Ode to a Cemetery - by Cole Swensen (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

A meditative journey through Brooklyn's historic Green-Wood Cemetery.

Green-Wood, founded in 1838, was a leader in the Rural Cemetery movement in America. Its 468 acres encompass magnificent grounds, grand architecture, and world-class statuary. Throughout four seasons, Jacobson's book captures the spirit of this verdant, history-drenched pastoral cemetery.

Bethany Eden Jacobson captures the landscaped beauty of Green-Wood Cemetery in her color and black-and-white photographs of century-old trees, wonderful vistas, and time-worn statuary. Her cinematic approach is a visual meditation on the transience of life and the importance of nature to the human spirit. The book also includes reproductions of her unique artworks on handmade paper inspired by the female Victorian statuary. Throughout the book, Cole Swensen's poetic words reflect on the imagery creating a lyrical interplay between image and text.

Review Quotes

"An 1857 directory for visitors stated: "You are about, kind reader, to enter and explore a still yet populous Village of the Dead. Through its labyrinths of roads and footpaths- of thicket and lawn- you will need a guide. Take one that will be silent and unobtrusive, and not unintelligent."

Jacobson is that guide in her book Ode to a Cemetery.

The Green-Wood she leads us through, however, is not the one of famous personages, tombs, and outward vistas to the surrounding city. It is an inward journey, a meditation on the passage of time - timelessness - a reflection on the liminal space between birth and death. We are lost in a landscape of memory among the weathered stones of shrouded ghosts and angels. There is something romantic and Keatsian about Jacobson's visual ruminations, made all the more evident by the accompanying text of poet Cole Swensen."-- "Brian Rose, PhotoBook Journal"

"I've never really understood the allure of cemeteries or gravestones, but when Bethany Eden Jacobson's new book, Ode To A Cemetery, published by Hirmer Publishers, came across my desk, I realized that I was looking at familiar territory. The book is a meandering journey through one of the most notable cemeteries in New York: Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, where generations of my husband's family are buried. It's an unusual place, park-like with paths for wandering and meditating, offering beauty and inspiration. . . .The author discovered a certain magic on her walks, an oasis of calm and beauty, void of morbidity and sadness."-- "Aline Smithson, Lenscratch"

About the Author

Cole Swensen is the author of nineteen books of poetry. A former Guggenheim Fellow and recipient of the National Poetry Series and the PEN USA Award for Literary Translation, she has been a finalist for the National Book Award and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. Bethany Eden Jacobson is an award-winning Brooklyn-based photographer and filmmaker. Her films and photographs have been exhibited at international exhibitions and film festivals. She teaches at Pratt Institute and Brooklyn College.