Exploring Ekphrasis: 20th Century American Artists (12 Tuesdays, 9/8-12/1)
When: 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on twelve Tuesdays, September 8, 15, 22, 29, October 6, 13, 20, 27, November 3, 10, 17, and December 1 (No class Nov 24)
Where: Online in the Wordcrafters Zoom Room
Details: Write poetry inspired by the jazz, grit, beauty, and upheaval of 20th century American art — in this 12-week online class with Erica Goss.
If you ever sit down to write a poem and don’t know where to start, you’re not alone. Staring at a blank page is frustrating—and normal. But you don’t have to conjure poems from thin air. Ekphrasis, the practice of writing in response to visual art, gives you a powerful creative spark to guide your pen.
In this 12-week online class with poet Erica Goss, you’ll explore the work of American artists who found bold new ways to capture the spirit of their age — through paintings, photography, and sculpture that pulse with jazz, street life, farms, workers, and the stunning breadth of the American landscape. Artists like Thomas Hart Benton, Edward Hopper, Georgia O’Keeffe, Wayne Thiebaud, and Alma Thomas didn’t just depict the world around them — they reimagined what art could do.
Each week, you’ll explore a new artist and let their work take you somewhere unexpected. You’ll ask yourself how the image moves you, what you can relate to and what seems strange — and then write in response.
In class, you’ll also look at the historical forces that shaped these artists’ lives and work — war, segregation, scientific breakthroughs, and social movements that cracked the century open.
By the end of the course, you’ll have twelve drafts or completed poems, and an appreciation for ekphrasis as an inspiration for poetic creativity.
Your instructor
Erica Goss (she/her) served as Poet Laureate of Los Gatos, CA from 2013-2016. In 2019, she won the Zocalo Poetry Prize.
Cost: $449
Information: Register here: https://wordcrafters.app.
