Poetry Invades the Art Gallery

Experiments in Mood and Meaning at Highlanes Gallery, Drogheda, March 31, April 14, May 7, May 26, 2012

This spring, Highlanes Gallery continues developing its policy of partnering with, and programming other art forms, within the context of the gallery space and the current Collection and temporary Exhibitions, and announces a series of afternoon poetry events over the next three months titled Experiments in Mood and Meaning.

Designed to explore exciting new trends in poetry and to experiment with different ways of presenting it live, the series of four events will also showcase a number of Drogheda poets and other invited bards.

The series begins with poetry as drama with Adventures in the Word Jungle on Saturday next 31 March at 3.00pm, when Nuala Leonard, Brian Quinn and Anne Tannam will explore the extra impact possible from multi-voice readings (directed by Brian Quinn).

Then poetry as story is the theme on Saturday 14 April at 3.00pm, in Storylands of Hard Life Experience when the dominance of lyric poetry is challenged by the energy and honesty of longer narrative forms, featuring Patrick Dillon, Terry McHugh and Karl Parkinson.

Then, on (Bank Holiday) Monday May 7 at 3.00pm, during the annual Drogheda Arts Festival, it is poetry and music as ambiencellist Claire Fitch improvises to Roger Hudson’s moody life poems to create Interactions in the Sonic Supersphere.

The series rounds off, on Saturday May 26 at 3.00pm, with Lapwing Poets, a tribute to Lapwing Publications, the fiercely independent Belfast publisher which continues to discover poets establishment publishers ignore with poets Marie MacSweeney, Trim's own Tommy Murray and Adam Rudden.

The series is curated by Drogheda-based writer and poet Roger Hudson, who will also take part. Hesees the overall aim “to join and celebrate the current breakaway from traditional poetic forms and subjects that is revolutionising poetry and performance in Dublin and other cities.”

Says Hudson, “I’ve been attending and taking part in some of the exciting new spoken word events in Dublin such as the Glór Sessions and Tongue Box, and feel it is high time Drogheda had a chance to share in the excitement of this new flowering of poetry as a popular art.”

This programme has been funded by Create Louth and Highlanes Gallery. The gallery is grateful for the on-going financial support from Drogheda Borough Council, the Arts Council and Irish Cement Ltd.