Cloudspotting with the Cloud Appreciation Society

Date: Monday, Oct 16, 2023
Time: 6:30–8pm
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As featured in Something in Common exhibition at Central Library.

Join Gavin Pretor-Pinney, founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society, for an illustrated tour of the sky. He will discuss how to recognize the many varied and dramatic cloud formations, from the fair-weather cotton tufts known as cumulus to the flying-saucer shaped lenticularis and the fleeting cloud undulations called fluctus. In this enlightening and entertaining talk, Pretor-Pinney explains why clouds look the way they do; how the sky has played a cameo role throughout the history of art; how clouds reveal the invisible movements of our atmosphere; and why spending a few moments each day with your head in the clouds helps you keep your feet on the ground.

Frequently asked questions

Co-presented with the Los Angeles Public Library

Gavin Pretor-Pinney

Gavin Pretor-Pinney is founder and Member 001 of the Cloud Appreciation Society, which has over 61,000 members in 120 countries. He is the author of the internationally bestselling Cloudspotter’s Guide (2006) and Cloud Collector’s Handbook (2009) as well as A Cloud A Day (2021). Gavin is a winner of the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books. He is a TED Global speaker with over 1.3 million views. He has presented television documentaries for the BBC and Channel 4 and is a Visiting Fellow at the Meteorology Department of Reading University and winner of the Royal Meteorological Society’s Michael Hunt award. Based in Somerset, England, Gavin co-founded the Idler, a magazine that argues for the importance of downtime in creative thinking.



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Stacy Lieberman

As President and CEO of the Library Foundation of Los Angeles (LFLA), Stacy Lieberman is an innovative and inclusive leader whose career dwells at the intersection of arts and culture, lifelong learning, storytelling, and equitable access. Stacy guides the Foundation’s philanthropic and public-facing priorities to serve the Los Angeles Public Library, embracing the notion that libraries are beacons of democracy where everyone is welcome. She works intentionally with community leaders, donors, and internal and external strategic partners to raise awareness and resources for the Library and its life-changing initiatives.

With more than 20 years of experience as a senior executive, Stacy has left an indelible mark on iconic L.A. arts, non-profit, and educational institutions such as The Broad, the Autry Museum of the American West, and the Skirball Cultural Center. Building on an early career in book publishing, she has dedicated her professional life to sharing stories and broadening the reach of public institutions to welcome visitors and students of all ages and backgrounds to experience educational, arts, and cultural opportunities.