NEWS RELEASE
EAST WINDOW & GALLERY
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On April 21, 2023, East Window & Gallery is hosting poets Lisa Berley, Diane Alters, Ashley Bunn, Alexander Shalom Joseph, and André O. Hoilette to share their works revolving around the themes of loss and grief. Throughout the years since the pandemic, many have endured social isolation, illness, and in many cases the loss of a loved one. Coupled with existential threats to the survival of the planet and attacks on marginalized communities, grief is almost a consistent theme in day-to-day life.
After Loss: An Evening of Poetry and Reflections on Grief brings together the community to pause, reflect, and share grief, with the hope that this can lead to cathartic healing.
Lisa Berley is a visual artist and poet. her career as art director at KQED TV in San Francisco after receiving a Bachelor’s of Fine Art in painting and photography from the San Francisco Art Institute. At the intersection of art and media Berley began her pioneering work as an artist for Aurora Systems, developing one of the first computer graphics and animation systems for television. After the tragic accidental death of her son, Berley adapted a nonlinear approach to poetry/collage, redacting found words to create new reductive fragments, which mirrors her journey of profound grief.
Diane Alters is a former journalist and lecturer at Colorado College who turned to poetry after her son, Armando Alters Montaño, died in Mexico City in 2012. She studied poetry at the Lighthouse Writers Workshop in Denver. Her poems have appeared in Calyx, Crosswinds Poetry Journal, The New York Quarterly, Pilgrimage Magazine, and the anthology “An Uncertain Age”. Her chapbook, “Breath, Suspended” (Finishing Line Press), was published this spring.
Ashley Howell Bunn completed her Master’s of Fine Art in poetry through Regis University and holds a Master’s in Literature from Northwestern University. She is on the editorial staff for the literary journal, Inverted Syntax, and writes a monthly Yoga, Tarot, and Astrology column for Writual. Her work has previously appeared in The Colorado Sun, South Broadway Ghost Society, Global Poemic, Twenty Bellows, Mulberry Literary and many others.
Alexander Shalom Joseph’s latest novella, “The Last of the Light”, is forthcoming from Orison Books in the spring of 2023. His debut book of poetry “Our Mother, The Mountain” was published by Middle Creek Press in spring of 2022. His debut book of short stories, “American Wasteland", was published by Owl Canyon Press in August of 2021. Joseph’s stories and poems have otherwise been widely published online and in print. He holds a Master’s of Fine Art in Creative Writing and a Master's in English Education.
André O. Hoilette is a Jamaican-born poet and a Cave Canem alumnus. Hoilette is the former editor of ambulant: A Journal of Poetry & Art and former assistant editor of Nexus Magazine. He earned a Master's of Fine Art in Poetry and Fiction from Regis University’s Mile-High MFA program. The poet’s most recent accolades include: 2021 Finalist Frontier Poetry Chapbook Prize and the 2021 Semi-finalist Cave Canem Book Prize. Previous publication credits include: “Stand Our Ground", "Bum Rush the Page: A Def Poetry Jam”, “Black Powerful”, "Infinite Constellations”, Cultural Weekly, and many others.
This evening of sharing will commence at East Window & Gallery from 7-9 p.m. on April 20, 2023. This is a free event that is open to the public. Those interested in finding out additional details on this event should check the East Window & Gallery website.
East Window & Gallery is an independent arts organization founded by Todd Edward Herman that is dedicated to promoting and developing original art and performance by emerging and underrepresented artists from around the world. Please visit the East Window & Gallery website to view details on upcoming exhibitions and hours of operation.
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