Nina MacLaughlin: Burning in the Eyes of the Maker
About this Event
Join us at Brookline Booksmith to celebrate the release of Burning in the Eyes of the Maker with author Nina MacLaughlin.
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EVENT ATTENDEES: Preorder your copy of Burning in the Eyes of the Maker through this page. Books will also be available for purchase at the event. Books can be picked up 30 minutes before the event in the event space.
CAN'T MAKE IT TO THE EVENT? Preorder the book here to have it signed, and choose to have it held for pickup or shipped from the store!
Book orders are processed for pickup or shipping after ticket sales have closed.
Event accessibility
- This event will take place at street level.
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- ASL interpretation may be provided (based on the availability of interpreters) but must be requested at least 2 weeks in advance of the event.
- Please email us at [email protected] as soon as possible if you require ASL interpretation, guaranteed seating, or other accommodations. Seats are limited.We will do our best to serve your needs!
Burning in the Eyes of the Maker: Celeste Dupuy-Spencer
This powerful collection of Celeste Dupuy-Spencer’s electrifying paintings, paired with lyrical, incisive text by Nina MacLaughlin, captures the current American moment in all its chaos, contradiction, and complexity
"Taken together, Celeste’s paintings become essay, epic, and hymn…She drops herself into the American mythology and the multiple, fractured, contradictory feelings and beliefs and events that define it. She shows us what’s here." – Nina MacLaughlin
With an unflinching eye and a painterly sensibility rooted in both the classical and the contemporary, acclaimed artist Celeste Dupuy-Spencer created tender yet charged portrayals of American life. Her arresting compositions grapple with memory, identity, politics, and faith through expressive brushwork and deeply personal scenes.
Burning in the Eyes of the Maker is Dupuy-Spencer’s first full-length publication. Spanning the last decade of her career before her passing in 2026, this momentous volume pairs 63 beautifully reproduced paintings, including new and never-before-published artworks, with equally urgent, layered prose by acclaimed author Nina MacLaughlin.
Taking the paintings as a jumping-off point, MacLaughlin creates narrative impressions of the often riotous scenes depicted. She guides readers inside the thoughts of the figures on the canvas, through the histories of the rooms they occupy, and into Celeste’s mind, past, and creative ethos. A plethora of luscious, full-page details bring the intricacies of these canvases to life.
Equal parts visual archive and literary meditation, Burning in the Eyes of the Maker is an emotionally resonant, uncompromising look at our contemporary moment.
Nina MacLaughlin is the author of Wake, Siren: Ovid Resung (FSG), a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award and the Massachusetts Book Award, as well as Summer Solstice and Winter Solstice (Black Sparrow), winner of the Massachusetts Book Award. Her first book was the acclaimed memoir Hammer Head: The Making of a Carpenter (W.W. Norton), a finalist for the New England Book Award. Her most recent book is the monograph Burning in the Eyes of the Maker (Phaidon) on the work of the artist Celeste Dupuy-Spencer. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
About Brookline Booksmith
Brookline Booksmith, thriving in the heart of Coolidge Corner in Brookline, Massachusetts, since 1961, is one of New England’s premier independent bookstores. We offer a vast selection of books, ranging from current bestsellers to the most eclectic titles. We are also known for our beautiful and inspired gifts. Customers buy and sell gently used books in our treasured Used Book Cellar and enjoy our bountiful bargain book selection. We host award-winning events series (including our groundbreaking Transnational Literature Series), offering more than 300 author talks, community conversations, and book clubs annually. Find more at brooklinebooksmith.com!
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Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 0.00 to USD 82.46
