Exhibits & Events

Shelley Thorstensen
of dust, STREWN: a florilegium
May 10th - June 28th, 2025

flo·ri·le·gi·um
/ˌflôrəˈlējēəm/

early 17th century: modern Latin, literally ‘bouquet’ (from Latin flos, flor- ‘flower’ + legere ‘gather’), translation of Greek anthologion

Editors who compile florilegia (to use the plural form) can be thought of as gathering a bouquet of sweet literary blossoms. English speakers picked up florilegium from a New Latin word that derives from Latin florilegus, which can be translated as “culling flowers.” In fact, florilegium initially applied to a collection of flowers, and later to books about flowers, but it wasn’t long before the word began to be used for (as the Oxford English Dictionary puts it) “a collection of the flowers of literature.” And florilegium isn’t the only English collecting term with a floral heritage; its synonym anthology comes from the Greek word for “flower gathering.”

There will be a closing reception for the exhibition on Saturday, June 28th from 6-9 p.m.

Regular hours are Saturday and Sunday, 12 p.m. - 4 p.m. and by appointment.

The gallery is located on an easement directly behind 1175 S 13th Street. Enter Butchie Alley from Federal Street, just before 13th. Look for the Isaiah Zagar mosaic mural.

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