In some ways, you are the places where you've been in your life. Experience is carried in our bodies, and our best poetry creates a uniquely poetic experience that moves readers. In this craft seminar, we will work together to identify how the poem is doing what it is doing to our bodies and minds.
Coming to a store near you (order in advance from your favorite indie bookseller!) is Samiya Bashir’s hotly anticipated fourth poetry collection, I Hope This Helps!
Bending genre as a planetary body might bend spacetime, Bashir’s poems live as music and film, as memoir, observation, and critique, as movement across both cosmic and poetic fields.
This Master Class is one of inquiry and discovery through the practice of multimedia poetries, including audio, visual, digital, textural, hand-made, machine-made, and more. We examine the recent landscape of multimedia poetry to understand how it works, how and where it succeeds (and fails), and how the work being made might move us to push through traditional boundaries of form and genre and foster experimentation in our own poetry.
In December 1971, a two-part episode of Soul! featured a conversation between James Baldwin and Nikki Giovanni. In the spirit of remix and reverence, avery r. young and Jamila Woods will riff on Baldwin and Giovanni’s conversation on Black Arts and People.
The ceremony will feature music and poetry performances from Samiya Bashir, Toronzo Cannon, and t'ai freedom ford. Audience members will have the opportunity to share their greatest lesson from Baldwin.
Join Jennifer Franklin, Sophia Bannister, and Kristie Frederick Daugherty for the launch reading of Invisible Strings: 113 poets respond to the songs of Taylor Swift, on its publication date!
Exploring work from her solo multimedia exhibitions featuring multi-sensory poetic installations and her forthcoming new book, I HOPE THIS HELPS (Nightboat Books, Spring 2025), Samiya Bashir will read, perform, and screen selections of the work and engage in dialogue about the pursuit of a restorative poetics which, through both process and product, might open up new paths from isolation toward revivification and healing.
a poetry reading by two exceptional poets and a discussion on the occasion of the launch of IF I GATHER HERE AND SHOUT from Nighboat Books
An embodied, multidisciplinary Black-ass jam session …
Join us for a summer faculty reading with writer/artist Nicole J. Georges, and writer Samiya Bashir.
If you can’t join us in person, you can view the livestream here.
In this generative poetry-making workshop, we will sharpen our sound through focused specificity and sensory detail to write in, through, about, and around the many dimensions of time—physical and psychological, real and imagined. We will be wildly imaginative about space and place. “What is called its form,” wrote poet W.S. Merwin, “may be simply that part of the poem that had directly to do with time: the time of the poem, the time in which it was written, and the sense of recurrence in which the unique moment of vision is set.” Working together through a series of prompts considering restoration and revivification—form and flesh both—participants will leave this workshop with a handful of generously shared and considered poetry starts as well as tools and examples of process: seeds both for their own practice and to spread to all who need it.
Join us on July 31st at 7 pm for a celebratory poetry reading at the South Tabor Access Trail, a new multi-modal path leading up to Mt. Tabor Park! This pathway is now adorned with several poetry-engraved stones through a project led by @adam.kuby in collaboration with Dao Strom (@herandthesea), co-director of @decanonproject.
Six poets, including Dao Strom, @scryptkeeper, @trevinobringsplenty, @samroxaschua, @thepianofarm, and @tarot_obscuro, wrote poems responding to the word “reconfigurations.” Once each artist had created their poems, they mutually decided to blend what they had done individually into a new poem that was then laid out & engraved on the six split stone faces set in three locations along the path.
Join us for a lovely evening at the park where the artists will reconvene to read their collaborative poem. We will meet where the artwork is installed, along the multi-modal trail at SE 64th Avenue and Division Street to SE Sherman Street. We hope to see you there!
Image Description: Text reads "You're Invited! Poetry reading at Mt. Tabor Park July 31" on an abstract background.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C9ibJyXzvo1/?igsh=MWZiZmJ3Y2EzdDVsMA==
"First, Breathe: Finding Your Voice" is an immersive journey into discovering and embracing your unique poetic voice. Departing from the traditional idea of 'finding' one's voice, this workshop focuses on tuning into and trusting the inherent voice within. Led by internationally-celebrated poet and artist, Samiya Bashir, this discovery lab intertwines thought experiments and litera-somatic prompts, to guide participants through writing, listening, and introspection.
INsideOUT is an extraordinary opportunity for the public to witness Innovative and diverse new works. Presentations of new work, works in-progress and informal studio visits will be presented by Artists-in-Residence. The program will be held in the Joan James Harris Theater and the Leeper Studio Complex. Light refreshments will be served. The program is free and open to the public. For mature audiences.
Showing up in mailboxes and shelves from coast to coast this summer is the JulyAugust double issue of POETRY Magazine — one of the nation’s oldest poetry publications. Editor (and poet) Adrian Matejka, and the team at POETRY, worked so beautifully with me to make this huge dream come true.
As the new year turned I sent a call out to the poets: those who I talk to regularly and those who I hadn’t seen for years or decades. In the midst of nonstop war and genocide, of climate devastation, and general fuckery, I needed to know: how were we getting by? Were we getting by? Could we please step up and show our faces? And the answer was loud and clear. And the answer was, like us, grounded in love.
This new, special folio — UP WE STEP: The Poets of Fire & Ink — is that answer.
Fire & Ink will celebrate its 25th anniversary in 2027 and while its legacy continues to shape contemporary Black queer and trans art and literature, the need for the movement we built and the opportunities it creates is stronger than ever.
Beginning with this folio of poets and poems — 30 in all, 22 of whom make their first appearance in POETRY — plus a bit of history from archivist Steven G Fullwood, Fire & Ink glows itself up as Fire & Inkwell to step up and step out with and for and to Black queer and trans artists and writers across genre, across media, and across borders.
Get this issue. Dig in.
Read more about what we’re up to here: https://www.fireandinkwell.org/news
So excited to join this iconic group tomorrow in Weeksville! Join me and let’s do some liberatory writing this Pride!!
Come join us for “Picturing an Abundant Queer Future” happening TOMORROW from 12 - 6 PM ET with @SaraElise333 and @weeksvilleheritagecenter. We will all be collectively creating a photo archive of what Queer rest and play look like in NYC today. 🎉🌈
We are thrilled to introduce a special writing component to the day, hosted by Samiya Bashir @scryptkeeper Fire & Inkwell. Join us for the Juneteenth / Pride Freewriting Workshop: Release What Binds You. This workshop will feature new prompts every 1/2 hour from 12:00 - 2:00 PM, plus time to talk through and share our discoveries.
After the photography and writing sessions, Sara Elise will introduce a thought-provoking panel discussion that explores the importance of archiving queer history that captures rest, joy, resilience, and the vibrant essence of our community. The panel will feature some incredible Queer voices:
🌱 Lola Flash @flashnine9: A trailblazer in genderqueer visual politics, Lola challenges stereotypes and captures the essence of LGBTQIA+ and communities of color. An active member of ACT UP, their work is in prestigious collections like the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Brooklyn Museum.
🌱 Kiyanna Handy @blkmktvintage: Co-founder of BLK MKT Vintage, Kiyanna preserves Black history through curated cultural artifacts, celebrating Black joy and resilience.
🌱 Suhaly Bautista-Carolina: Moderating the panel and Director of Public Programs & Partnerships at the American LGBTQ+ Museum.
This panel aims to inspire and empower us to take charge of our collective narrative. After the panel, join us for Summer Camp-style field games led by Sara Elise, delicious eats by @EatDearHenry, and dancing to a set on the lawn by iconic queer DJ’s @BostonChery and @itsadair_.
We hope to see you tomorrow! Find more details with the link in bio or on our IG story!
#QueerHistory #lgbtqevents #Pride #LGBTQ #LGBTQIA #Pride2024 #Photography #QueerStories #FreeEvent #FreeEventsNYC #lgbtq🌈
I Hope This Helps is a solo multimedia exhibition featuring multi-sensory poetic installations by Harlem-based artist, Samiya Bashir. Featuring 20 works developed in 20 Standards, I Hope This Helps explores the complexities of human interaction and engages with critical issues impacting our society. As the world grapples with profound change, I Hope This Helps evokes shared experiences of upheaval, displacement, and the relentless pursuit of hope amidst uncertainty.
On view at The Africa Center, 17 May - 31 July, 2024.
I Hope This Helps is curated by Favour Ritaro, Curatorial Projects Consultant. The exhibition is made possible at The Africa Center with support of NYSCA & Sculpture Space.
How can the work of writers contribute to building sustainable and inclusive futures for our communities? How can the work of community organizations contribute to creative work? And how can the arts serve as a tool of empowerment, liberation, and solidarity? Literary organizations like Cave Canem, CantoMundo, Kundiman, Indigenous Nations Poets, Fire & Ink, Mizna, and Radius of Arab American Writers (RAWI) were convened with the goal of creating spaces for marginalized writers to develop their craft and find community and connection with one another.
This reading and conversation features George Abraham (executive editor of Mizna and Kundiman Fellow), Samiya Bashir (founding organizer of Fire & Ink and Cave Canem Fellow), Kimberly Blaeser (founding executive director of Indigenous Nations Poets), Cathy Linh Che (executive director of Kundiman), Deborah Paredez (co-founder of CantoMundo), and Glenn Shaheen (president and executive director of RAWI). They will explore what it means to lead, create, and write, centering the idea “not one without the other.”
The Gathering is a celebration of queer BIPOC community with programming focused on nurturing the mind, body, and soul. We will kick off this cultural symposium with an intimate conversation with Marvin K. White and Samiya Bashir.
Doors Open at 6:30 p.m.
Pay what you can. Suggested $25 donation.
Books by the authors will be available for purchase from Bookwoman.
Afterparty to follow at Esquina Tango.
Refreshments will be provided by Mashae's Catering.
Cook Shack: An Opera by Samiya Bashir & Del’Shawn Taylor
Dayo struggles to fit in at school. Like so many other young girls, she hides her true potential in order to fly under the radar. That is, until her classroom takes a field trip to see a “Superheroes of Invention” exhibit at St. Louis’ Griot Museum. As Dayo comes face to face with prolific Black female inventors of the 20th century, she hears each woman’s unique story through the music and words of their era — from ragtime to blues to funk. These icons of science inspire Dayo to finally celebrate herself and her own superpower.
SLACKERS :: 3 GenX Poets on Place & Power
:: A Winter Solstice Special Event ::
Samiya Bashir (Executive Director, Lambda Literary) invites Carmen Gimenez (Publisher, Graywolf Press), and Adrian Matejka (Editor, Poetry Magazine) to share current work, sip cocktails, and talk intersectional power, presence, and taking their place at the helm of institutions which once stood as gatekeepers to their exclusion.
Poetry Reading: Samiya Bashir and John Freeman
Readings by Samiya Bashir and John Freeman, with a reception and book signing to follow. Please see below for more information about the authors.
Please join us for this year's SALONE - A multi-media performance event showcasing the work of renowned actors, artists, choreographers, composers, directors, performance artists , poets, puppeteers, who have each been awarded the prestigious Rome Prize from the American Academy in Rome.
Join Lambda Literary's 50-50 Campaign! https://bit.ly/5050Lambda
Text FIFTY11 to 44-321 to help Samiya Make the Magic for Lambda Literary!
Register for the Launch Party :: 50-Something Grandly! https://bit.ly/50-50-PARTY
"Something eerie ties us to animals," Barry Lopez wrote in "Arctic Dreams," "sometimes the animal pulls you backward into it. You share hunger and fear with them like salt in blood." What does it feel like to live in this shared space with animals, to worry about it, to love it, to mourn its destruction. The latest issue of Freeman's literary annual is dedicated to asking these and other questions, to evoking the rich and often mysterious shared topography of space we occupy with animals. From the rats who will likely outlast us, brilliantly evoked in Samiya Bashir's poem, to rabbits bred for sport or worse, as described in Tess Gunty's dark short story. Join Bashir and Gunty for a reading from their pieces and discussion around the ethics, psychology and power of animals in our lives.
Icons in Conversation: Alison Saar, joined by Samiya Bashir :: Crocker Art Museum, June 2021
Piece: Hades D.W.P. (2016), Alison Saar w. Samiya Bashir
Icons in Conversation returns in a riveting way with world-renowned artist Alison Saar. Known for her powerful sculptures and prints that illuminate narratives of the African Diaspora, Saar’s work is featured in collections across the world including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, the Museum of Modern Art, and Sacramento’s own Crocker Art Museum. Saar will take us on a journey through her past and current work, including her seminal 2016 piece, "Hades D.W.P.," featured in "Legends from Los Angeles."
Joining her for a special discussion is the dynamic poet Samiya Bashir, who collaborated with Saar on "Hades D.W.P." The event will be streamed via YouTube. Advance registration is required. Learn more about the show here: https://www.crockerart.org/exhibition... Image: Alison Saar (American, born 1956), "Hades D.W.P. II.," 2016. Etched glass jars, water, dye, wood, cloth and ink transfer, electronics, found ladles and cups, 30 x 50 x 16 in. Crocker Art Museum, gift of Loren G. Lipson, M.D., 2018.3. © Alison Saar. Photo: John Wynn / Lafayette Art Galleries.
TWC ANNOUNCES PREMIERE AND ON-DEMAND TICKETS ON SALE FOR UNIQUE “RESILIENCE” DIGITAL CHORAL MUSIC EXPERIENCE, DEBUTING FRIDAY, JUNE 11, 2021
The Washington Chorus’ “Resilience” digital choral experience highlights the power of music and the human spirit. In collaboration with visual artist Camilla Tassi and narrator Shannon Finney, the experience includes a world premiere excerpt from the TWC commissioned work “Here's The Thing” by acclaimed composer (and former TWC Artistic Director) Julian Wachner and Rome Prize-winning poet Samiya Bashir which features The Washington Chorus and Sphinx's EXIGENCE Vocal Ensemble accompanied by Wei-Han Wu; Ralph Vaughan Williams' sublime “Serenade to Music” featuring TWC soloists and violinist Akemi Takayama; and a stirring setting of Rollo Dilworth's “Freedom's Plow” featuring Dr. Dilworth on piano and guest tenor soloist LaVonte Heard.
“When programming for this upcoming concert, I desired to have The Washington Chorus community reflect on the fortitude and strength we’ve all had to make it through this challenging season,” commented TWC Artistic Director, Dr. Eugene Rogers.
“From COVID-19, to issues of racism, to the loss of so many artistic endeavors and beyond--it was nothing but the willpower of humanity and our deep love for music and community that has kept us going. This concert is meant to be a reminder of that power and strength, especially as we prepare to begin singing together in person later this year,” Dr. Rogers continued.” Langston Hughes says ‘see the difficulties and the obstacles [..but,] keep your hand on the plow--HOLD ON!" May you be encouraged and inspired by our performance.’
Forge Ahead :: New Poetry :: Samiya Bashir and poet Trevino Brings Plenty share new work in support of Portland arts and artists!
I am looking excitedly forward to meeting with Prof. Rosamond King and the students and community at Brooklyn College to talk about multimedia poetries, literature and tech, and writing in a not-so-brave, not-so-new world. Monday & Wednesday, November 16th & 18th, from 3:30pm - 4:15pm.
A Virtual ZOOM Visit! Sign up online here.
The New Writing Series is brought to you by the Literature Department and the Division of Arts and Humanities For more information contact Professor Kazim Ali.
The New Social Environment#136
Featuring political poetry read by Samiya Bashir, Mihee Kim, Jena Osman, Dior Stephens, and Yanyi.
Literary Power Hour
(Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon)
Thursday, June 25
7:00 p.m.
An entertaining virtual event to raise critical funds for PPAO and Portland African American Leadership Forum Action Fund.
Featured writers: Samiya Bashir, Bella, Claire Rudy Foster, Cheryl Strayed, Lidia Yuknavitch, Reema Zaman, Leni Zumas
