Category Archives: Teaching

The Life Poem, Summer 2023

April 24th, 2023

The Life Poem: Other Poet’s Poetics

Mondays/Tuesdays/Wednesdays
5:30 – 7:30 pm PDT on zoom

You can sign up here

This is an ongoing drop-in poetry discussion group.

Each week, we’ll focus on a different book of poetry, considering what makes this poet’s (or group of poets) work tick.

Tuesday, May 16: Black Mountain Poems (an anthology of Black Mountain poets, 1933-1956, published 2019)

Monday, May 22: W. S. Merwin, The Lice (1967)

Wednesday, June 7: Etel Adnan, Sea and Fog (2012)

Monday, June 12: Saeed Jones, Alive at the End of the World (2022)

Tuesday, July 18: Lia Purpura, All the Fierce Tethers (lyric essay, 2019)

Tuesday, Aug 8: Victoria Chang, The Trees Witness Everything (2021)

Monday, Aug 14: Solmaz Sharif, Customs (2022)

Wednesday, Aug 23: Aisha Sabatini Sloan, Borealis (lyric essay, 2021)

Monday, Aug 28: Jorie Graham, To 2040 (2023)

In the last Life Poem class, we came up with this set of criteria as one way to consider what constitutes a poetics:

  • Question (What is the poet’s central question throughout their work?)
  • Ear (To what music(s) does the poet gravitate? What versions of silence does the poet love most?)
  • Line (How does the poet shape poetic lines?)
  • Image (How does the poet make poetic images?)
  • Lineage (Who has influenced the poet? Who is in the poet’s poetic family tree?)
  • Ethics (What does the poet think is a poet’s cultural role/responsibilities?)
  • Audience (To or for whom is the poet writing?)

We’ll ask these questions and find more questions as a way to continue to build our own life poems.

Whether you consider yourself a poet or not, this is good, deep work. It’ll change how you think and see the world.

No experience with poetry is required.

I’ve decided to focus each class on one book rather than picking individual poems to consider. This seems fairer to the poet and it gives us all the opportunity to cozy up with a real book, hurray. If buying the book poses financial challenges for you, let me know. Used copies of most of these books are available.

I’ll also provide supplemental readings and media (essays, interviews, videos, related poems) as well as a summary of what I see as some key features of the poet’s poetics and some additional ideas to consider before class. I’ll send these things roughly two weeks before the class to everyone who has signed up.

We’ll do a little bit of very informal in-class writing but this won’t be a workshop. You need not be a poet to enjoy this class.

Please register for the class or classes you wish to attend now as this will allow me to plan.

Sliding scale, $18-180 per class, suggested donation $36 per class — pay what makes sense for your financial circumstances. Thank you. If you have questions about this pricing, be in touch!

Venmo: @Daniela-Molnar

Paypal: @dnmolnar

Or mail me a check, be in touch for my address.

Output: Art after Fire

December 10th, 2020

I’m delighted to have been selected to participate in a mentored fellowship with Output: Art After Fire. Read more about the project here: https://www.artafterfire.com.au/

Updates on my work for this project will appear on the Words in Place site.

 

Interview with Variable West

December 10th, 2020

Such a wonderful publication! This interview allowed me to expand upon and update many of the ideas I talked about in my interview with the LA Times.

Climate Grief and Embracing Beautiful Confusion: Daniela Molnar Interviewed

Interview with Literary Arts

September 20th, 2020

I talk about place, poetry, hybrid writing, my teaching style, and list some writers who are inspiring me lately in this interview. Thanks to Literary Arts for the opportunity!

Teacher Spotlight: Daniela Molnar

Fellowship with the Western States Center

August 27th, 2020

I’m delighted and honored to have been awarded a fellowship with the Western States Center as part of their Common Good Masterclass for Artists and Cultural Workers: Combating Racism, Antisemitism, and Anti-Democratic Movements. I’m eager to learn about the intersection of these forces and to make art in response.

Two classes at Literary Arts

August 15th, 2020

Fall 2020 online: Nature Writing Now

 

Fall 2020 online: Writing Along the Seam

 

Profile in the Los Angeles Times

January 11th, 2020

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Thank you to the wonderful writer Julia Rosen and photographer Genaro Molina for this generous, thoughtful article on my New Earth series and on the role of art and artists in sociopolitical/cultural change.

Julia begins: “It had been a long day and Daniela Molnar’s mind was wandering when she saw the shape. The shape of what was already lost; the shape of something new that had just come into being.

Little did she know, it was a shape that would expose a profound feeling of grief within her — and then help her process it. …”

Read the rest here: https://www.latimes.com/la-sci-col1-climate-change-art-2019-story.html

Guiding Signal Fire’s Outpost Residency

August 20th, 2018

It was an honor and a thrill to spend two weeks with fellow guide Wendy Given and 8 wonderful artist residents exploring and learning about the mighty Loowit.

Huge thanks to the Mount Saint Helens Institute for inviting us and to everyone who supports Signal Fire‘s work.

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Sitka Center class

June 3rd, 2018

I am honored to be teaching at the Sitka Center for Art + Ecology. Here are some photos from my recent sold-out workshop, “Observation, Imagination, and Chance with Watermedia.”

Thank you to all the wonderful students I met!

If you’re interested in participating in future workshops, please be in touch.

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Art + Ecology Minor at PNCA, Juxtapoz press

September 27th, 2017

I spearheaded an Art + Ecology Minor at the Pacific Northwest College of Art.

Students are already making incredible work in this program and several community partnerships have been made with organizations such as PLAYA, Signal Fire, Oregon Environmental Council, and OPAL.

The new program was also featured in Juxtapoz!

Art + Ecology in Juxtapoz_1

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