The Biggs Museum in Dover presents “America's 250 Years: Poetic Responses," an event that pairs poets and spoken word artists with objects from the museum’s collection.
Dennis Spence is a poet and one of the organizers.
“We were asked to visualize the works of art that were on display and to use that as a way to inspire us to acknowledge the 250th anniversary of the nation, almost as if you're saying art imitating art,” he explains.
To better reflect the complexity of the American experience over the generations, organizer and poet Joyce Enzor Maust said she and Spence prioritized diversity.
“Instead of sitting at a very narrow table within specific communities, we're trying to build a table where everyone's voice is heard," she says.
The poets presenting their reflections are:
- JoAnn Balingit
- Dominique Forehand: Thee Poetic Creatress
- Shelley Grabel
- Yalonda JD Green, PhD
- Vaughn R. Hilton
- Rebecca “Little Turtle Who Sees” Jackson-Square
- Torrey Malek
- Joyce Enzor Maust
- Franetta McMillian
- Barry ‘DSP’ Merrill
- Tina Riley
- Dennis Spence
“You're really going to hear a good, diverse group of voices because everybody's coming from different backgrounds," Spence says. "Everybody has experienced different things within this country in different manners.”
“America's 250 Years: Poetic Responses” is Thursday, January 29 at 5:30pm at the Biggs Museum in Dover.
Delaware Public Media's arts coverage is made possible, in part, by support from the Delaware Division of the Arts, a state agency dedicated to nurturing and supporting the arts in Delaware, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts.
