College invites community to CFK Poetics

KEY WEST, FL —The College of the Florida Keys (CFK) invites the community to CFK Poetics, its annual visiting poets series. This year’s theme is “Culture Unites and Divides.” The first featured poet, award-winner Adrian Matejka, will present a poetry reading on Thursday, September 8 at 6 p.m. in the Tennessee Williams Theatre on the Key West Campus. Poet and poetry professor Tom Hunley will present on October 6, also at 6 p.m. at the same location. They will read some of their works and take questions from the audience. Earlier on their respective presentation days, both poets will participate in craft talks in the College’s Library at 3:30 p.m. All events are free and open to the public. Learn more at CFK.edu/Poetics.

CFK Poetics is a series that aims to develop awareness of and immersion in the humanities landscape by connecting students and the community with poetry on the national level in a way that is immediate to their own experiences. Since 2019, visiting poets have come to CFK or appeared virtually to share their work and have conversations with the student body as well as the community at large. Formerly featured poets include B.H. Fairchild, Chelsea Rathburn, Richard Blanco, and Ross Gay.

Events:

Craft Talk- Adrian Matejka

Thursday, September 8 at 3:30 p.m.
CFK Library

Poetry Reading- Adrian Matejka

Thursday, September 8 at 6:00 p.m.

Tennessee Williams Theatre

About Adrian Matejka:

Adrian Matejka was born in Nuremberg, Germany as part of a military family. He grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana and is a graduate of Indiana University Bloomington and the MFA program at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

He is the author of The Devil’s Garden (Alice James Books, 2003), which won the New York / New England Award and Mixology (Penguin, 2009), a winner of the 2008 National Poetry Series. His third collection of poems, The Big Smoke (Penguin, 2013), was awarded the 2014 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award. The Big Smoke was also a finalist for the 2013 National Book Award, 2014 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, and 2014 Pulitzer Prize in poetry. His fourth book, Map to the Stars, was published by Penguin in 2017 and his mixed media project in collaboration with Nicholas Galanin and Kevin Neireiter inspired by Funkadelic, Standing on the Verge & Maggot Brain (Third Man Books) was published in 2021. His most recent collection of poems, Somebody Else Sold the World (Penguin, 2021), was a finalist for the 2022 Rilke Prize. His first graphic novel, Last On His Feet, will be published in 2023 by Liveright.

Craft Talk- Tom Hunley

Wednesday, October 6 at 3:30 p.m.
CFK Library

Poetry Reading- Tom Hunley

Wednesday, October 6 at 6:00 p.m.

Tennessee Williams Theatre

About Tom Hunley:

Tom C. Hunley is the author of seven full-length poetry collections, most recently What Feels LikeLove (C&R Press 2021), seven chapbooks, most recently Adjusting to the Lights (winner, 2020 Rattle Chapbook Prize), and two textbooks. With Alexandria Peary, he co-edited Creative Writing Pedagogies for the Twenty-First Century (Southern Illinois University Press, 2015). He directs the Creative Writing MFA program at Western Kentucky University, where he has taught since 2003.

Funding for this program was provided through a grant from Florida Humanities with funds from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of Florida Humanities or the National Endowment for the Humanities.

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