Pasta, Poetry & Vino is excited to announce two gems in the Houston literary scene as features. Welcome Jasminne Mendez and Lupe Mendez. This is our first double feature. The date will be in January of 2016.
JASMINNE MENDEZ
Jasminne Mendez is a performance poet, actress, teacher and published writer. She captivates audiences through the passion and energy of her words and voice. Mendez has performed her poetry in venues all around Houston, including the MFAH, Rice and the Alley Theatre. She has shared the stage with respected writers and poets, notably, Sandra Cisneros and Taylor Mali. Mendez has been published both nationally and internationally and her first multi-genre memoir Island of Dreams was published by Floricanto Press in November of 2013. She is currently working on her second memoir Thick Skinned about living life with chronic illness. For more about her journey visit her blog: Chronic Brevity: Living with Scleroderma
LUPE MENDEZ
Originally from Galveston,Texas, Lupe works with Nuestra Palabra: Latino Writers Having Their Say, the Word Around Poetry Tour and the Brazilian Arts Foundation to promote poetry events, advocate for literacy/literature and organize creative writing workshops that are open to the public.
Mendez has over fifteen years of experience as a performance poet - having opened up for such notable writers as Dagoberto Gilb, Oscar Casarez, Esmeralda Santiago and the late Raul Salinas. He has hosted several workshop series throughout Texas and shared his poetry across the country in places like the Holocaust Muesum (Houston,TX), the Mission Cultural Center For Latino Arts (San Francisco,CA) , the National Hispanic Cultural Center (Albuquerque,NM) and the Mexican American Cultural Center (Austin,TX). Lupe has served as a keynote speaker at colleges and universities such as Sam Houston State University, the University of Houston, Lone Star College, the University of Texas at San Antonio, and Lee College in Baytown, TX.
Lupe is an internationally published poet, in book and online formats, including Norton's -Sudden Fiction Latino: Short-Short Stories From The United States and Latin America, The Bayou Review (University of Houston-Downtown), Flash (University of Chester, England)- the international forum for flash fiction, Huizache, the magazine of Latino literature, Luna Luna Magazine, La Noria, Glassworks and Revista Síncope (D.F., México).
In 2012 Lupe was honored as one "Houston Press' Creative 100s" - a annual spotlight on the Houston Press blog site where 100 artists & arts supporters are featured throughout the year . Lupe, along with the rest of the Librotraficante organizers, was also awarded the 2012 Downs Intellectual Freedom Award for the defense of Mexican American Studies and literature across the Southwest United States. Lupe also served as Fiction and Poetry editor for the online literary journal - Drunken Boat - on the Librotraficante Portfolio for their 18th issue. As of 2014, Lupe was selected as a CantoMundo Fellow and continues to work on submissions, creating more writing workshop opportunities and continues to share his poetry with local high schools, colleges and community/arts centers.
Lupe is an internationally published poet, in book and online formats, including Norton's -Sudden Fiction Latino: Short-Short Stories From The United States and Latin America, The Bayou Review (University of Houston-Downtown), Flash (University of Chester, England)- the international forum for flash fiction, Huizache, the magazine of Latino literature, Luna Luna Magazine, La Noria, Glassworks and Revista Síncope (D.F., México).
In 2012 Lupe was honored as one "Houston Press' Creative 100s" - a annual spotlight on the Houston Press blog site where 100 artists & arts supporters are featured throughout the year . Lupe, along with the rest of the Librotraficante organizers, was also awarded the 2012 Downs Intellectual Freedom Award for the defense of Mexican American Studies and literature across the Southwest United States. Lupe also served as Fiction and Poetry editor for the online literary journal - Drunken Boat - on the Librotraficante Portfolio for their 18th issue. As of 2014, Lupe was selected as a CantoMundo Fellow and continues to work on submissions, creating more writing workshop opportunities and continues to share his poetry with local high schools, colleges and community/arts centers.
Lupe's work reflects not only his roots in Texas and the Mexican state of Jalisco ( specifically, Atotonilco El Alto, San Jose del Valle, San Juan de los Lagos, Guadalajara, Los Cuates, La Pareja), it is also a comment on commonplace issues, struggles, moments and relevant ideas and images he is humbled to witness. Lupe remarks on issues from the political to the emotional in a way that intends to connect with both the novice reader to the pro poetic writer.
THANK YOU! LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ALL!
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