This workshop is intended to inspire the creative practice of both visual artists and writers. Writing begins in wonder. Wonder is demanding; it comes at a cost. It can be disorienting; it can be wounding. Perhaps, the term “bewilderment” better conveys the discomfort of the writing process. The poet Fanny Howe defines “bewilderment” as a loss of one’s sense of where one is. As Howe writes, “Bewilderment is an enchantment that follows a complete collapse of reference and reconcilability. It cracks open the dialectic and sees myriads all at once.” It is resolving the irresolvable. Howe quotes a Muslim prayer: “Lord, increase my bewilderment.”
After examining some poems by Polish and American poets and doing some writing, you’ll attempt to arrive at your own formula of bewilderment. Based on a prompt, we’ll compose a collaborative poem and one poem of your own. The main objective will be to dwell in the present moment, find bliss and sparks of bewilderment.
If they choose, workshop participants will also be able to share their own poems at the reading following the workshop.
