“06880” culture correspondent Robin Moyer Chung writes:
On Tuesday night, the Westport Library received a Mark Award. They’re one of only 3 Fairfield County arts institutions honored this year for excellence.
To be precise, the Mark was for VersoFest.
Douglas Laustsen, executive director of the Cultural Alliance of Fairfield County — the group that awards the Marks — says, “I’m just in awe of what they’ve built here: showcasing international talent alongside local artists who are doing excellent work day in and day out throughout Fairfield County.”
Westport Library director Bill Harmer, accepting the Mark Award.
Why is this significant?
Because a program like VersoFest is unprecedented in US libraries.
Library executive director Bill Harmer says the Mark Award “recognizes not only a festival, but a vision for the future of public libraries.”
VersoFest, created and hosted by the Library, is a multi-day festival of renowned musicians, writers, filmmakers, technologists, students, local creators and more. It includes rock concerts, book readings, musical performances, lectures, and just about anything involving the arts.
This year’s VersoFest included Wyclef Jean — and a packed Trefz Forum. (Photo/Kerry Long)
The festival is 4 years old, but the idea dates back more than a quarter century. In the early 2000s Harmer created a Rock & Roll Library Tour, putting indie rock band The High Strung on the road performing in public libraries across the country.
Over several years, The High Strung played more than 250 concerts in libraries in 48 states (and Cuba).
Through the tour’s success, Harmer realized that libraries could go far beyond books, DVDs and quiet spaces. They could be active participants in creating and shaping cultural life.
He says, “Years later, after arriving in Westport and helping lead the Library’s transformation project, we suddenly had the infrastructure to explore that question.”
And they did, creating the Trefz Forum, Verso Studios and Verso Records.
They now had a world-class performance venue, professional production studios, and a community willing to embrace experimentation.
Throw in internationally recognized creative talent, business leaders and exceptional local artists and you’ve got VersoFest.
Laustsen sums it up: “They are bringing the best of the best in culture to Westport, and placing it alongside the best of the best.”
(“06880” covers the arts in all their forms, all over Westport. If you enjoy coverage like this, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
