Links
Other Online Resources:
The following sites are recommended by Ex Machina for further exploration by those interested in literature and art from the Upper Great Plains:
Literature
The South Dakota Literary Map
The South Dakota Library Association, in partnership with
SDCTE and SDHC, distributed the South Dakota Literary Map to every school,
public, university and special library in South Dakota. The full-color 23x35
inch map may be purchased in museums and bookstores throughout the state
or from South Dakota Council of Teachers of English, Dodi Bemis, Treasurer,
876 Hidden Valley, Watertown, SD 57201 for $10 plus $2.50 for postage and
handling. The front of the map locates 55 authors and one or two titles
of significant works near the region they wrote about. The back of the map
contains biographical data and a partial annotated listing of titles for
more than 150 authors. The web site, listed below, contains even more information on South Dakota authors and theirs works. If you are interested in Plains literature, this is one site you must visit.
http://www.dwu.edu/sdlitmap/index.html
The Center for Western Studies
Augustana College
This organization has been a leader in establishing research collections, publishing, and collecting art and artifacts of the Great Plains and the West. Now anticipating the opening of a gleaming new facility on the campus of Augustana College in Sioux Falls, S.D., the Center offers its members access to its resources, discounts on purchases from its gift shop, current news about its activities, and early chances at tickets for the prestigious Boe Forum, which has brought such world-renowned speakers as Colin Powell, Barbara Bush, and John Major to the campus. In addition the Center presents annual programs such as the Dakota Conference on History, Literature, Art, and Archeology, the Artists of the Plains Art Show and Sale, a June fundraising event with dinner and entertainment, and a host of other activities in support of the culture of the West. Memberships start at forty dollars. At its web site, noted below, the Center makes available for downloading a book catalog listing its own latest publications along with representative volumes from scores of other regional authors.
http://inst.augie.edu/CWS/
Samuel Hofer Publications
Sam Hofer left the Hutterite Colony in which he grew up when he was in his early teens. He had already established himself as a professional cartoonist, but to earn more money, he collected and sold recipes. Since then he has established himself as an author and publisher in the prairie provinces of Canada. His work on the Hutterites and their way of life, to be found on the Ex Machina site under A Sense of Place, Fiction, and Food, helps to open this important corner of the Plains to the ordinary reader. Much more about Sam and his career may be found on his site.
http://www.hoferpublishers.com/index.html
William J. Reynolds
William J. Reynolds, in addition to being an outstanding writer, has also been in the vanguard of the computer revolution. His site offers listings of his writings, including all of his short stories, engaging graphics, and, as the title says, a whole lot more. Well worth the ride, if only to enjoy some more of this author's deft wit. His work may be found on the Ex Machina site at A Sense of Place and Fiction. Reynolds' pages include information on his latest book about South Dakota.
http://sites.netscape.net/wjreynolds/
No other source is more thorough in the coverage of the arts in this region and in the coverage of the world at large. The Argus Leader has nurtured such writers as John Egan, Kim Ode, Kevin Woster, and Terry Woster, all of whom have published books with Ex Machina. (For a classic example, see Kim Ode's "Rhubarb Wine" in the Spring 2002 issue of The Seasonal Reader.) The site is a must for those who want to know what's going on in theater, art, cinema, and daily life.
http://www.argusleader.com/
Bernie Hunhoff is one of our heroes. He started the South Dakota Magazine on a a shoestring some 15 years ago and has built it into an outstanding periodical, featuring some of the area's best writers and photographers. Today it is as as sleek as they come, while retaining the small-town coziness and warmth that has distinguished it from the first. There is hardly a corner of the state that the magazine hasn't covered, and it continues to probe the territory, looking ever more deeply and from different angles. Any reader who wants an overview of the state needs this magazine.
http://www.sodakmag.com/
Another Hunhoff publication, doing the same thing for Nebraska that South Dakota Magazine does for its respective state.
http://www.nebraskalife.com/index.html
Art
Museums and Galleries
The following sites provide information about and images of the arts in the areas they serve. Please contact us if you have any other such sites to recommend.
Iowa Art Centers, Galleries and Museums: http://www.culturalaffairs.org/
iac/directoryorganizations/dirgallery.htm, an exhaustive listing of galleries and museums in Iowa.
The Museum Of Nebraska Art: http://monet.unk.edu/mona/, images of Nebraska artists and the MONA collections and special shows.
North Dakota Art Gallery Association: http://www.ndaga.org/About_Us/about_us.htm, information about galleries and showings in North Dakota.
North Dakota Museum of Art: http://www.ndmoa.com/, information about and photographs of special exhibits and the permanent collection.
The Minneapolis Institute of Art: http://www.artsMIA.org/permanent/index.html, one of the most complete online resources for viewing items from special exhibitions and the permanent collection. Special processes allow the user to see the art in great detail.
The Washington Pavilion of Arts and Science: http://www.washingtonpavilion.org/, this new facility, located in downtown Sioux Falls, South Dakota, offers information about special shows and permanent displays, along with a sampling of art images.