The Pleasures of Romantic Travel | Katrina Neumann

all photos: Brennan Broome

The Pleasures of Romantic Travel is a 10 hour performative reading of children's literature from Elsewhere's collection of vintage books in Fisher Park, Center City Park and Elsewhere's Alley Garden. Neumann chose the Greensboro parks as locations for the performances because of an interest in the way parks highlight and shape our urban relationship with nature and the romantic ideal of reading in the park that is disappearing as the internet becomes our primary leisure time destination. Neumann was fascinated by how clearly children’s book reveal cultural values of the time at which they were written. While collecting these books from the library and sorting them by continent she developed the idea of traveling around the world by reading the books.

From the press release:

“Artist Katrina Neumann adds “Children’s Anthropological Studies” and/or “Children’s Destination Literature” sections to Elsewhere’s Living Library through a series of durational performance pieces.”

The Pleasures of Romantic Travel by Katrina Neumann, Andrea Rosen, and Elsewhere Collaborative
5×8 in, 102 pages, published Dec 17, 2012

“There are sound bites from readings during the performance installed by GPS and Broadcastr (a smartphone application) in Fisher Park and Center City Park with instructions inside.

Andrea Rosen, contributing editor and art historian, has an additional feature essay discussing The Pleasures of Romantic Travel performances. Rosen's prominent essay, "Can I Change Your Saturday?," can be found at the closing of this catalog.”

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