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The Curious Builder
Poetry. "A clear, marvelous eye for his surroundings and an ability to depict them precisely...would be enjoyed by a wide audience"—Reagan Upshaw.
Paperback
First published November 1, 1992
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About the author
Paul Violi
22 books2 followersPaul Randolph Violi was an American poet born
He was the author of eleven books of poetry, including Splurge, Fracas, The Curious Builder, Likewise, and most recently Overnight.
Violi was managing editor of The Architectural Forum from 1972–1974, worked on free-lance projects at Universal Limited Art Editions and as chairman of the Associate Council Poetry Committee, he organized a series of readings at the Museum of Modern Art from 1974 to 1983. He also co-founded Swollen Magpie Press, which produced poetry chapbooks, anthologies, and a magazine called New York Times. His art book collaborations with Dale Devereux Barker, most recently Envoy; Life is Completely Interesting, have been acquired by major collections. The expanded text of their first collaboration, Selected Accidents, Pointless Anecdotes, a collection of non-fiction prose, was published by Hanging Loose Press in 2002.
Awarded two poetry fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, Violi also received The John Ciardi Lifetime Achievement Award in Poetry, the American Academy of Arts and Letters Morton Dauwen Zabel Award, and grants from The Foundation for Contemporary Arts Poetry, The Fund for Poetry, The New York Foundation for the Arts, The Ingram Merrill Foundation, and New York Creative Artists Public Service Fund.
Violi died in Cortlandt Manor, New York in 2011 from cancer. At the time of his death, he was teaching in the Department of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University and in the graduate writing program at the New School University
He was the author of eleven books of poetry, including Splurge, Fracas, The Curious Builder, Likewise, and most recently Overnight.
Violi was managing editor of The Architectural Forum from 1972–1974, worked on free-lance projects at Universal Limited Art Editions and as chairman of the Associate Council Poetry Committee, he organized a series of readings at the Museum of Modern Art from 1974 to 1983. He also co-founded Swollen Magpie Press, which produced poetry chapbooks, anthologies, and a magazine called New York Times. His art book collaborations with Dale Devereux Barker, most recently Envoy; Life is Completely Interesting, have been acquired by major collections. The expanded text of their first collaboration, Selected Accidents, Pointless Anecdotes, a collection of non-fiction prose, was published by Hanging Loose Press in 2002.
Awarded two poetry fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, Violi also received The John Ciardi Lifetime Achievement Award in Poetry, the American Academy of Arts and Letters Morton Dauwen Zabel Award, and grants from The Foundation for Contemporary Arts Poetry, The Fund for Poetry, The New York Foundation for the Arts, The Ingram Merrill Foundation, and New York Creative Artists Public Service Fund.
Violi died in Cortlandt Manor, New York in 2011 from cancer. At the time of his death, he was teaching in the Department of English and Comparative Literature at Columbia University and in the graduate writing program at the New School University
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 10, 2012
I don't often read poetry and picked this up mainly because it looked short... It is a fairly enjoyable read, which a certain kind of humor. If you're considering reading it, you probably should. (And what could you lose from doing so, anyway?)
July 30, 2007
Fabulous book by one of New York's best poets. Violi is smart, funny & as tricky as they come. Many of the poems in this collection are hilarious, but the title poem is something more ... sublime.
Currently Reading
September 14, 2007Re-reading just for fun - brilliant book
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews