Edmonton Poetry Festival

August is almost over and fall is quickly approaching! What did you read this summer? Tell us in the comments what we should add to the September TBR.

Here are some of our August reads by Canadian poets.

⋆｡°✩ Rump + Flank by Carol Harvey Steski
Published by NeWest Press 2021

⋆｡°✩ Autobiography of Red: A Novel in Verse by Anne Carson
Published by McClelland & Stewart 2016

⋆｡°✩ Welcome to the Anthropocene by Alice Major
Published by University of Alberta Press 2018

The revamped EPF newsletter will be released in the second week of September 2024! Use the link (https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com/) to subscribe.

The newsletter includes new segments like the Poet Q&A, new Albertan poetry releases, and a featured EPF member's poem!

The newsletter subscription is located at the bottom of the edmontonpoetryfestival.com homepage.

Attention! EPF wants to hear from you about our upcoming changes to the newsletter. Let us know what you want to see in the Edmonton Poetry Festival's newsletter.

Please click the link to fill out the newsletter poll: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScx3E8oRrByYSPYi68_D0UlWN-PsdsfxW8Oorl76AVUmzokCA/viewform?usp=sf_link

The poll closes August 6th.

Declare your love on Thursday July 25th!

The Art Gallery of Alberta is partnering with Polyglot to host a poetry night in association with August Klintberg's Love Empire installation. The Art Gallery of Alberta invites you to come declare your love for people and places around you—yourself included.

This event will take place Thursday July 25th on the terrace of the Art Gallery of Alberta between 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM. Drinks will be available for purchase on the third floor bar, adjacent to the terrace.

To sign up please visit the Polyglot website to reserve a reading time or just show up—walk-ins are welcome!

For more information about the installation and events visit youraga.ca/exhibitions.

Photo: Shima Robinson performing Love Empire exhibition opening event and launch party.

Coming soon with Jubefest concerts... We are happy to introduce Jubefest's "Poetic Prologues," featuring some of Alberta's best poets as openers for the musical acts! We are happy to introduce the full line-up:

Wakefield Brewster opening for Celeigh Cardinal July 19 | 7:30 PM
Martin Kerr July 20 | 7:30 PM

Ryan Some-Sum Summers opening for BrassTactics July 26 | 7:30 PM

Shima Robinson opening for AV & The Inner City July 27 | 7:30 PM

Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium,
11455 87 Ave
Edmonton, AB, T6G 2T2
(780) 427 2760

Coming soon with Jubefest concerts... We are happy to introduce Jubefest's "Poetic Prologues," featuring some of Alberta's best poets as openers for the musical acts! We are happy to introduce the full line-up:

Wakefield Brewster opening for Celeigh Cardinal July 19 | 7:30 PM
Martin Kerr July 20 | 7:30 PM

Ryan Some-Sum Summers opening for Brasstactics July 26 | 7:30 PM

Shima Robinson opening for AV & The Inner City July 27 | 7:30 PM

Curated by Wakefield Brewster in association with the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium. Make sure to buy your tickets soon, available through the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium website! Come support our local poets!

Special message from Alexis Marie Chute, Social Media & Marketing Coordinator for the Edmonton Poetry Festival: ⤵️🤩🎉❤️⤵️

It has been my pleasure sharing the local poetry-love on the EPF social media accounts and interacting with so many of you online and in person. Working with the staff, board, and volunteers has been amazing. I’m also grateful to have captured so many special moments in photos over the 8 days and countless events. My contract has concluded for the 2024 festival, but I’ve loved every moment of it. I’m happy to email people pictures of the festival and performances, so please feel free to reach out: [email protected]

I hope to see you next year! Leaving you with a few of my favorite pictures that didn’t make it into other posts.

Signing off for now!

- Alexis

Festival website: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

Thank you to the Edmonton Poetry Festival’s Executive Director Steve Pirot. We are grateful for his vision and leadership—and can’t wait for the 20th annual festival in 2025!

Festival website: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

📸 Alexis Marie Chute

UPDATE: Our AGM has shifted to a new time: 4-6pm on May 26th at McLuhan House. All are welcome to attend – we'll have snacks!

ID: A stock photo of people sitting at a desk with their laptops having a meeting, with details about the AGM time change and EPFS logo.

A BIG shoutout—part 2–to our supportive venues for the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival!

Rooster Cafe and Kitchen
University of Alberta
Audreys Books Ltd.
The Aviary .edmonton
CKUA Radio

EPF: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

📸 Alexis Marie Chute

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

A BIG shoutout—part 1–to our supportive venues for the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival!

CO*LAB
The Foundry Room OEX
Ociciwan Contemporary Art Centre

EPF: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

📸 Alexis Marie Chute

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

The Edmonton Poetry Featival would not be what it is without the generous volunteers who give of their time, energy, and talents year after year. Here are some pics of our dear 2024 volunteers for whom we are beyond grateful.

If you volunteered this year—or any previous year—THANK YOU SO MUCH!!

EPF: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

📸 Alexis Marie Chute

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

There were so many amazing readers at the final event of the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival! This post unfortunately does not include them all.

These photos are a sample of the open mic 🎤 hosted by Emma Elder at Audreys Books Ltd.

EPF: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

📸 Alexis Marie Chute

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

More pictures from the EPF 2024 event POEMS IN A QUIET POOL: ZEN READING ❤️

Hosted by Jannie Edwards & Alice Major

Venue: Ociciwan Contemporary Art Centre

📸 by Alexis Marie Chute

Festival info: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

There are too many awesome pictures of the Local Publishers Spotlight held at CO*LAB

So many amazing moments frozen for us to enjoy!

Our photographer and Social Media & Marketing Coordinator is deliberating on how to get you photos if you performed or organized a performance…. If you want pics, email her at [email protected] 🤩

Shoutouts to:
- The Bolo Tie Collective
- Funicular Magazine
- University of Alberta Press

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

📸 by Alexis Marie Chute

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

Closing Showcase photos for the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival featuring Emily Riddle, Marilyn Dumont and Rita Bouvier.

Thank you to our venue CO*LAB

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

📸 by Alexis Marie Chute

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

More pro photos, YAY! The SHERWOOD PARK CELEBRATION OF POETRY was held at the Strathcona County Library and was hosted by Katie Bickell, featuring poets Matthew James Weigel and Matthew Stepanic, plus a stimulating roster of open mic poets.

Festival website: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

📸 by Alexis Marie Chute

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

Pro photos of “Women across the land are dancing…don your moccasins nosisim” writing workshop with RITA BOUVIER. It’s so fun to celebrate these events and reflect on all they taught us.

Festival website: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

📸 Alexis Marie Chute

The open mic 🎤 at Audreys Books was a highlight of the 2024 Edmonton’s Poetry Festival. So many brave poets took the stage and shared their work. Well done all! Thank you to Emma Elder for hosting. And a big thank you to our venue Audreys Books Ltd.

EPF: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

POEMS IN A QUIET POOL: ZEN READING was hosted by Jannie Edwards & Alice Major. The participants each read a poem aloud with no preamble of what the poem was about. They let the words sink in. It was wonderful to hear how themes emerged. It was a nourishing literary experience. Thank you to all who participated.

Thank you also to our venue: Ociciwan Contemporary Art Centre

Festival info: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: vivid colour photographs documenting the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival event.

As we get close to wrapping up our promotions for and reflections of the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival, we want to say a special thank you to our graphic designer who created the festival image of water and trees and faces. Thank you Leslie Irvine Design & Marketing!

The beautiful graphic communicated the festival theme of Voices Flow: Collective Current, drawing on the Edmonton landscape.

Thank you Leslie!

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphic featuring water and tree elements, with an aged paper background, and brownish text with the festival information.

“My name is Joshua Querijero! I am a student at the University of Alberta and a poet. I was part of the Edmonton poetry festival as a volunteer and as a reader. I enjoyed every single moment of the festival. Everyone was so welcoming and supportive. I had the jitters on stage, but the crowd was supportive all the way. Poetry snapping their fingers to support me and the rest of the readers. I would like to be part of next year's festival. I can't wait and I hope for many years of poetry in Edmonton!”

- Joshua Querijero

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphics featuring water and tree elements, with aged paper backgrounds, and blue and green text with the testimonial information.

“As a volunteer and fellow poet, the 2024 EPF was just an incredible experience overall. I really loved having the opportunity to hear and witness so many unique voices from across our wonderful little city.

It was also a great opportunity to explore venues and poetry groups and meet new people I may not have otherwise had a chance to.

This experience showed me how tight-knit the literary community is here in Edmonton and the diversity of subjects, people, and styles our city offers.

The volunteer coordinator Bree, did a great job walking us volunteers through our duties and answering any questions we had. I'm really happy to have gotten the chance to lend a hand with this year's festival, and I'm looking forward to helping out again in the future!

In addition, I just want to pass along my thanks to the entire Edmonton Poetry Fest team for putting on such a great series of events. Y'all did great work.”

– Theodora Sterling

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphics featuring water and tree elements, with aged paper backgrounds, and blue and green text with the testimonial information.

“My experience of this year’s poetry festival was sublime. An upsurge of enthusiastic audiences again, book sales, wonderful conversations, delightful photos and simply the deep feeling throughout the festival that poetry truly matters.”

– Catherine Owen

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphics featuring water and tree elements, with aged paper backgrounds, and blue and green text with the testimonial information.

“The Edmonton Poetry Festival was the first time I shared my poetry through open mic! It was an incredible experience and felt so validating to share my poem in a room full of diverse listeners. It gave me more confidence in my story and craft. I want to continue sharing my poetry with the world, and I'm proud to say that the 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival has marked the beginning of this beautiful journey.”

- Simran Panesar

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphics featuring water and tree elements, with aged paper backgrounds, and blue and green text with the testimonial information.

“SWYC (the Spoken Word Youth Choir) was thrilled to perform at this year's Edmonton Poetry Festival. Thank you again for having us. The two events that SWYC were part of were so welcoming and supportive. The teens and young adults in the choir all had a great time and were very excited to participate. Thank you for inviting us to a wonderfully inclusive celebration of words and wordsmiths!”

- Gail Sidonie Sobat and Lauren Seal, Director and Assistant Direct of SWYC

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphics featuring water and tree elements, with aged paper backgrounds, and blue and green text with the testimonial information.

"Each year the EPF creates many incredible inclusive spaces for poets to come together, connect, and share their art. The variety of languages, styles, and levels of experience represented makes me so proud to be part of such a diverse poetry community!"

– Joy Love

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphics featuring water and tree elements, with aged paper backgrounds, and blue and green text with the testimonial information.

“I was only able to attend the Edmonton Poetry Festival French Twist event this year, but I had an amazing time and was very moved by this event. From the free entry by donation, to the gorgeous venue, everything was so well organized. I loved all the new people I met and the new friends I made. I loved speaking French! I hope there are many more French events in the future. Oui! C'était merveilleux. À la prochaine.”

– BEEECH

Festival: https://edmontonpoetryfestival.com

ID: 2024 Edmonton Poetry Festival graphics featuring water and tree elements, with aged paper backgrounds, and blue and green text with the testimonial information.