Thursday, June 3, 2010

Goldsmith International Poetry Competition

Off to Goldsmith Country, Co Longford this Sunday for the Goldsmith International Literary Festival. I was lucky enough to get second prize this year in the poetry competition for a poem entitled Journey Back.

A pretty good poem, though I say it myself, which was written recently as a result of (I avoid the phrase inspired by) seeing an exhibition in Solstice Arts Centre, Navan by artist Catherine Delaney entitled Pile in which she used unwanted clothes dropped in by Navan people. My poem imagines all the clothes I ever wore stretched between Trim and Carrowloughan, Co Sligo where I was born.

The judge for this year's competition was the wonderful poet and excellent judge of poetry, Mary Melvin Geoghegan. I also got second prize in 2008 in the same competition. The judge that year was the equally wonderful Jean O'Brien.

6 comments:

Ann said...

A big hearty congratulations Michael!!! Enjoy the laurels.

Paddy Smith said...

Well done, Michael. And luck has nothing to do with it.

Peter Goulding said...

Well done Michael - enjoy the day. Coming second twice in three years has little to do with luck, I suggest...

Connie Roberts said...

Heartiest congratulations on the latest feather in the ould cap, Michael! Any chance you'd post your poem--I'd love to read it.

Catherine Delaney's "Pile" reminds me of an art installation that's currently in the Park Avenue Armory in NYC by French artist
Christian Boltanski called "No Man's Land."
Boltanski uses 30 tons of used clothing and 3,000 cookie tins in his haunting piece. Here's a review from The New York Times:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/10/arts/design/10boltanski.html

niamh said...

Congratulations Michael, thats brilliant news -I love the sound of that poem, would love to read it. Have a ball in Longford!

Orla Fay said...

well done Michael