Luxuriating in Poetry with Evelyn Araluen

“Poetry is the way we help give name to the nameless so it can be thought” writes the radical Black lesbian, feminist, socialist, mother, warrior poet Audre Lorde in her landmark 1985 essay Poetry is Not a Luxury. It is this appreciation of the transformative power of poetry to witness and challenge the world that must foreground a poetic practice of the 21st century. 

In this dialogic workshop, Evelyn Araluen invites participants to explore the relationship between craft, form and self-expression through reflective responses to their personal poetic canon. Through close readings of a range of poems, participants will explore poetry demands of its reader, and what it gives in return. By unpacking their responses, participants will gain insight into their own philosophies, histories and identities. Blending critique and creative practice, this workshop roots the writing of poetry in the reading and appreciation of poetry. From there, the possibilities are endless.