Tag: ekphrastic

Episode 12: Wesley Freeman Smith – The Art of Collaboration

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Picture: Jules Leaño

Writing can be a lonely business but collaboration has always been at the heart of Wesley Freeman Smith’s practice. The Cambridge-based writer and artist began promoting events which brought together musicians, poets and visual artists in churches, basements and other grand and modest venues to perform, collaborate and share their creativity side-by-side.
From promoting others work he has stepped up to the mic himself on his latest project Catching Shadows a collaboration between himself and musician Theresa Elflein. Their debut release Fuse features Wesley’s abstract poetry set to music provided by guest collaborator Anna Schuschu.
Wesley talks about his latest project and working with artists across borders – artistic and geographical – to create art which is more than the sum of its parts.

Wesley also invites you to write a poem in response to one or more of these images he sourced for a ghost story writing project. You can hear a couple of his poems and one written by Patrick. Please share your own on social media using #poetrynonstop or via email here.

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Episode 10: Michael Brown – Poems in Pictures and Pictures in Poems

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Michael Brown by Thom Atkinson

Cambridge-based poet Michael Brown discusses ekphrastic poetry. He reads poems inspired by various pictures and other artworks particularly the work of Francis Bacon. Michael explains how he translates pictures into words and invites listeners to write an ekphrastic poem:

Go to a gallery or find a piece of artwork that really speaks volumes to you in an art book. Perhaps wonder in the gallery first then read what you can about the piece and have it visually present when you write. The traditional way would be to recreate the image or imagery through the written word. However whatever the piece inspires let the poem take you to where it needs to.

Patrick responds to the prompt with a poem inspired by Melancholy III by Edvard Munch.

Please share your ekphrastic poems via email or on social media using #poetrynonstop. Please also use the same hash tag to share pictures which would be good for ekphrastic poems. Who knows what poems they might inspire.

Michael also reads poems from his upcoming collection Meet Me at the Harbour which evoke memorable images with a few well chosen words.

Michael Brown was born in Manchester in 1983. He completed Meet Me at the Harbour whilst staying in his favourite place in the world, Charlestown, Cornwall, and in lighthouses owned by Trinity House. He lives in Cambridge with his husband and their adopted son. Michael is currently working on his short novel on climate change The Cage.

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If you have enjoyed this episode please help me make more by donating via Patreon or Paypal. All contributions gratefully received.

Michael Brown – 200 Buttons

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Michael Brown by Thom Atkinson

Coming up this week Michael Brown talks about ekphrastic poetry and reads from his upcoming collection Meet Me at the Harbour.

Here is a poem inspired by an exhibit in the Queer British Art at Tate Britain exhibition.

200 buttons
for Richard Chopping and Denis Worth Miller
Queer British Art at Tate Britain

Local legend has it
that every time a soldier pays a ‘visit’
they collect from him a button
stored in an old Christmas biscuit tin.

Bohemia round here is like
a fat man with eyebrows like furry caterpillars and an oily voice
so Richard said on the phone to Francis Bacon.

Denis was a cute little button
he’d spend his days painting boys down at the cruising ground.

They invited me to their house in Cornwall
and I spent summer writing poems in the harbour
and undoing many buttons.

Michael Brown