Cornelius Eady’s impact on in DC
Folger Shakespeare Library
In-person
Two Events
Join Folger Poetry in honoring the legacy of former Folger Shakespeare Library Director O.B. Hardison, Jr. with acclaimed poet Cornelius Eady (Pulitzer Prize–nominated The Gathering of My Name; National Book Award finalist for Brutal Imagination). Introduced by award-winning poet María Fernanda.
About O.B. Hardison Poetry Series
Since 1970, the Folger’s poetry reading series has brought hundreds of distinguished poets to read from their work on stage. Past guests include Octavio Paz, Gwendolyn Brooks, Allen Ginsberg, W. S. Merwin, Adrienne Rich, Yusef Komunyakaa, James Merrill, Frank Bidart, Robert Pinsky, Derek Walcott, Hayden Carruth, Rita Dove, Seamus Heaney, Sterling Brown, Denise Levertov, June Jordan, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Sonia Sanchez, and James Dickey.
About Beauty
Folger Shakespeare Library
In-person
One Event of Two
Join award-winning poet María Fernanda (published in The Rumpus, Luna Luna Magazine, The BreakBeat Poets Vol. 4) for an afternoon workshop and an evening reading. Originally from Northeast DC, María Fernanda has read her work to international audiences in Nikiti, Moscow, and Hamburg.
Workshop: 3-4pm
During the afternoon, María Fernanda will host a poetry workshop with generative writing exercises in the Learning Lab. Inspired by the Folger’s collection of Shakespeare’s First Folios, this workshop invites participants to compose their own poems using her writing prompts and to bind their own three-sheet folio.
Left is Our Language
after The 1619 Project exhibition
In-person
Three Days
A poetry component crafted by María Fernanda after a large-scale exhibition for the DC Public Library’s The People’s Archive. The title of this program is directly inspired by María Fernanda’s “New Year’s Eve” poem. This program has a special focus on the sister, mati, and friendship.
A Black Girl’s Poetry Workshop!
National Museum of Women in the Arts
In-person
One Day
A museum experiences, crafted by María Fernanda for Black Girls in Art Spaces, launching NMWA’s in-library programming at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. This program has a special focus on poetry and research.