Ekphrastic? Fantastic, for poems about art forms

Remember English Class for $200: “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” studied by many students in English classes, was written by John Keats and is also an example of this.

What is ekphrastic poetry?

But here in the Miami Valley, ekphrastic poetry — poems that explore or celebrate other art objects or forms — isn’t only something from an English class, or from a “Jeopardy!” show.

It’s alive and well and delighting both art patrons and poetry lovers at the Fine Art Center in the Town & Country Shopping Center, 300 E. Stroop Road, Kettering.

“Each month, poets visit the Fine Art Center and select pieces of art work that inspire them,” says Kathy B. Austin, one of the participating poets. “We then have about a week to write a poem. Then, the artists and poets gather at the center, and the fun commences — guests try to guess which poem goes with which piece of artwork.”

The events, which run fall through spring, are dubbed “An Evening of Poetic Art.” The next event, and the last for this season, is from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sunday, April 13. The event is free and open to the public and includes music and light snacks and beverages. If interested in participating, contact Rosie Huart of the Fine Arts Center at rehuart@aol.com.

Austin, a Dayton resident, is an experienced poet, having received awards for poetry from the Iowa Poetry Day Association and the Paul Laurence Dunbar Memorial Competition. Her poems have appeared in The Writing Path I anthology published by the University of Iowa Press, journals such as Mock Turtle Zine, Flights and most recently, the online Poppy Road Review. She has also been featured and interviewed on WYSO-FM’s (91.3) poetry segment “Conrad’s Corner.”

However, she says, “Participating in this program over the past two years has made me a better poet. I’ve learned I can write on demand, rather than having to wait for a moment of inspiration.”

She is also a nature lover and often finds herself drawn to artwork with nature themes. Example, her ekphrastic poem inspired by the photograph “Bison in Snow” by Dean Davis:

Bison in Snow

From the photograph, Bison in Snow, by Dean Davis

The large hulk of a lone bison

sways in drifts close by,

brushing snow with a massive beard

to reach a bit of trampled grass,

then chew sparse blades, push on,

muzzle caught in crystalline breath,

dark fur powdered white.

In winter, all is bound to basics —

white snow, darkness

of gnarled pines,

blue shadows of looming slopes

and rocky crags.

The bison again breaks

the snowy crust of a dozen blizzards.

A wolf, part of a pack,

hides within the cover

of thick pine needle branches,

shrinks back, sinks deep,

turns and wades slowly forward,

circles and waits,

circles again.

Literary events