[  F  E  A  T  U  R  E  D   A  R  T  I  C  L  E  S  ]

The Great Poem Series: Ron Silliman’s “For Larry Eigner, Silent” - Born in Pasco, Washington in 1946, Ron Silliman is known for his post-avant poetry blog (which garnered an impressive 2 million views in 2009) and involvement in the L=A=N=G=U=A=G=E movement. Pursuing both a career as a computer market analyst and a generously lauded poet, he was the 1998 Pew Fellow in the Arts, and winner…
The Great Poem Series: James Galvin’s “On the Sadness of Wedding Dresses” - James Galvin’s “On the Sadness of Wedding Dresses,” first published by The Iowa Review in the Fall of 2014, and featured in BAP 2015,  centers around the idea of forgotten wedding dresses. After winning  fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Guggenheim Foundation, Galvin joined the faculty at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop.…
The Great Poem Series: David Wagner’s “On Being Asked to Discuss Poetic Theory” - Mr. Wagner’s stellar poem, On Being Asked to Discuss Poetic Theory, featured in the 2003 edition of BAP, philosophical-izes the idea of poetic theory, and what it means to poets and readers. Wagner never clearly answers the question the title poses, but he gives a clear, strong perspective on how, and just why he writes…
Completely Subjective: Amina Calil’s “Blouse of Felt” - I cannot confess to being a perfect human. I most certainly cannot confess to being a perfect interpreter of poetry. It took me two tries to find a poem; the first, Mr. Janosco had to guide me away from, as it was published years prior to what I hoped to find. When I finally found…
The Great Poem Series: Michael Cirelli’s “Dead Ass” - The poem “Dead Ass“ by Michael Cirelli, published in 2008 and featured in Best American Poetry 2011, features the author’s interpretation of phrases that he hears people say in his day to day life. These phrases are associated with younger generations, but Cirelli writes through his own eyes, as someone who is older and doesn’t use those…