Octavia Cecilia Capuzzi Waldo Locke (April 25, 1929 – April 22, 2011) was an American writer and artist who was best known for her 1961 novel, ''A Cup of the Sun''.

Biography

Octavia Cecilia Capuzzi Waldo was born on April 25, 1929 in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, the eighth child of Italian-American parents. She graduated with honors from the Tyler School of Fine Arts at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

, and from 1949 to 1950 was a

Fulbright fellow The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

at the

American Academy in Rome The American Academy in Rome is a research and arts institution located on the Gianicolo (Janiculum Hill) in Rome. The academy is a member of the Council of American Overseas Research Centers. History In 1893, a group of American architects, ...

. She has also been a fellow at the

Bread Loaf Writers' Conference The Middlebury Bread Loaf Writers' Conference is an author's conference held every summer at the Bread Loaf Inn, near Bread Loaf Mountain, east of Middlebury, Vermont. Founded in 1926, it has been called by ''The New Yorker'' "the oldest and most p ...

and a resident at

Yaddo Yaddo is an artists' community located on a estate in Saratoga Springs, New York. Its mission is "to nurture the creative process by providing an opportunity for artists to work without interruption in a supportive environment.". On March ...

. Her artwork has been shown in galleries and is included in private collections; she taught art for many years in Washington D.C. Her first novel was published in 1961 under the name Octavia Waldo; other writings have appeared under the names Octavia Capuzzi and Octavia Capuzzi Locke. In ''A Cup of the Sun'', the Italian-American female protagonist struggles "to achieve a level of autonomy unknown to her mother." Waldo's short stories and other writings have appeared in many journals and anthologies, including Helen Barolini's ''The Dream Book: An Anthology of Writings of Italian American Women'' (1985) and ''Don't Tell Mama: The Penguin Book of Italian American Writing'' (2002). Waldo died in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

on April 22, 2011, at the age of 81.

Biography

References

Further reading