Talking With Poets: Rachel Baum and Jackie Craven at Poetic License

Thom Francis welcomes poets Rachel Baum and Jackie Craven whose poems inspired visual art in the Poetic License 2024 exhibit. They both shared their poetry at the Poetic License Poetry Reading and Open Mic at the Honest Weight Food Co-op on Monday, October 14, 2024.

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Now in its third year, Poetic License is a joint project of the Hudson Valley Writers Guild and the Upstate Artists Guild, bridging the worlds of poetry and visual art. The exhibit is on display at the Honest Weight Food Co-op, and runs through November 10, 2024.

Poetic License flips the script on the traditional concept of ekphrastic art. Rather than poets responding to visual art, local visual artists have been invited to create works inspired by poems that were submitted from local and national poets. This creative inversion brings together the expressive power of both mediums, resulting in a dynamic and thought-provoking collection of visual responses to the written word.

The exhibit showcases 42 pieces of art from created by 24 artists who were inspired by the poems written by 23 poets.

On October 14, 2024 poets who were included in the show were invited to read their work at a special poetry reading, hosted by Dan Wilcox, surrounded by the artwork at the Co-op.

Today, we will hear from two of those poets – Rachel Baum and Jackie Craven.