‘FLAMBOYANCE’ with Jack Parlett in conversation with Peter Scalpello
Jack Parlett discusses his new book Flamboyance with poet Peter Scalpello at Housmans Bookshop
Jack Parlett and celebrated poet Peter Scalpello discuss Flamboyance and how it ignites every aspect of our lives, from art and entertainment to ritual and protest.
Flamboyance is Jack Parlett’s follow up to his acclaimed Fire Island (a Housmans bestseller of 2022). This new book has all the qualities one has come to expect of Jack’s work; big hearted and erudite in equal measure. Flamboyance ignites every aspect of our lives, from art and entertainment to ritual and protest. The word conjures exuberance and unashamed passion; in thought, expression and dress. Yet historically the term ‘flamboyant’ has been reserved for the over-the-top and the outré, invoked at times as a pejorative innuendo or worse. In his fascinating new book, Jack Parlett argues for its value as an empowering and creative force, illuminating the ways in which flamboyance is a fundamental aspect of human conduct that both marks and transcends difference.
Taking in an eclectic array of examples, from Gothic architecture to the orange flowers of Dungeness, and populated by figures such as Oscar Wilde, James Baldwin, Elton John, Amy Winehouse, Lil Nas X and Chappell Roan, this is a book about flamboyant art and the art of flamboyance. And having both aspired to it and rejected it, Jack recounts his personal relationship to flamboyance while also finding new meanings of the word, exploring its surprises and contradictions, and reconnecting with its radical power.
Our speakers: Jack Parlett is the author of three books including Fire Island: A Queer History (Granta). His writing has appeared in the New Yorker, Document Journal, BBC Culture, Boston Review, Literary Hub and Poetry London. Peter Scalpello is a writer and psychotherapist from Glasgow, based in London. Their second book, Mirrorstage, was published this year with Cipher Press.
Tickets are priced on a sliding scale. If you are unable to pay for a ticket please contact shop@housmans.com and a free ticket will be made available. If you choose ‘book + entry’ your copy will be available to collect on the evening. For postage or earlier collection contact the shop (postage £2.95). Telephone 020 7837 4473 or email shop@housmans.com.
Doors open 6:45pm, event starts 7:00pm.
