Seven QUT Faculty of Creative Industries poetry students will enjoy the spotlight at the Queensland Poetry Festival (QPF), which opens tonight (23 August) and runs until Sunday at venues including Brisbane Square Library, the Judith Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts and the Institute of Modern Art.
The QUT poets – Dr Emily O’Grady, Ella Jeffery, Laura Kenny, Hayden Soper, Nicole Amaya, Rebecca Cheers and Erin Corstiaans – will read new work at the QUT Salon on Friday 24 August (4.30pm-5.30pm).
Associate Professor Sarah Holland-Batt, a member of QUT’s Creative Industries Faculty and an internationally-acclaimed poet, said QUT’s connection with the QPF was rich and varied, providing ‘real-world’ experiences for the university’s past and present students.
"In addition to those performing at the QUT Salon, four undergraduate students (Chloe Mills, Tamara Homes, Dale Allen and Emily Brain) are working at QPF as interns through QUT’s Work Integrated Learning program, which is an incredible experience for any creative writing student," Ms Holland-Batt said.
"Furthermore, QUT alumni Anna Jacobson, Rebecca Jessen, and Jarad Bruinstroop, as well as current Masters students, Zenobia Frost and Rebecca Cheers, are all featured artists on the program.
"Anna (pictured right) recently completed her Masters at QUT, and will read at several QPF events, including Lines of Faith which explores the complications and rewards of writing about your faith, at the Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Fortitude Valley on Saturday.
"Zenobia (pictured below) and Rebecca, meanwhile, are presenting The Bachelorette: A Song Cycle, a satirical riff on the nation’s unhealthy obsession with matchmaking and reality TV.
"The number of QUT-connected poets involved in the festival speaks volumes about the dynamic environment they find at QUT’s Creative Industries Faculty. We also foster emerging talent at our popular QUT Literary Salon, a monthly series of readings held on campus."
Ms Holland-Batt’s words were echoed by Anna Jacobson.
"I recently graduated with a Master of Philosophy where I specialised in poetry at QUT, and the opportunity to work with mentors Sarah Holland-Batt and Dr Lesley Hawkes was such a wonderful experience," Ms Jacobson said.
"Being part of exciting events including the QUT Salon at the Queensland Poetry Festival in 2016 was another highlight."
Ms Holland-Batt added that QUT also hosted renowned American poet Yona Harvey, QPF’s International Poet in Residence, for a guest lecture and reading at QUT on Tuesday.
Find out more about the QPF schedule and participating poets online.
Captions
Emily O’Grady and Ella Jeffrey: photo by Anna Jacobson
Anna Jacobson (self-portrait)
Zenobia Frost: photo by Anna Jacobson
QUT is part of a national collaborative group of five major Australian universities that form the ATN (Australian Technology Network of Universities).
