November Distinguished Speaker [] San Miguel Literary Sala
Event Category: Literary Events
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The Last Mona Lisa
by Jonathan Santlofer
Interviewed by Elinor Lipman
Zoom: Sunday, Nov 7, 6–7:30pm CST
Sliding Scale Pricing
$5–50 USD
The Mona Lisa Mystery
by Vicki Totten
“Art is not what you see but what you make others see”
— Edgar Degas
In 1911, the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre in Paris, France. How does author and artist Jonathan Santlofer take this one known fact and weave it into a suspenseful tale of what might have happened around this famous theft and its eventual return to the Louvre two years later? On November 7, Elinor Lipman will interview the author of The Last Mona Lisa and dive into the world of art and literature.
Santlofer creates an enthralling page-turner as he holds the reader’s attention with fast-paced action moving from 1911 to the present day, and from Florence, to Paris, and eventually New York. Art History Professor Luke Perrone, whose great grandfather confessed to the theft, a rogue Interpol investigator, a Russian art thief, and a mysterious American woman contribute to the intrigue. Professor Perrone’s efforts to find out the truth about the theft cause him to stumble into the underworld of art forgery and obsession, putting his and other people’s lives in danger.
The question ultimately explored is how an art collector’s love of collecting masterpieces can turn into an obsession, ultimately causing the collector to lose touch with anything else that matters.
Jonathan Santlofer is an accomplished artist and the author of six other novels, including the international bestseller The Death Artist, and the Nero award-winning Anatomy of Fear. His memoir The Widower’s Notebook appeared on over a dozen “Best Books of 2018” lists and was a featured segment on Fresh Air with Terry Gross. Santlofer’s art has been shown in more than 200 exhibitions with work in major private and public collections.
Elinor Lipman, the award-winning author of sixteen books of fiction and nonfiction, will interview Santlofer. Her first novel, Then She Found Me, was made into a feature film starring Helen Hunt, with Bette Midler, Colin Firth and Matthew Broderick, and is still on Netflix. Her writing is “brisk and intelligent” and “sparkles with wit.” Lipman’s most recent book is Rachel to the Rescue. Both were keynote speakers at the San Miguel Writers’ Conference in 2011.
Join us for this Distinguished Speaker Zoom presentation on, Sunday, November 7, 2021, 6:00–7:30 PM CST.
Tickets are pay-what-you-wish-scale, $5-50 USD. Info on this event and on writers’ workshops is available at sanmiguelliterarysala.org.
Our purpose is to offer visibility, community, and inspiration to the writers and readers of San Miguel de Allende; to honor the long history of distinguished writers living and working here; to enrich the cultural life and educational opportunities for local residents in both Spanish and English; and to establish San Miguel de Allende as a leading destination for literary and cultural tourism commensurate with its status as a World Heritage Site. We believe that reading and writing are essential, that great literature enriches our lives, feeds our souls, and facilitates greater understanding of ourselves and others.
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