"An elegant and often luscious tour of Virginia’s natural environment that is by turns travelogue; memoir; portable exhibition; reflections on culture and history; and observations of fish, fowl, fossils and artifacts." —Richmond Magazinereflections on culture and history; and observations of fish, fowl, fossils and artifacts."I have long loved Suzanne Stryk's work. This book is aninvitation to know that work more deeply, to learn of its origins, its roots,and to look over her shoulder as she sketches in notebooks full of salamandersand cocoons, horseshoe crabs and turtles. What a joy to lose yourself in aworld of the human and nonhuman merged, of leaves and maps, trees andtext." — David Gessner, author of Quiet Desperation, Savage Delight and All the Wild That Remains “The title of Stryk’s new book is beautifullydescriptive. She is always placing herself in the middle of an experience asshe traverses the state of Virginia. In each chapter, she explores a specificsubject deeply, gracefully connecting her personal meditations to naturalhistory. As a visual artist, she examines salamanders, horseshoe crabs andother subjects through acute observation; as a writer, she pulls us into aworld of endless wonder.” — Mary Stewart, artist and author of Launching theImagination: A Comprehensive Guide to Basic Design. “Suzanne Stryk overlays topo maps of Virginia places she visitedwith her sketches and notes, along with the stories of her experiences—all ofthem vividly and finely drawn. The result is a kind of deep map, a rich placein the imagination as much as a geographic point. Under a mossy rock in thehighlands, she uncovers a salamander, an activity that speaks to her art: acolorful creature, the joy it brings, and the love it requiresunrequited. The Middle of Somewhere brings us into thepatience and ardor of Stryk’s artistic process and calls us to chart our ownjourneys of wonder and discovery.” — Rick Van Noy, SuddenSpring: Stories of Adaptation in Climate-Changed South and A Natural Sense ofWonder “Suzanne's art istranscendently beautiful. I love the juxtapositions of painting, found items,print, and who knows what else that she constructs. Her writing here seems tobe mostly about her process, her way of seeing—a bit like her art, filled withsurprising twists and turns.” — Julie Zickefoose, Baby Birds: An Artist Looks into the Nest and Lettersfrom Eden: A Year at Home, in the Woods “Stryk'sart asks how we connect to place. Do we act as a tourist, passing through for asnapshot and then moving on? Or do we engage deeply like a traveler, movingbeyond seeing to witnessing a natural world that may be disappearing. In thisway, these works are not just "notes," but contemporary reliquarieshousing fragments to be honored and protected.” — Leah Stoddard, Independent Curator
