Crossing State Lines: An American Renga

PRESENTED BY THE GUILD LITERARY COMPLEX AND THE POETRY FOUNDATION

6pm reception; 7pm program

Space is limited and reservations can be made from September 30 to October 11. Please attend if you make a reservation, or let us know if a conflict arises so that someone else might have your place.

Please reserve here or call Ashley Sheehan at (312) 799-8026. 

Recently published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Crossing State Lines: An American Renga, edited by Bob Holman and Carol Muske-Dukes, will be fêted at the Poetry Foundation on October 11. The poem is part of "America: Now and Here," a cross-country journey of art and ideas initiated by the artist Eric Fischl. A renga is a traditional Japanese form—a kind of poetic conversation—and Crossing State Lines includes 54 poets from around the country, beginning with Robert Pinsky seeing the fall leaves near the Atlantic in Boston, and concluding with Robert Hass having a springtime lunch by the Pacific. Carol Muske-Dukes and Bob Holman will discuss the form and the project. Clips from a documentary film of Crossing State Lines will be shown and attendees will have the opportunity to contribute to a Chicago renga. Complimentary wine and hors d’oeuvres will be served.

Co-sponsored by the Guild Complex and the Poetry Foundation

Carol Muske-Dukes is the Poet Laureate of California and the author of eight collections of poetry, most recently Twin Cities, as well as several novels and essay collections. Among her many awards are fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation, as well as the Witter Bynner Award from the Library of Congress. She is professor of English and creative writing at USC.

Dubbed the Dean of the Scene, Bob Holman runs the Bowery Poetry Club and teaches at Columbia and NYU. He is the Emmy Award-winning producer of the PBS program, The United States of Poetry, and the author of several collections, including A Couple Ways of Doing Something, a collaboration with the artist Chuck Close. He recently received funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities for a documentary on the poetry of endangered languages.

America: Now and Here, in partnership with visual artists, musicians, poets, playwrights, and filmmakers across America, will share art with communities large and small to ignite creativity, to launch thoughtful dialogue, and to inspire a bold vision for our shared future.  All proceeds from the sales of Crossing State Lines: An America Renga support America: Now and Here.

The Guild Literary Complex, a community-based literary organization, presents and supports diverse, divergent, and emerging voices through innovative programs including performances and readings. These include bilingual poetry through Palabra Pura, collaborative writing and presentation with teh Poetry Performance Incubator, and the open-submission Gwendolyn Brooks Open Mic Award and Prose Awards for Short Fiction and Non-Fiction. The organization believes that vibrant literature contributes to society and community, and that people should have access to quality literary experiences that engage them with dynamic juxtapositions of voices and ideas.

The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine, is an independent literary organization committed to a vigorous presence for poetry in our culture. It exists to discover and celebrate the best poetry and to place it before the largest possible audience. The Poetry Foundation seeks to be a leader in shaping a receptive climate for poetry by developing new audiences, creating new avenues for delivery, and encouraging new kinds of poetry through innovative literary prizes and programs.