Poetic License - Albany, November 13

A reading/open mic in conjunction with the Poetic License - Albany exhibit at The Fish Market Gallery in Troy. This is the 2nd year of a collaboration between/among the Hudson Valley Writers Guild, the Upstate Artists Guild, & the larger community of poets & visual artists to bring art & poetry together. "Ekphrastic art" is a term describing creative work in one genre responding to work in another; the most common iteration is poetry written in response to a piece of visual art, e.g., a painting, drawing, sculpture, etc. This project involves visual artists responding to poems by area poets, then both the visual art & the poem being displayed together — ekphrastic art. 

This night we gathered in the gallery for a reading of poetry, not all of which inspired a work of visual art, but we were surrounded by sparkling works of art while the poets read their scintillating words. The MC of the event was no other than Mary Panza, a host & participant of many poetry open mics over the years.

The first reader was Don Maurer, who began with his poem in 3 short parts, “Unnatural Acts,” which inspired a painting by Phil Palmieri; he also read a poem titled “Nauset Beach, Cape Cod, 1840” & another in rhyme on season changes.

Chloe Glenn’s poem “The Moth” inspired paintings by Rebecca Schoonmaker & Tina Johnston; she also read an elegy, “The Last Night Walk,” & one titled “What You Left in the Forest.”

As happens in this project a poem selected as a possible source of inspiration may not be picked up by an artist, as happened to Alexander Perez, but Perez who is a frequenter of the many open mics in the area, read a poem, “Kisses from Beethoven,” inspired by his reading the letters of the great composer.

Brian Liston, who also participated in last year’s inaugural Poetic License - Albany, read a series of his short poems, some single words stacked up, including “Struggle” that inspired work by Sven Willets; he also read his poem “Autistic Superkid” that was originally published in Chronogram magazine.

Noah Kucij was a local poet who submitted 2 poems for the event, then died suddenly in April. Tonight, his friend Matt Rector came to honor Noah’s memory & read his poems, “At the Missing Sock Laundromat” (that inspired a collage by Tess Lecuyer), & “Your Photos A Year Ago This Week” (that inspired a photograph by Thom Francis), as well as a poem Matt wrote years ago while hanging out with Noah, “I Got Rhythm #5 -14”.

Rebecca Schumejda’s poem “Unlike Geese,” from her book Sentenced (NYQ Books, 2023) inspired a painting by Jason Martinez, but instead of Rebecca reading the poem, it was read by her daughter Alexis.

Nick, who is a regular here at the weekly open mic, Poetic Vibe, joined as an open mic reader, read 2 inspirational, personal pieces “Transformation,” & “Begin Again.”

The last poet, Ryan Smithson,  read as an open mic poet, but he had also submitted visual work, composed of butterfly wings, inspired by a poem, “Lungs of the Universe,” by Margaret McDermott; Ryan read her poem, then his own poems “The Serpent & the Apple,” & “An Ode to Powdered Donuts.” I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Ryan’s moving memoir of his tour of duty with the U.S. Army in Iraq, Ghosts of War: the True Story of a 19-year-old GI (Harper Collins, 2009).

Check the Hudson Valley Writers Guild calendar on its website for a list of other exhibits & readings associated with the 2023 Poetic License - Albany project.