We’re excited to be involved in Seeing Voices, an exhibition of poetry and illustration opening in the Upper Gallery of The Poly in Falmouth. The exhibition will be open from the 20th-24th of November, with a private view on Thursday 22nd November (this Thursday) as part of the biennial Cornwall Contemporary Poetry Festival.
The show gathers work from students, staff and alumni of Falmouth University’s MA Illustration: Authorial Practice course, with a specific focus on poetry and illustration. Several Atlantic Press collaborators will feature in the exhibition, including Phyllida Bluemel, who illustrated On Ridgegrove Hill, Mat Osmond who illustrated Stone and John Kilburn, author of 72 Hours.
The exhibition will also make a feature of our friends at Guillemot Press who specialise in illustrated poetry and have worked with a number of students and graduates of the MA including Lucy Kerr, who illustrated A Day That You Happen to Know and C F Sherratt who worked with Sarah Cave on Like Fragile Clay.
Image from The Clearing by Luke Thompson and Mairead Dunne (showing)
As well as being a group show of poetry and illustration, Seeing Voices includes a collaborative body of new work based on Brendan Kennelly’s long poem The Man Made of Rain.
The Man Made of Rain is an autobiographical account of visions Kennelly had during quadruple bypass surgery, exploring the boundaries between life and death.
All of the contributing artists to the wider show were also invited to submit a piece (or pieces) of new work to illustrate a line from The Man Made of Rain, the result is a reconfigurated version of Kennelly’s original poem, accompanied by beautiful, thoughtful visuals from some of the most exciting illustrative practitioners we know.
Image from Mouth by Hannah Levene and Catrin Morgan (showing)
If all that wasn’t enough, the show will also include a first glimpse at our upcoming publication. Keep an eye out in the coming days for an official announcement.
As usual, we’ll have a table of beautiful books in the space, which you’ll be able to come and see all week, as will Guillemot Press, and there will also be a huge selection of books, prints and originals by the showing illustrators for sale.
We hope to see you there.
