Wallpaper conservationist Carolyn Frisa carefully peels wallpaper from the wall of the Evergreens

Behind the Scenes with Collections (Part 2)
Thursday, July 6, 6:30pm ET

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

This virtual program is free to attend. Registration is required. 

REGISTER

Wallpaper conservationist Carolyn Frisa carefully peels wallpaper from the wall of the Evergreens

Join us for the second in a three-part series exploring the collection of the Emily Dickinson Museum. The Museum’s collection is the largest assemblage in the world of objects representing the Dickinson family’s material legacy. Progress continues on the three-year collections documentation project funded by the Institute for Museum and Library Services. In this series, Museum staff converse with specialists and conservators about the unique qualities, challenges and opportunities of this singular collection.

Part 3 is TBA. Sign-up for our e-newsletter to be the first to know!

 
Featured guest: Carolyn Frisa
Carolyn Frisa is head conservator and owner of Works on Paper conservation studio, established in Vermont in 2008. She has spent the last twenty years of her professional career conserving a wide range of artistic and historic works on paper. Recent projects include the conservation of prints and drawings by Pablo Picasso, watercolor portraits by early American artists including Rufus Porter and Joseph Davis, and the stabilization and treatment of historic wallpapers at The Evergreens and the Marsh Billings Rockefeller National Historic Site. Carolyn received an undergraduate degree in the history of art from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania. She completed her master’s degree in paper conservation at Camberwell College of Arts in London, England in 2000. Carolyn is a Professional Associate of the American Institute for Conservation (AIC) and a member of the AIC Book & Paper Group and the AIC Conservators in Private Practice Group. She is a founding board member of the Collections Care and Conservation Alliance and serves on the boards of The New England Conservation Association (NECA), the AIC CIPP Specialty Group, and The Vermont Arts & Culture Disaster & Resiliency Network (VACDaRN). works-on-paper.net

 

 

 

 

 

Circular image of the Earth with Emily's handwriting overlaid atop

Emily Dickinson International Society
Annual Meeting
July 21-23, 2023

IN-PERSON PROGRAM

FULL PROGRAM OF EVENTS


This program is jointly presented by the Emily Dickinson International Society. Registration is required. 
Please address any questions about the Annual Meeting to edismeeting@emilydickinsonmuseum.org

REGISTER

Poster for Emily Dickinson International Society theme "Clasp Hemispheres, and Homes"The Emily Dickinson International Society (EDIS) is returning to Amherst! For the last three summers, while EDIS has gathered online and in Seville, the Emily Dickinson Museum was closed. The Museum used the time to undertake a major, impeccably researched and executed restoration of the Dickinson Homestead; they also launched the first comprehensive cataloging of the Museum’s collection of over 10,000 objects. The EDIS Annual Meeting will feature this work. Participants will be able to tour the magnificently restored Homestead, learn about the restoration from museum staff, and view objects relating to Dickinson’s home from the Museum’s collection that have never been exhibited. 

The conference theme, “Clasp Hemispheres, and Homes,” comes from Dickinson’s poem “The Sunrise runs for Both – ” (M 355, Fr765, J710). In congruence with Dickinson’s “Both” 16 panels with nearly 50 presentations will delve into the relation between Dickinson’s mental and material interiors and her expansive embrace of wider, external spheres. Special events will include the screening of two recent Dickinson Opera films: Lesley Dill’s capacious  Divide Light (2020) and Dana Kaufman’s intimate Emily & Sue (2022). In addition to performances and panel presentations, the meeting will include special interest circles on research, pedagogy, translation, and the arts. Join the Emily Dickinson International Society in Amherst to celebrate Dickinson’s work and the vibrant community she inspires.

All attendees of the annual meeting must be members of the Emily Dickinson International Society. The Annual Meeting regular registration fee of $175 and student/financial need registration fee of $125 includes tours of the Dickinson Homestead, Opera film screenings, refreshments, two lunches, and the Saturday Meeting Picnic-Banquet. There are no additional costs for these Annual Meeting events. A $50 late charge will be added starting July 2, so register now.

FULL PROGRAM OF EVENTS

A block of rooms has been reserved for the Annual Meeting at The Inn on Boltwood (an elegant inn walking distance from campus). Call 413-256-8200 and mention code EDIS 2023 to reserve your room at the EDIS discounted rate, the block is being held until June 26th.
 
The Annual Meeting is being held at Amherst College and the college website provides a large list of local Hotels and of Bed & Breakfasts as well as Travel Information and Driving Directions. Parking Permits will be available at the Annual Meeting registration table, but for your convenience you can print one for yourself and bring it with you.

Address any questions about the Critical Institute and Annual Meeting to edismeeting@emilydickinsonmuseum.org

 

Marta Macdowell and a volunteer work in Dickinson's garden

Garden Days 2023
Friday, June 2 & Saturday, June 3

IN-PERSON PROGRAM

“New feet within my garden go –
New fingers stir the sod–

-Fr79

Emily's garden with Homestead in the background

Come celebrate the beauty of late spring during Garden Days at the Emily Dickinson Museum! As summer temperatures arrive in Amherst, Emily’s garden begs to be tended. Join a group of fellow volunteers to aid in the cultivation of the historic Dickinson landscape. You do not need to be an expert gardener for this “all levels” program. Learn from volunteers who have tended the gardens in the past and become part of a new generation of caretakers. During Garden Days, participants will help to weed, divide older perennials, plant new perennials and annuals, edge flower beds, and more! 

DETAILS:
All are welcome, no gardening experience required. Garden Days runs rain or shine!

Volunteers are encouraged to bring the following if they have them:
– Gloves
– Clean hand trowel and clipper
– Bucket
– Kneeling pad
– Water bottle
– Comfortable footwear
– Sun protection

Garden Days spots are available on a first come, first served basis. Space is limited. This program is run over the course of two days, and participants may choose one of the following sessions:

Session 1: Friday, June 2 1:00 – 4:30pm ET

Session 2: Saturday, June 3  9:00 am – 12:30pm ET

Participants are encouraged to stay for the duration of their session.

This in-person program is free to attend. Registration is required. 

REGISTER

Tell-It-Slant-2022-Square-Web-Graphics

2023 Tell It Slant Poetry Festival Call for Workshop Proposals

Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Tell It Slant Poetry Festival celebrates the poetic legacy of Emily Dickinson and the contemporary creativity she continues to inspire from the place she called home.

The Festival’s name “Tell It Slant”, was selected in homage to Dickinson’s poem, “Tell all the truth but tell it slant.” This title underscores the revolutionary power of poetry to shift our perspective and reveal new truths. The Tell It Slant Poetry Festival remains committed to featuring and serving established and emerging poets who represent the diversity of the flourishing contemporary poetry scene, and to fostering community by placing poetry in the public sphere. To see our 2022 Festival schedule click here.

This year’s Festival will be hybrid, with events happening in-person at the Museum as well as online. We invite you to “dwell in possibility” and submit your most inventive proposals for audience-centered workshops. Submissions for virtual programs should be for live, synchronous content only. 

The Steering Committee especially welcomes the following:

  • Submissions from groups of 2 – 5 facilitators
  • Submissions that engage young attendees and/or those new to poetry
  • Submissions that creatively encourage audience participation or that foster a sense of community or space

Honoraria of $250 are provided per event.

a saxophonist, drummer and guitarist perform at the 2022 Tell It Slant Poetry FestivalSeeking proposals for the following IN-PERSON AND VIRTUAL program slots to be scheduled September 25 – October 1 (Individuals may submit multiple forms if proposing more than one program):

IN-PERSON OR VIRTUAL WORKSHOPS:

  • Public poetry workshops are typically 60- to 90-minutes long. Workshops must be interactive and generative.
  • Virtual workshops must be adaptable for large virtual audiences of around 200.

EDUCATOR WORKSHOPS:

  • Workshops intended for educators teaching grades 6-12, with a focus on reading and/or writing poetry. Presenters should have facilitation experience and include a sample lesson outline. Virtual format preferred, with in-person considered.

Submission Guidelines:

  • Only submissions made using the online form will be considered. To complete the online form, click on the “Submit your proposal” button below. There is no fee to submit proposals.
  • To complete your submission, please also upload the following to this Dropbox folder
    • The resumes/CVs of all presenters.
    • If appropriate, up to 3 sample poems per group member.
    • Any desired links, audio, or video files of performances or facilitation. 
    • High resolution headshots of all presenters. DPI 300 or minimum 1080 pixels (if you don’t have a professional camera, an unedited selfie on a smart phone will fit those requirements)
  • All your materials as listed above should be titled by your PROGRAM TITLE. You may upload materials as one zipped file or individually. We can accept .pdf, .doc, .doc(x) files. If applicable, you may upload images in .png, .jpg, or .gif form and audio files in .mp3, .aac, or .wav form.
  • Selected facilitators will be notified Thursday, June 1st and will be asked to sign a letter of agreement confirming their participation in the Festival.
  • Submissions Due: Thursday, May 11th at 11:59pm ET.

Submissions will be judged on the following:

  • Originality – Is your idea bold and intriguing? Will it offer something new to our Festival?
  • Quality – Does the submission reflect thoughtful preparation? How are you uniquely qualified to facilitate this program?
  • Audience – Have you clearly outlined participatory elements? How does your proposal contribute to community-building for the Tell It Slant Poetry Festival? 
  • Special consideration will be given to Massachusetts-based facilitators.

SUBMIT YOUR PROPOSAL

Questions? Email us at edmprograms@emilydickinsonmuseum.org

 

Color – Caste – Denomination –
Wednesday, May 3, 7pm ET

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

Color – Caste – Denomination: Emily Dickinson’s Race and Class Contexts

This virtual program is free to attend. Registration is required. 

REGISTER

Color – Caste – Denomination –
These – are Time’s Affair –
Death’s diviner Classifying
Does not know they are –
-FR836
photograph of the kitchen in the Evergreens. There are plates, teapots, and preparation area. A small sliding door opens to the dining room.

Could Emily Dickinson’s striking poetic vision have been realized anywhere but Amherst? Would she have had the time to hone her craft without the domestic labors performed by individuals outside the Dickinsons’ privileged class? What was Amherst like for those who were not members of the provincial elite and how did they shape the poet’s world?

In this program, learn more about the forces of race and class impacting Emily Dickinson’s Amherst life. We’ll discuss the Dickinson family’s settler colonial roots, industry in Amherst, the town’s changing demographics, musical influences on the poet, and more. Along the way meet individuals in the employ of the Dickinson household as house and grounds workers and hear more about their lives and experiences.

Illustrated talks will be followed by a live Q&A session.


Presentations by Emily Dickinson Museum Tour Guides:
Emily Bernhard
Judith Hudson
Pete Redington
Becky Lockwood

 

 

 

 

 

Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series
Thursday, October 19, 6pm ET

Phosphorescence October 2023 featured poets:
Allison Adair, Krysten Hill, and DeMisty Bellinger

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

This virtual program is free to attend. Registration is required. 

REGISTER

To Emily Dickinson, phosphorescence, was a divine spark and the illuminating light behind learning — it was volatile, but transformative in nature. Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series celebrates contemporary creativity that echoes Dickinson’s own revolutionary poetic voice. The Series features established and emerging poets whose work and backgrounds represent the diversity of the flourishing contemporary poetry scene. Join us on the last Thursdays of each month to hear from poets around the world as they read their work and discuss what poetry and Dickinson mean to them.

Phosphorescence Lineup 2023


About this month’s poets:

headshot of poet 
Allison Adair

Allison Adair’s ‘The Clearing’, selected by Henri Cole for the Max Ritvo Poetry Prize, was named a New York Times “New & Noteworthy” book. Allison’s poems appear in American Poetry Review, Best American Poetry, Kenyon Review, Threepenny, and ZYZZYVA; and her work has been honored with the Pushcart Prize, Florida Review Editors’ Award, Orlando Prize, Mass Cultural Council grant, and first place in the Fineline Competition from Mid-American Review. Originally from central Pennsylvania, Allison teaches at Boston College.

 

 

 


headshot of poet 
Krysten HillKrysten Hill is the author of ‘How Her Spirit Got Out’, which received the 2017 Jean Pedrick Chapbook Prize. Her work has been featured in POETRY, The Academy of American Poets, apt, BODY, Boiler Magazine, Up the Staircase Quarterly, Muzzle, PANK,Tinderbox Poetry Journal, and elsewhere. The recipient of the 2016 St. Botolph Club Foundation Emerging Artist Award and a 2020 Mass Cultural Council Poetry Fellowship, she currently teaches at UMass Boston.
krystenhill.com

 

 

 


 

headshot for poet 
Demisty BellingerDeMisty Bellinger‘s debut novel is New to Liberty. She has also written two volumes of poetry, Peculiar Heritage and Rubbing Elbows, as well as appearing in anthologies and publishing pedagogy and nonfiction. DeMisty is a poetry editor at Malarkey Books, an alumni reader at Prairie Schooner, and a professor at Fitchburg State University.

 

 

 

 


Support Phosphorescence and Honor Someone Special:
Admission to all Phosphorescence events is free, but online donations, especially those made in honor or memory of family, friends, or colleagues are heartily encouraged and vital to the future of our programs. All gifts are tax deductible.

Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series
Thursday, September 28, 6pm ET

Phosphorescence September 2023 featured poets:
Aldo Amparán, Catherine-Esther Cowie, and Ron Welburn

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

This program is free to attend. Registration is required. 
Part of the 2023 Tell It Slant Poetry Festival!

REGISTER FOR THE FESTIVAL

To Emily Dickinson, phosphorescence, was a divine spark and the illuminating light behind learning — it was volatile, but transformative in nature. Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series celebrates contemporary creativity that echoes Dickinson’s own revolutionary poetic voice. The Series features established and emerging poets whose work and backgrounds represent the diversity of the flourishing contemporary poetry scene. Join us on the last Thursdays of each month to hear from poets around the world as they read their work and discuss what poetry and Dickinson mean to them.

Phosphorescence Lineup 2023


About this month’s poets:

headshot of poet Aldo Amparán Aldo Amparán is the author of Brother Sleep (Alice James Books, 2022), winner of the 2020 Alice James Award. They have received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts & CantoMundo. Their work has most recently appeared in the Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-Day, Georgia Review, New England Review, Poetry Magazine, & elsewhere.
aldoamparan.com

 

 

 


headshot of poet Catherine-Esther Cowie Catherine-Esther Cowie is a poet and visual artist from St. Lucia who has lived in Canada and now resides in the US. She is a graduate of the Pacific University low-residency MFA program. Her writing has appeared in a number of journals including The Common, Prairie Schooner, RHINO Poetry, West Branch Journal and the PN Review. Her work has been nominated for AWP Intro Journal, a Pushcart Prize, Best New Poets 2018 and 2019 and Best of the Net 2021.
esthercowie.wixsite.com/poet

 

 

 


headshot of poet Ron Welburn

Ron Welburn (Accomac Cherokee) grew up in Philadelphia and is an emeritus English professor at UMass Amherst where he co-started the Native Studies program. His poems have appeared in over 125 literary outlets, and his seventh collection of poetry is Council Decisions: Selected Poems, Revised & Expanded Edition. He is interested in Natives in jazz.

 

 

 

 


Support Phosphorescence and Honor Someone Special:
Admission to all Phosphorescence events is free, but online donations, especially those made in honor or memory of family, friends, or colleagues are heartily encouraged and vital to the future of our programs. All gifts are tax deductible.

graphic for Phosphorescence August 2023

Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series
Thursday, August 17, 6pm ET

Phosphorescence August 2023 featured poets:
Yamini Pathak, Ilan Stavans, and Devanshi Khetarpal

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

This virtual program is free to attend. Registration is required. 

REGISTER

To Emily Dickinson, phosphorescence, was a divine spark and the illuminating light behind learning — it was volatile, but transformative in nature. Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series celebrates contemporary creativity that echoes Dickinson’s own revolutionary poetic voice. The Series features established and emerging poets whose work and backgrounds represent the diversity of the flourishing contemporary poetry scene. Join us on the last Thursdays of each month to hear from poets around the world as they read their work and discuss what poetry and Dickinson mean to them.

Phosphorescence Lineup 2023


About this month’s poets:

 

headshot for poet Yamini PathakYamini Pathak is the author of the chapbooks, Atlas of Lost Places (Milk and Cake Press, 2020) and Breath Fire Water Song (Ghost City Press, 2021). Her words are forthcoming or have appeared in Poetry Northwest, About Place Journal, Tupelo Quarterly, Vida Review, Waxwing, and elsewhere. She is a Poet in Schools for the Geraldine Dodge Foundation, serves as poetry editor for Inch micro-chapbooks (Bull City Press), and is a production assistant for Tupelo Quarterly journal. Yamini received her MFA in poetry from Antioch University, Los Angeles and has received support from VONA/Voices and Community of Writers. It brings her much joy to belong to the Duniya Collective, an inter-disciplinary group of BIPOC artists. Born in India, she lives with her family in New Jersey. https://milkandcakepress.com/product/coming-soon-atlas-of-lost-places/

 

 


headshot for poet  Ilan StavansIlan Stavans is Lewis-Sebring Professor of Humanities, Latin American and Latino Culture at Amherst College, the publisher of Restless Books, and a consultant to the Oxford English Dictionary. The recipient of numerous awards and honors, his work, adapted into film, theater, TV, and radio, has been translated into two dozen languages. 

 

 

 

 


headshot of poet Devanshi Khetarpal

Devanshi Khetarpal is a Truman Capote and Sonny Mehta fellow in Fiction at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. She is the editor-in-chief and founder of Inklette Magazine, and holds a Master’s in Comparative Literature from NYU. Her work has received support from the Yale Writers’ Workshop, the Bread Loaf Translators’ Conference, and the Juniper Writing Institute at UMass Amherst. Her fiction and poetry was long-listed for the 2022 Toto Award for Creative Writing in English. Her work has been published in Public BooksPoetry at SangamThe Bombay Literary MagazineScrollRedivider and Vayavya, among others. She is from Bhopal, India. 

 

 


Support Phosphorescence and Honor Someone Special:
Admission to all Phosphorescence events is free, but online donations, especially those made in honor or memory of family, friends, or colleagues are heartily encouraged and vital to the future of our programs. All gifts are tax deductible.

graphic for Phosphorescence July 2023

Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series
Thursday, July 20, 6pm ET

Phosphorescence July 2023 featured poets:
Rebecca Pelky, Lisbeth White, and Carolina Hotchandani

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

This virtual program is free to attend. Registration is required. 

REGISTER

To Emily Dickinson, phosphorescence, was a divine spark and the illuminating light behind learning — it was volatile, but transformative in nature. Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series celebrates contemporary creativity that echoes Dickinson’s own revolutionary poetic voice. The Series features established and emerging poets whose work and backgrounds represent the diversity of the flourishing contemporary poetry scene. Join us on the last Thursdays of each month to hear from poets around the world as they read their work and discuss what poetry and Dickinson mean to them.

Phosphorescence Lineup 2023


About this month’s poets:

 

headshot of poet Rebecca PelkyRebecca Pelky is a member of the Brothertown Indian Nation of Wisconsin and a 2023 National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellow. Through a Red Place, her second poetry collection and winner of the Perugia Press Prize, was released in 2021. Her first book, Horizon of the Dog Woman, was published by Saint Julian Press in 2020. A translation of Matilde Ladron de Guevara’s poetry collection Desnuda, co-translated with Jake Young, was published in 2022.

 

 

 


headshot of poet Lisbeth WhiteLisbeth White is a writer and ritualist living on S’klallam and Chimacum lands of Port Townsend, WA. As a cross-genre writer of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, her passion and motivation for all creative endeavors is to engage community while centering eco spiritual, ecowomanist, and Black feminist perspectives. She is the author of the poetry collection American Sycamore (Perugia Press) and co-editor of the anthology Poetry as Spellcasting: Poems, Essays, and Prompts for Manifesting Liberation and Reclaiming Power (North Atlantic Books). Her writing explores the sensual and sociopolitical intersections of healing, ancestry, mythopoetics, and connection to the natural world.
lisbethwrites.com

 

 


 

headshot of poet  Carolina HotchandaniCarolina Hotchandani is a Latinx/South Asian poet born in Brazil and raised in various parts of the United States. She holds degrees from Brown, Texas State, and Northwestern universities. Her honors include fellowships from Tin House Writers’ Workshop, Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and Napa Valley Writers’ Conference. Her poetry has appeared in AGNI, Alaska Quarterly Review, Beloit Poetry Journal,Blackbird, Cincinnati Review, Prairie Schooner, and other journals. She is a Goodrich Assistant Professor of English in Omaha, Nebraska, where she lives with her husband and daughter.
carolinahotchandani.com

 

 


Support Phosphorescence and Honor Someone Special:
Admission to all Phosphorescence events is free, but online donations, especially those made in honor or memory of family, friends, or colleagues are heartily encouraged and vital to the future of our programs. All gifts are tax deductible.

graphic for Phosphorescence June 2023

Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series
Thursday, June 22, 6pm ET

Phosphorescence June 2023 featured poets:
Ocean Vuong, Joseph Fritsch, and Yanyi

VIRTUAL PROGRAM

This virtual program is free to attend. Registration is required. 

REGISTER

To Emily Dickinson, phosphorescence, was a divine spark and the illuminating light behind learning — it was volatile, but transformative in nature. Produced by the Emily Dickinson Museum, the Phosphorescence Poetry Reading Series celebrates contemporary creativity that echoes Dickinson’s own revolutionary poetic voice. The Series features established and emerging poets whose work and backgrounds represent the diversity of the flourishing contemporary poetry scene. Join us on the last Thursdays of each month to hear from poets around the world as they read their work and discuss what poetry and Dickinson mean to them.

Phosphorescence Lineup 2023


About this month’s poets:

headshot of poet Ocean Vuong

Ocean Vuong is the author of The New York Times bestselling poetry collection, Time is a Mother (Penguin Press 2022), and The New York Times bestselling novel, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous (Penguin Press 2019), which has been translated into 37 languages. A recipient of a 2019 MacArthur “Genius” Grant, he is also the author of the critically acclaimed poetry collection, Night Sky with Exit Wounds, a New York Times Top 10 Book of 2016, winner of the T.S. Eliot Prize, the Whiting Award, the Thom Gunn Award, and the Forward Prize for Best First Collection. A Ruth Lilly fellow from the Poetry Foundation, his honors include fellowships from the Lannan Foundation, the Civitella Ranieri Foundation, The Elizabeth George Foundation, The Academy of American Poets, and the Pushcart Prize.
oceanvuong.com

 


headshot of poet 
Joseph Fritsch

Joseph Fritsch is a poet and critic. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in The Brooklyn Rail, Public Books, and Post45. He received his doctorate from Emory University and is pursuing an MFA in Poetry at UMass, Amherst.

 

 

 

 

 


headshot of poet Yanyi

Yanyi is the author of Dream of the Divided Field (One World 2022) andThe Year of Blue Water (Yale 2019), winner of the 2018 Yale Series of Younger Poets Prize. His work has been featured in or at NPR’s All Things Considered, New York Public Library, New England Review, Granta, and A Public Space. Most recently, he is the recipient of a 2023 Vermont Arts Council Grant and a 2022 Tanne Foundation Award. He teaches creative writing at large.
yanyiii.com

 

 

 


Support Phosphorescence and Honor Someone Special:
Admission to all Phosphorescence events is free, but online donations, especially those made in honor or memory of family, friends, or colleagues are heartily encouraged and vital to the future of our programs. All gifts are tax deductible.