Poets House Moving to Battery Park City
Poets House will relocate to a majestic new waterfront facility in Battery Park City (in Lower Manhattan), with free rent through 2069.

Poetic City: A Poets House Celebration
Leading up to its celebration on the waterfront, Poets House presents free poetry walking tours of Battery Park City and poetry banners on NY Waterway ferries

The 13th Annual Poetry Walk Across the Brooklyn Bridge
Hundreds of Poets and Poetry-Lovers to Cross the 125-Year-Old Bridge.

Now Voyagers: Poets House and NY Waterway Distribute Hundreds of Poems to Passengers
Through an innovative Poem in Your Pocket Day collaboration between Poets House and New York Waterway, hundreds of ferry passengers received a pocket-sized poem upon disembarking on the shores of Manhattan.

Poetry Hard-Hat Tours
Poets House is sponsoring a series of tours that offer private and public funders—as well as city and state leaders—a chance to experience the future Poets House at several stages of its construction.

Capital Campaign for Poets House Raises Goal to $10M
After surpassing its initial goal of $6.5M and reaching $8.5M, the Poets House Board announced a new Capital Campaign goal of $10M.

Poets House and Westchester Library System Launch "Poetry Westchester!"
Lively, stimulating programs for adults and teens featuring world-renowned poets will be held in 7 Westchester libraries beginning in February 2008.

"The Invention of Farewell": Poets House Bids Farewell to Soho
The house that holds a country prepares to move a nation's-worth of verse.

Poets House Moves to Battery Park City in 2009

Poets House will move to a majestic new facility at Ten River Terrace in Battery Park City. The permanent home for Poets House will include a state-of-the-art Programming Hall dedicated to poetry-related performance; an expansive Reading Room with sweeping views of the Hudson River and the Statue of Liberty; a spacious, whimsical Children's Room with the capacity to vigorously expand Poets House's poetry programs for children, schools and families; an open-access multimedia archive; a multidisciplinary Exhibition Space; and a poetry-enriched lobby that will spark the curiosity of visitors of all ages. With free rent guaranteed through 2069, Poets House's singular poetry collection, public programming, and gathering-place will endure for generations to come.

For more information, read the latest issue of our Capital Campaign Newsletter. (Adobe Acrobat Required)

POETIC CITY: A Poets House Celebration

Leading up to its celebration on the waterfront, Poets House presents free poetry walking tours of Battery Park City and poetry banners on NY Waterway ferries

On Wednesday, June 18, at 7:00pm,  Poets House presents an evening of free outdoor readings by five preeminent poets—Cornelius Eady, Matthea Harvey, Hettie Jones, Li-Young Lee and Kay Ryan— overlooking the Hudson River at sunset. This unforgettable evening of readings, with musical performances by Jill Sobule, will take place in Nelson A. Rockefeller Park, the "front lawn" of Poets House's future home in Battery Park City.

Prior to the reading, Poets House will sponsor a series of poetic walking tours of Battery Park City. The free tours will begin at 6:00pm and 6:15pm at the Poets House booth, near the bandshell in Nelson A. Rockefeller Park.

Throughout the week leading up to Poetic City, 8-foot long poetry banners bearing lines by Matthea Harvey, Li-Young Lee and Kay Ryan will grace the bows and sides of three NY Waterway ferries: THE EMPIRE STATE, THE GARDEN STATE and THE JOHN STEVENS. This innovative adventure in verse, which also includes the distribution of poetry postcards to hundreds of passengers as they disembark in Battery Park City on June 17, has emerged through an ongoing collaboration between NY Waterway and Poets House. The artful banners and poems will awaken commuters and tourists to the possibilities of poetry and accompany them to the shores of this most poetic of cities.

Poetic City is presented in conjunction with the River to River Festival and the Battery Park City Authority. The event is made possible, in part, by the NEA and the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council.

The 13th Annual Poetry Walk Across the Brooklyn Bridge

Hundreds of Poets and Poetry-Lovers to Cross the 125-Year-Old Bridge

One hundred and twenty-five years after the first multitudes made their way across the Brooklyn Bridge in 1883, hundreds of poetry lovers will embark on a similarly celebratory journey. On Monday, June 9, Poets House will host the Thirteenth Annual Poetry Walk Across the Brooklyn Bridge, a New York tradition that, according to Time Out New York, "could just make you fall in love with New York all over again."

This unforgettable literary pilgrimage over the bridge that inspired Hart Crane, Walt Whitman, Vladimir Mayakovsky, Marianne Moore and generations of poets begins in the park near One Centre Street and stops en route for poetry readings by Martín Espada, Thomas Lux and Marilyn Nelson under Roebling's famous arches. Upon arrival in Brooklyn, Pulitzer-prize winning poet Galway Kinnell recites Whitman's immortal "Crossing Brooklyn Ferry" as the sun sets over the waterfront. This year's celebration will culminate in a festive dinner at Bubby's Brooklyn, where actor Bill Murray will treat Poets House supporters to a selection of his favorite verses.

An additional highlight of the evening will be the presentation of the 2008 Elizabeth Kray Award to poets Cornelius Eady and Toi Derricotte (founders of Cave Canem). The Elizabeth Kray Award is given biennially to an individual (or individuals) whose service to the field of poetry embodies the spirit of Elizabeth Kray's work and ideals. In the words of the late poet Denise Levertov, Kray was "poetry's patron saint." From her Poets in the Schools program to the shaping of the modern-day poetry reading series to the co-founding of Poets House, Kray was an innovative advocate for a greater presence for poetry in our country. Poets House is proud to honor Cave Canem, an organization that is committed to the discovery and cultivation of new voices in African American poetry, for its exemplary contribution to the American cultural landscape.

The Brooklyn Bridge is an apt metaphor for Poets House itself. Like the Bridge, its 50,000-volume library and literary center unites the diverse rhythms and voices of New York and the nation. And, like the Bridge, Poets House's future home in Battery Park City is a visionary civic gift. With a rent-free lease through 2069 from the Battery Park City Authority, Poets House will have the kind of enduring impact on the lives of writers and readers as Roebling's structure has had on generations of New Yorkers. Already a gathering place for the many poetries of America and a house of hospitality for poetic voices around the world, Poets House will establish on the banks of the Hudson one of the great poetry destinations on the globe.

Tickets begin at $250. Reservations required. All proceeds benefit Poets House. For additional information or to make reservations, call (212) 431-7920, x2211 or email krista@poetshouse.org.

NOW VOYAGERS

Poets House and NY Waterway Distribute Hundreds of Poems to Passengers on Poem in Your Pocket Day

On April 17, 2008, hundreds of ferry passengers received an unusual start to their day as they were handed a pocket-sized poem upon disembarking on the shores of Manhattan. Through an innovative Poem in Your Pocket Day collaboration between Poets House and New York Waterway, commuters, daytrippers, tourists and passersby (from joggers to dogwalkers) received artfully-designed poems to carry with them throughout the day and/or share with friends, colleagues and family members. Between 7:30-9:30am, over 650 postcards were distributed at the NY Waterway terminal in Battery Park City, located across Rockefeller Park from Poets House’s future home on River Terrace.

The postcards (featuring lines by Walt Whitman, Mary Oliver, Emily Dickinson, Frank O'Hara and E.E. Cummings) inspired delight, surprise, curiosity, healthy consternation and even a spontaneous recitation or two from their recipients. Businessmen, burdened with laptops and briefcases, could be seen putting down their belongings to reflect upon the poems they had received. Runners slowed their pace to be passed a poem. Teachers en route to New Jersey gathered stacks of poems for their classes. In the words of one financial analyst heading for his office, "This is destined to be the highlight of my day."

To print out a poem for your pocket, click here.

Poetry Hard-Hat Tours

In Spring 2008 Poets House will continue to sponsor a series of hard-hat tours that offer private and public funders—as well as city and state leaders—a chance to experience the future Poets House in Battery Park City at several stages of its construction. Walking from room to room (one can't help but remember that the word "stanza" means "room"), Project Manager Jon Denham provides visitors with an in-depth sense of the increased programmatic possibilities of the new 11,000-square foot facility, as well as a deeper understanding of the building's remarkable combination of poetic, architectural and civic vision.

The building, located at Ten River Terrace, is a "green" project designed by the renowned Polshek Partnership. The new Poets House, which will meet the LEED gold standard, is designed by Louise Braverman, the acclaimed architect of Poets House’s 72 Spring Street location.

"It has been a joy to bring members of our community who have helped us make this dream true to the construction site," Executive Director Lee Briccetti remarked. "The shell of the building is up but open to the elements. So, standing at the future site of our Reading Room there is a whirl of activity and a clear view out to the Statue of Liberty…. So much depends on a blue wheelbarrow filled with cement!"

Capital Campaign Goal Is Raised to $10M

After the Battery Park City Authority designated Poets House the long-term, nonprofit tenant of an 11,000-square-foot space in a new building at Ten River Terrace, Poets House launched a Capital Campaign to cover interior construction and to establish endowment and reserve funds to maintain its future space. In 2004, the Campaign for Poets House was inaugurated, with lead gifts from Board Members and a campaign goal of $6.5 million was subsequently announced.

It is a testament to the appeal of this remarkable project that the Capital Campaign has so swiftly exceeded its initial goal, reaching a breathtaking $8.5 million. In 2008, Poets House announced a new goal of $10 million. "Ten million dollars will enable Poets House to grow significant endowment and reserve funds, as well as launch an array of new program initiatives that will make real the spectacular possibilities of our new home. Poets House will become one of the great poetry destinations on the globe," Margo Viscusi and Robert Kissane recently stated.

For more information, read the latest issue of our Capital Campaign Newsletter (Adobe Acrobat Required)

Poets House and Westchester Library System Launch "Poetry Westchester!"

January 2008 — This year, Westchester residents will not have to wait until April for the delights of National Poetry Month to arrive in their communities! Thanks to an initiative funded by the Westchester Library System (WLS) through the Westchester County Board of Legislators and presented by Poets House, creative, inspiring and enjoyable poetry programs for adults and teens will brighten up the bleak mid-winter, suggesting a rethinking of the Shelley's famous line from "If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?" to "If winter comes, here comes poetry!"

The Mount Pleasant Library will be the "county seat" of this initiative, hosting a full array of programs including workshops, poetry readings and a poetry talk. Hettie Jones, noted poet (Doing 70, Hanging Loose Press, 2007), and memoirist of the Beat era, (How I Became Hettie Jones, Grove Press, 1996), will be the "Poet in Residence" in Mount Pleasant where she'll lead workshops for teens and adults and give a talk on "The Beat Poets." Joining her in a distinguished roster will be award-winning poets Edward Hirsch, speaking about How to Read a Poem and Fall in Love With Poetry (the title of his best-selling book) and reading from his forthcoming poetry collection Special Orders (Knopf, 2008), and Tom Sleigh, the author of Space Walk (Houghton Mifflin, 2007), who has been hailed by Nobel Prize winner Seamus Heaney as a poet of "lyric absolution."

Libraries in Irvington, Hastings, Katonah, Larchmont and White Plains will host poetry workshops for either teens or adults. Pelham will present workshops for both age groups. All will be led by accomplished poets who are experienced in eliciting great poetry in a relaxed and enjoyable environment. Each workshop will be concluded by a poetry publication event at which recipients will receive a copy of an anthology of the group's work.

The idea behind "Poetry Westchester!", which is modeled after the Poets House initiative, Poetry in The Branches (PITB), is to create a poetry "mindset" for the library user and staff member and to create as many ways as possible for people to "bump into" poetry. This includes improved poetry collections, displays and a wide and continuing range of imaginative programs stretching into the future. To kick off the initiative, each participating library sent two staff members to a Poetry in The Branches Institute led by Poets House staff and accomplished poet/teachers. They spent a full day experiencing such things as writing in a workshop environment, discussing the many ways of incorporating poetry into public programs and displays, and examining a wide range of poetry titles.

See the full Poetry Westchester! Schedule for Winter/Spring 2008

"The Invention of Farewell": Poets House Bids Farewell to Soho

On Saturday, November 17, 2007, Poets House bid a fond farewell to its Soho home of nearly 20 years with a five-hour gathering at 72 Spring Street hosted by over 25 poets who spanned the generations of contemporary poetry and its many schools and movements. "The Invention of Farewell: A Poets House Celebration" featured lively readings, anecdotes and toasts at the top of every hour by poetry-hosts Star Black, Tina Chang, Jayne Cortez, Mark Doty, Kimiko Hahn, Edward Hirsch, Bob Holman, Marie Howe, Hettie Jones, Patricia Spears Jones, Yusef Komunyakaa, Jan Heller Levi, Philip Levine, Donna Masini, Honor Moore, Gregory Pardlo, Willie Perdomo, Tom Sleigh, Tracy K. Smith, Gerald Stern, Jean Valentine, Cecilia Vicuña and others. "This event signals the end of an era and ushers in the momentous year that will bring the organization to its permanent home in Battery Park City," long-time Executive Director Lee Briccetti stated.

For more information, read Stephen Wolf's panoramic article on the Poets House farewell festivities (all rights reserved by Downtown Express).

Stanley Kunitz: In Memoriam

July 29, 1905–May 14, 2006

The Board and staff of Poets House mourn the loss of our cofounder Stanley Kunitz. We celebrate the extraordinary life of artistry, generosity and integrity that Stanley lived for over 100 years. His vision of community inspired Poets House, a home for poets and poetry lovers and a place where all are welcomed to step into the living tradition of the art. "Poetry is the most indelible testimony we have of the adventures of the spirit," wrote Stanley.

We know that Stanley's legacy will live on in his poems and the communities he hepled to create and nurture.

Learn more about Stanley Kunitz's life and legacy.