Online – Remembering Together with Michael Bazzett

In this online workshop for youth ages 13-19, students will read a half dozen poems by Lucille Clifton, Maggie Smith, Tracy K. Smith, Joy Harjo, Walt Whitman, Langston Hughes, and Natalie Diaz. In keeping with the Voices Forward theme of “Remembering Together,” each of the chosen poems reckons with how & what we remember, collectively and individually –– keeping in mind that the word re-member is the etymological opposite of dis-member, and thus remembering can be a move toward healing and becoming whole.

Each of the poems uses a variety of different formal approaches & techniques, (lineation, extended metaphor, erasure, abecedarian, etc.) stretching and bending the language while doing so. After deepening our understanding of how the poems achieve their effect through reading and discussion, we will then emulate and play with some of these techniques, seeing which ones might “fit” in each young writers’ toolbox to be put to future use in their own work.

Michael Bazzett is the author of five collections of poetry, including The Echo Chamber (Milkweed Editions, 2021) and Cloudwatcher (Copper Canyon, 2026) winner of the Stern Prize from The American Poetry Review. His verse translation of the creation epic of the Maya, The Popol Vuh (Milkweed, 2018) was named by the NY Times as one of the best poetry books of 2018. The recipient of National Endowment for the Arts fellowships in both poetry and translation, his writing has recently appeared in Poetry Magazine, GRANTA, The Nation, The Paris Review, The London Magazine, and The Sun. A longtime teacher at The Blake School, he lives in Minneapolis.

This workshop is part of Voices Forward, a poetry and public humanities initiative for emerging youth poets (ages 13-19) from across Minnesota. Poets will explore the Smithsonian Folklife Festival’s themes: Remembering Together, Harmonizing Together, Moving Together, and Building Together.

By the People: Conversations Beyond 250 is a series of community-driven programs created by humanities councils in collaboration with local partners. The initiative was developed by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage.

Registration

This event is free, however registration is required.

Registration Questions: registrations@mnhum.org

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