Join us for a new chapter of the Oakville Literary Cafe at our new location, in the Oakville Public Library's Central Branch at Lakeshore Road and Navy Street.
We will be meeting on the second floor, in the auditorium/conference room. The event will begin with our feature presentation as usual, followed by refreshments at intermission and one hour of open mic.
Parking is free on Sundays in downtown Oakville, as well as in the parking lot below the library. Admission is free. Feel free to share this event with your writing and or poetry groups. Don't forget to bring your books to sell. There will be a book table available for you to showcase your writing.
Our feature author is Angelo Sgabellone, an Italo/Canadian artist/writer who was born in Ferruzzano Italy. Due to the impacts of harsh post war conditions in Calabria, his family sold their land and moved to Ottawa in 1954. He was subsequently educated and worked in Ottawa, Toronto, New York and lives in Oakville, Ontario. Although he spent his formative years in Ottawa, he received his post secondary education at the University of Toronto (English) and the Ontario College of Art (design & marketing communications) Toronto and holds BA, BSc, AOCA and MBA degrees in English and marketing.
In the mid-seventies angelo worked for Peter C Newman to revitalize the old monthly Maclean’s (general interest) magazine into a profitable weekly news publication. As a result, he helped train and nurture many of Canada’s leading editors, writers and editorial designers.
Overall, angelo thrived for 50 years as a prominent (editorial/advertising) artist/writer and creative director. He is a former editor, art director, marketing executive, curator/art critic for mainstream and alternative publications, advertising agencies (Hayhurst, Ogilvy & Mather and MDC); publishing houses (Maclean-Hunter & McGraw-Hill), publications such as: Maclean’s Magazine, University of Toronto Magazine, Marketing Magazine, Financial Post newspaper, Canadian House & Home, Toronto Star, Etobicoke Guardian, the Art Gallery of Ontario and numerous private corporations such as: TD Bank, Manulife, Royal Bank, Bank of Montreal, Investors Group, NHL, JOFA, Canada Life and Life Underwiters of Canada among others.
Recently angelo published I Terroni: a metaphysical journey into the Soul of Southern Italy, (2019). I Terroni is a semi-biographical postmodern novel which is a vast work of historical fiction that looks at the captivating evolution of the Calabrian question which has haunted western thought through the eyes of colourful dreamers and their l’arte di arrangiarsi (skill of getting by) that has afflicted the southern Italian regions for the past 5,000 years. I Terroni is a provocative reading into the exhilarating myths and culture of the alluring regions of the Mezzogiorno (south) of the Italian peninsula and impactful events, culture, literature and individuals whose outcomes shaped the fundamental influence of western civilization from the Minoans, Greeks, Romans, Normans, Spanish, British and recently Americans and Canadians.
Throughout his career angelo has authored numerous articles/papers on experimental writing/art language, marketing management, fictioneering, poetry and visual art/design. In the early 70s, as a founder of the Queen Street West international art/alternative press movements he became an influential language artist and curator/designer of the Language and Structure in North America exhibition, published anthologies of many leading experimental artist, poets and writers. His Do 2 and Read 75 literary/poetry series (1972-78) launched the careers of young Canadian talent to the world. He helped create WOTS and The International Writers and Editors workshops at U of T and OCA. Since the early 70 he has also participated in experimental art/writing events in: New York, Toronto, Vancouver, Florence, Rome, London, Los Angeles, San Francesco and Athens, Greece.
His artistic/literary work is in various international anthologies, collections and galleries such as: AGO, NGA, CRC, LAMGA, IBM, Zona, (Florence), Flash Art (Milan), Centro Di (Rome), Studio International (London) and the Vancouver Art Gallery, Motta (New York) among others: Maclean’s, Marketing Magazine, Canadian Forum, Cult Magazine, University of Toronto Magazine, Queens Quarterly, Queen StreeT Magazine, Parachute, Proof Only, Design Canada, Toronto Life, Time Magazine, Toronto Star, Globe&Mail, Financial Post, Calgary Herald, Etobicoke Guardian, Canadian Lawyer, Time magazine, Arts Canada, Canadian Art magazine, Art Forum and Art News (New York), Monumenta (Rome, Italy) and Los Angeles Herald among others.