Well-wooded Words
The Grinlow Poetry Trail
18th and 19th July 2015
Running alongside the Grinlow Art and Storytelling Trail, we
spilled words through the woods, threading poems between crocheted cups, very
small peg-doll fairies, giant toadstools, occasional dinosaurs, paintings and
people
There was something everywhere it seemed, under feet, over
heads, ragged crows flying through the trees, a haiku shrubbery
We ran this first Poetry Trail separate from the Art and
Storytelling trail as we didn't know if there would be enough interest in it to
make a viable feature. There was. It did. It worked. Maybe next year we'll knit
the art, storytelling and poetry together even more closely. Most visitors
didn't separate one from the other and of course there were poems that were
part of the art trail and storytellers who appeared in both….it's too easy to
ramble here so I'll stop and paste in the Review of the Trail from the Festival
Fringe below
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| a Haiku bush |
And when you are feeling wildly inspired by all of this, you
might like to get a copy of the Well-wooded words collection of poems. A
modest £3.50 (includes P&P) from Stone and Water. Cheques to Stone
and Water at 51-d West Road, Buxton, SK17 6HQ. Paypal is possible - drop me an
email at creepingtoad@btinternet.com and I'll send you details
 | |
| the cover is actually | a rich dark green |
Grinlow Poetry Trail review
The
poetry trail was an enormous success. It was well attended with people taking a
great interest in the poems as well as the art and the storytelling. It was
enhanced greatly by the piano accordion player walking around and other
musicians playing in the woods, which at first I heard from a distance. There
was also a surprise performance of a choir at 1.30 pm singing four well known
songs.
The
art and poetry lived happily side by side. In one area there was a row of
paintings showing mainly urban scenes each with a corresponding poem on the
same subject. There was also a mushroom area with many poems about fairies not
far away.
There
was a great range of contributors, from people who wrote the occasional poem,
to poets with more than a local reputation, through to the immortals like
Shakespeare and Virgil.
 |
| not a poem but too striking to omit! |
The
subjects included descriptions and feelings provoked by Grinlow Woods, works
about the beauty and magic of woodlands, invitations to visit places nearby and
poems about tragedies caused by drug-taking. Not all viewed nature as a source
of joy. Some dwelt on less pleasant elements related to woodlands and nature
such as trees fighting against the elements for survival.
One
of my favourite sets of poems was written on large banners which were very
eye-catching. The poems are about nature being in a constant state of flux and
the poet’s thoughts became absorbed with the process. The poet tries to guess
where the raindrops will fly and where they will rebound.
Another
of my favourite poems dealt with a human relationship, making analogies with
the progression of the seasons.
It
all took place in a very beautiful environment with good weather which brought
about much social interaction between the viewers.
Roger
Horvath
Source: http://www.buxtonfringe.org.uk/reviews2015spo.html
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