Free events entertain, educate at Deschutes Public Library

Published 3:00 pm Wednesday, July 30, 2025

While the squid ink pasta and stamp-making classes at the Deschutes Public Library are full next month, numerous  programs are still available without the need for registration for the upcoming themed event series “Know Ink/Inc.” The theme combines literal ink (think tattoos, journalism or squid ink) with the concept of inclusion, a nod to the great purpose of libraries.

“Libraries are one of the cornerstones of democracy, where everybody is welcome, everybody has access and it’s all for free,” said Liz Goodrich, the library’s events supervisor.

The theme allows for the coverage of a broad range of topics designed to engage different parts of the community, including a class taught in Spanish, a film festival for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and events featuring artists experiencing houselessness.

The latter, known as the Monograph Tour is hosted by Portland nonprofit Gather:Make: Shelter. It seeks to create a platform for voices that often go unheard and offer audiences with a new perspective on what it means to create art while navigating life on the streets, according to the event description.

The Deschutes Public Library is hosting classes on the history of American maritime tattoos on Friday and Saturday. (Submitted photo)

“I cannot wait for this one. I am so excited,” Goodrich said, adding that the nonprofit will bring a couple of artists to speak to their work and highlight the healing and community-building aspects of creating art.

Goodrich said she is hopeful that The Monograph Tour events will result in greater empathy and recognition of the humanity of the houseless community (events will be hosted Aug. 23 at the Redmond Library, 827 SW Deschutes Ave. and Aug. 24 at the Downtown Bend Library, 601 NW Wall St.)

Additional events requiring no registration include an exploration of the history of tattoos worn by sailors, photography fundamentals and a screening of the short film “Dirt Pride” by queer Cuban-American filmmaker Christina Rosetti.

Library offers third space

The inclusion element of the series is linked to the inclusive nature of libraries.

“Libraries are for everyone and what’s on our shelves represents everybody in our community,” Goodrich said.

“Something that I really treasure about Deschutes Public Library is the work that we’ve been doing to position ourselves as a third space. We’re not home, we’re not work or school. We’re this third space, the community living room as it were, where people can come together, learn something new about their neighbors, learn something new about themselves in a safe space and work to build community,” she said.

Events in the “Know Ink/Inc” series will be hosted throughout August, beginning Friday with the first event on “Anchors and Ink: The History and Legacy of Maritime Tattoos.”

For the full list of events, visit deschuteslibrary.org.