Poets for Science is an exhibition featuring a Special Collection of human-sized poems banners, curated by Jane Hirshfield. Each poem in the Poets for Science collection was specifically chosen to demonstrate the connection between poetry and a particular area of science, from the Hubble Telescope and MRI machines to childhood cognitive development, biology, ecology, and natural history.
More than just a static exhibit of text and photos, a digital Listening Wall experience contains archival videos, articles, oral histories, and photographs that create a deeply immersive experience. Content can be easily adapted to include relevant science issues to each community it travels to.
The exhibit allows visitors to become participants through digital writing tools—encouraging them to create poetry as a means of advocacy. Visitors can send their creation to a chosen organization whose work influences policy and the environment. It is our hope that through artistic expression those with influence will see the important resource of the natural world around them.
At the March for Science Education Summit, attendees participated in creating a community poem together.
Traveling Stanzas is a project of the College of Arts and Sciences’ Wick Poetry Center at Kent State University in collaboration with Visual Communication Design students and alumni. The purpose of Traveling Stanzas is to facilitate a global conversation through the intimate and inclusive voice of poetry. Learn more about the Traveling Stanzas project by visiting travelingstanzas.com.