Poetry / bristol city poet
Bristol Ideas launches appeal for next ‘City Poet’
Bristol-based poets and spoken word performers are being invited to make an application to become the next ‘Bristol City Poet’, an annual initiative by Bristol Ideas.
Bristol Ideas, an online and in-person platform for public debate and learning, is looking for poets that reflect the views and times of the city.
The chosen winner will be given the opportunity to compose ten poems for specific events or projects in Bristol, as well as take part in public performances and community engagement activities which will span across the next two years.
is needed now More than ever
The winning city poet will also get the chance to perform at the mayor’s annual State of the City address. Previous city poets have also held poetry sessions in libraries, co-created poems with school children, created poetry films, and incorporated their poetry into new building projects.
The current City Poet, Caleb Parkin, will hand the baton to this year’s winner at a public event in October.
Ideas put forward by Bristol Ideas include poetry marking the beginning of office as the City Poet, commemorative anniversaries and community events in Bristol, to name a few.
There is no age limit for the application and specialisation can be any aspect of poetry in practice such as written poetry as well as spoken word and co-work.
Bristol Ideas are asking applicants to submit two poems, which can be new works or already published. Poems can be up to 65 lines and one of the works should have Bristol as its subject matter.
Applicants must also answer three questions on up to two pages of A4 or in a seven minute video/audio clip.
The deadline for applications is 5pm on Monday, June 6.
More details of how to apply are available here.
Main Photo: Evan Dawson
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