POETS’ CORNER EXHIBITION

Leaveners and Poets’ Corner introduce their first exhibition ‘Displacement: Stories of Hope and Humanity’.

After publishing the poetry archive on Displacement in September 2015, many artists responded to the Open Call to respond to the poems creatively. A selecting of poems and art work is currently in exhibition at P Cafe, a poetry and philosophy cafe in Stirchley, Birmingham. You can visit the exhibition until Christmas, after which it will travel to the Quaker Peace Hub on Bull Street, Birmingham.

Canvasses of Hope

This September ‘Poets’ Corner’ published the poetry archive on ‘Displacement: Stories of Hope and Humanity’. Following this publication, arts charity Leaveners has started to create different opportunities for artists of all levels to respond to the poetry creatively.

Last Wednesday a group of local refugee women from ‘Restore’ created beautifully colored canvasses with messages of hope. The poems ‘A New Day’, ‘Settling’, ‘On the Move’ and ‘Moving a Country’, together with photos and images related to hope were used as sources of inspiration and conversation, after which the women wrote messages of hope -in their own languages- on the large fabrics.

The canvasses will be included in the exhibition at the P cafe in Stirchley this December (2015). ‘Poets’ Corner’ and Leaveners thank all participants and staff of Restore, Leaveners volunteer Candice, the P Cafe in Stirchley and local artists Jonathan Graney and Dale Hipkiss for making this workshop happen.

Photo credit Candice Smith

Photo credit Jorine Beck

OPEN CALL- Creative responses to ‘Displacement’ poetry

OPEN CALL- Creative responses to ‘Displacement’ poetry

Leaveners invite aspiring and emerging artists to sign up for a creative challenge: To create a new work of visual art in response to a poem published within our online collection ‘Displacement: Stories of Hope and Humanity’. Responding to the current refugee crisis Poets’ Corner recently showcased poetry written in response to this theme, showcasing work written in response to the stories of displaced people, their challenges, and hopes for the future. You can read the published poetry by visiting leavenerspoetscorner.wordpress.com/category/displacement-2/  If your work of visual art is selected it will be featured alongside the poetry in a forthcoming exhibition in December at The P Café, in Stirchley, Birmingham.

If you would like to find out more please email Jorine@leaveners.org.  Please include contact details, why you are interested, which three poems you might like to respond to, and what art form this response might take (e.g. photography, painting, statue, textiles etc). Deadline expressions of interest: November 1st 2015.

‘Poets’ Corner’ is an initiative by Birmingham-based arts charity Leaveners.