Arts & Science faculty and alumni are among the 150 leading and emerging writers featured in Illumination: Portraits of Canadian Authors, an exhibit by Toronto artist Mark Raynes Roberts at the International Festival of Authors and the Toronto Reference Library this fall. A concurrent exhibit, by Raynes Roberts, of 12 hand-engraved, crystal sculptures takes place at the Gardiner Museum. The sculptures, inspired by passages of light in the literature of 12 Canadian authors, including Margaret Atwood and Anne Michaels, celebrate the passion of authors, and the slow art of craftsmanship in today’s fast-paced, technology-driven world.
A preview of some of the featured Arts & Science authors and why they write.
“I write because I can’t fight and I can’t sing.” George Elliott Clarke, EJ Pratt Professor of Canadian Literature and Toronto Poet Laureate.“I write because what else is there to do?” Barry Callaghan BA ’60, MA ’63 (English), author of The Black Queen Stories.“I only have one life, but I want to live as many stories as possible.” Kenneth Oppel BA ’89 (English and Cinema Studies), author of The Silverwing Saga.“I write to spend time with characters that fascinate and intrigue me, and find out what they’ll do next.” Rebecca Rosenblum, MA ’07 (English and Creative Writing), author of Once.“I write because I want to make facts dance to the music of my time.” Peter C. Newman BA ’50, MCom ’54, journalist and biographer.“Why I write is not properly answerable with a one line quote.” Rohinton Mistry, BA ’82 (English), author of A Fine Balance.“I am driven by an irresistible impulse to tell the stories of lives that illuminate and that remind us of the stamina and courage it takes to be human.” Rosemary Sullivan, professor emeritus of English and author of Stalin’s Daughter: The Extraordinary and Tumultuous Life of Svetlana Alliluyeva.“I write instead of surrendering to fear.” Priscila Uppal, MA ’98 (English), author of Ontological Necessities and York University professor of English.“I write because I cannot not write.” Camilla Gibb, BA ’91 (Anthropology), author of Sweetness in the Belly.“It is lonely, often aggravating and tedious, but for me not writing is even worse.” Margaret McMillan, BA ’54, author of Paris 1919 and Oxford University professor of history.“As for why I write, I’m afraid I really can’t think of something worthy to say in one sentence.” Mark Kingwell, BA ’85 (Philosophy & English), professor of philosophy and author of Unruly Voices: Essays on Democracy, Civility and the Human Imagination.
