27 February 2011

Expressions: Open Mic



Okay, teens in Hawthorne had four weeks for their poetry workshop, but what about adult patrons? The Headquarters Branch offers an on-going weekly program called Expressions: Open Mic. There, patrons can recite poetry, freestyle, or read from their favourite book. I understand that the events are consistently attended by between 10-20 people. That's a pretty good following, I'd say. I mean, how many poets can you pull out of the woodwork on a weekly basis? I suspect that it is a good testing ground for poets and linguists to try out their stuff in a small and friendly group setting to see how they're doing with their writing--perhaps not only to share and take the temperature of how their work is received publicly, but to also get constructive ideas and suggestions on how to continue developing their work.


Expressions: Open Mic uses a simple, old fashion microphone with some light effects as its identity. Keeping it simple allows for the multiplicity of actions related to the program to be attached to the visual without trying to spell it all out to the viewer. Sometimes, less is more; this is a challenging concept to those who want to itemize out the complete story visually. 


Sometimes, it is easier just to say it with words, rather than draw it with an image. That's what poets do. Paint a picture with words more robust than images ever could.


This program was promoted through 8.5x14 and 8.5x11 inch signs, as well as quarter-page handbills.

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