Duende District popping up in Brookland at A Creative DC: Brookland on the Arts Walk at Monroe Street Market.

From a press release:

“After an extended summer stay in Takoma Park, Duende District Bookstore is headed NE this September, with its next stop at A Creative DC: Brookland on the Arts Walk at Monroe Street Market.

The pop-up will run from Sept. 8-17 and will offer an expanded selection of general adult and children titles by authors/illustrators of color. A Creative DC: Brookland is located just off the Brookland/CUA Metro stop at 716 Monroe Street NE, Studio #8, across from the Arts Walk tower sign.

Also featured will be the first Duende Artist Residents, Lory Ivey Alexander and Aliana Grace Bailey.

Alexander is a Brookland-based contemporary visual artist and writer. Using colorful mixed media and lyrical poetry & prose, Lory documents the untold stories of the African American Virginians from whom she descends. For more information, visit her site at www.loryivey.com.

Bailey is a mixed media artist, designer, and social good doer. She thrives off of vibrant colors, intricate patterns, bold typography, intimacy, and exploring the emotions of herself and others. Visit her site at www.alianagracebailey.com.

The pop-up will kick off with an opening reception from 6 – 8 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 8. Official opening hours will be Wednesdays to Sundays from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. on Sept. 9-10th and Sept. 13-17th.

Customers will find a high-quality selection of about 100 titles in Fiction, Poetry, Memoir/Essay, Beverages/Cookbooks, Art/Music, Graphic Novels, local zines and children’s books – all by authors and illustrators of color.

Duende District founder and owner Angela Maria Spring left Politics & Prose, where she had worked since 2010, in November to pursue her vision of creating a bookstore by and for people of color – where all are welcome. The mobile pop-up bookstore debuted in Arlington, Virginia, at the Artomatic Festival in March and has been going strong ever since.

“Every pop-up location and partner business or organization builds the bridge into diverse neighborhoods and communities, as well as providing opportunities to build this authentic, inclusive bookstore experience online,” Spring said. “The A Creative DC collaboration is very exciting because it’s the strongest physical-online union we’ve had yet and we’re mixing art into the fabric of the pop-up like we never have before.”

Launched in January 2015 by Morgan H. West, A Creative DC promotes emerging, established, and diverse DC perspectives across new media, showcasing and acknowledging the city’s creative community and local creative economy to an online audience of ~100k.

“We’re always thrilled to partner with people and projects whose work lends visibility to the diversity of DC’s creative community,” says West. “The importance of Duende District’s role as local bookseller is reason enough to champion their work; their commitment to amplifying underrepresented voices and creating access in different parts of the city makes us especially proud to host them in Brookland.”

Though eventually Duende District will land somewhere in the DMV as a bricks-and-mortar bookstore, it is currently a mobile bookstore servicing diverse communities throughout the DMV.
“I’m enjoying being a bookstore at large right now,” Spring said. “I didn’t plan for this originally but being able to go anywhere and create partnerships with organizations and businesses all over the city and beyond has been amazing.”

To celebrate the pop-up, A Creative DC and Duende District will be doing book giveaways featuring Duende District’s favorite new book releases in September via their Twitter and Instagram accounts.

There will be a meet-and-greet opening reception and celebration of Spring’s birthday on Friday, Sept. 8, from 6 – 8 p.m., with light refreshments, and an official showing of Duende District’s resident artists.

After Brookland, Duende District will head to Hyattsville from Sept. 18-30 in collaboration with the Mayor’s Office.”