected to be supportive of one another during readings. The crowd creates the vibe!
Mask Policy:
We ask that folks be considerate of our community’s health and those who are immunocompromised. We will request that you wear a mask when not actively on the mic, eating, or drinking. We will be actively monitoring the covid/flu situation and will send out an email with any updates. If you are feeling ill, do not attend! Please take a covid test before coming.
Accessibility:
Unfortunately the studio building at the Boston Center for the Arts (where our office is located) does not have elevator access to the third floor. If this (or any other part of the event plan) prohibits your attendance, please notify us and we’d be happy to have you join us via Zoom.
About our featured loverbois:
Kenn Crestwell (he/him) grew up in Prince George’s County, Maryland and has lived in the greater Boston area since 2015. He attended Lesley University for creative writing and later switched his major to Illustration. Kenn’s favorite way of expressing himself artistically has always been through writing fiction, poetry, and visual art. He draws a lot of inspiration from folk music, animated films, and illustrated storybooks of classic fairy tales, fables, and mythologies.
Julissa Emile (known affectionately as juju) is a transplant and chaos baby from the United States Virgin Islands. Their writing focuses on the intersections of blackness, softness and “if that were a garden, what kind of magic would grow from it”. They served as the FEMS slammaster from 2018-2020, and have been featured in Button Poetry, Teen Vogue, BET, and Buzzfeed. All of their passions are an extension of their love of poem. With skills in Tarot, herbalism, and event planning and nesting, Julissa Emile is a poet of many shapes.
Jasper A. Sanchez (he/they) is an independent curator, queer art historian, and public art enthusiast. A Venezuelan-Colombian raised in Miami, FL, immersion in transnational art since their youth inspired them to focus their studies on topics ranging from queer diaspora to public art. Their exhibitions have been reviewed in The Boston Globe and WBUR, while their writing has been featured in the Boston Art Review and the Boston Hassle. He currently works as Assistant Curator of Now + There, a non-profit public art curator aiming to make Boston a more open, equitable, and vibrant city for all.
