Class Description
In this members-only generative craft course, members will read and write poems that are verbal representations of visual art, or, ekphrastic encounters. Participants will be offered a crash-course on the history of ekphrastic poetry, beginning with Homer’s representation of Achilles’s shield, and ending with contemporary ekphrastic poems by Anne Carson, Mary Jo Salter, and others. Following this introductory discussion, students will be given the opportunity to practice three major principles common to all forms of ekphrastic writing: description, pattern and tension. Participants will practice their own ekphrastic writing in a series of visual prompts. In addition to engaging each of the three major principles of ekphrastic writing, students will also consider the following questions:
- As a writer will you “enter” the painting/art and join its world? Will you create a voice for an object or figure in the art? Will you be a spectator? Participant? Critic?
- What part of the artwork seems to have inspired your reaction?
- To what are you responding: the subject? The technique? The history? The artist?
- Will you explicitly acknowledge the distance in time and place between now and when the work was created?
Each participant should be devoted to thoughtful inquiry and an engaging and supportive classroom environment.
Thanks to the excellent literary citizenship of our donors, scholarships are available for all GrubStreet classes. To apply, click the gray "APPLY FOR SCHOLARSHIP" button. In order to be considered for a scholarship, you must complete your application at least one week before the start date of a class. Please await our scholarship committee's decision before registering for the class. We cannot hold spots in classes, so the sooner you apply, the better. Scholarships cannot be applied retroactively.
For more detailed information about GrubStreet scholarships, including how to contribute to scholarship funds for other students, click here.
This class will take place using Zoom videoconferencing. After registering, a yellow Resources tab will appear in this section containing a link to join class. Please note that you will need to be logged into view the Resources tab.
Zoom Participation:
In our experience, the intimate nature of a writing workshop benefits from on-camera participation. Students are of course welcome to turn their camera off whenever they need to, but it is a community norm for cameras to be on most of the time. You can learn more about using Zoom here.
Zoom Accessibility:
You can enable closed captioning at any time during the meeting by clicking the CC button at the bottom of the screen. If you'd like to access the transcript after class, please make sure to let your instructor ahead of time that you'd like a copy.