The City of Victoria's Poet Laureate has a new project in the works that will present poetry in a very different form.
Victoria Poet Laureate Marie Metaphor Specht is partnering with Monkey C Interactive to present some original poetry in a way that will create a new poem with every ‘reading’.
“We put out the call for submissions of poetry and will be using a group of about five selected poems in a new installation in conjunction with Monkey C’s musical railings installation at (Yates Street Parkade) off Bastion Square,” Specht says.
“The current installation allows people to create their own sound and light displays as they climb the five-storey stairway of the installation. We’ll be incorporating the original poetry to allow people to create their own spoken word event.
The project begins with six- to eight-line poems that will be recorded professionally. "We’ll load one line of each poem onto a different sensor so that when that sensor is touched, you’ll hear that line of the poem.
“Then we’ll install these poems (on a series of sensors) on five landings of the 10-landing installation, and people will be able to remix the poems by playing the lines in whatever order they choose,” Specht says. “That way, the poems will be remixed and even combined with lines from other poems to create new poetry.”
Admittedly, one will probably have to visit the installation to fully get the idea, but the concept seems fun and unique.
“One thing that I loved about the project is how Marie (Specht) has inspired people to think about how they can express themselves,” says City of Victoria arts, culture and events liaison, Andrea Collins. “The poets will be able to hear their poems and change the way the poems are heard. The people coming to the installation will be able to write their own poems as they engage in the artwork.”
The call for poetry submissions is open til July 26 and Collins said that there has already been a flood of submissions. The poets who are selected will receive $150 for their work, but the real reward will be the one-of-a-kind exposure that their words will enjoy.
This latest poetry/art installation will open in this fall and will remain open for several months.
