Transforming Visions: Finding Words for What We See

This program begins Sunday, July 27, and ends Saturday, August 2. The fees listed at right include lodging and all meals (except “Commuter”, which includes a Commuter Meal Plan).  An additional sliding scale Course Fee is required.  For more information on our pricing, see our Pricing page.

This class will draw on the writing practice of ekphrasis, which involves a close and meditative “reading” of an art work, and will invite participants to shape their interpretations of the artworks by using description, free verse, journaling, essay, poetry and prose. Art speaks to us and this class will help in speaking and writing imaginatively about art.

Students will be introduced to ekphrasis by drawing on the work of Edward Hirsch, and
invited into a process of seeing art that draws out the intersection between the encounter with and the experience of the viewer. Students will review the poetry of Pimone Triplett, Eliza Griswold, Andrew Hudgins, and essayists such as Rita Dove, Mark Strand, Joyce Carol Oates and others.
We will develop meditative practices in viewing art and writing that invite students to find words to describe what we see and how our unique experiences can become mirrors and beacons for shaping further texts.