From Haiku to Collage: a Body-Based Poetics

I gave a Bagley Wright Lecture, From Haiku to Collage: a Body-Based Poetics in Seattle at the Hugo House. I had just hiked Dewa Sanzan and other parts of Basho’s route in Narrow Road to the Interior. On this journey, I read Hiroaki Sato’s translation of Basho’s haibun and also Haruo Shirane’s Traces of Dreams. The talk addresses writing as a body-based practice, pushing aside writing as deep thoughts or sedentary contemplation. Two blog posts accompany the talk, one about Basho’s teaching for pine, study pine, for bamboo, study bamboo and another that connects free improvisation in dance with writing from a blank page. Angela Terry, from Haiku Northwest, joined me for a Q &A. A recording of the talk in online here.