“The House the Spirit Builds offers gorgeous synchronicity: the magic of one special place (Wintergreen), the grace of two sublime photographers (Peter Coffman and Diane Laundy), and the conjuring genius of a supremely gifted poet (Lorna Crozier). Much bigger than it looks, this is a book to savor—over and over again.”
A most unique poetry reading experience!
Renowned poet Lorna Crozier offers a masterful collection of poems inspired by Diane Laundy and Peter Coffman’s photographs taken around Wintergreen Studios. Beginning in this setting, The House the Spirit Builds extends to include any region, any place that ignites the human mind and heart.
Something astonishing happens when the poems and photos sit side by side and speak to one another in a language that is timeless, lucid and precise: they bring us to a wisdom that might mitigate the damage we do to others and the natural world.
While acknowledging the loss and suffering that infuse our days, the poems and photographs invite us to expand our sense of wonder, our sense that all things are connected, no matter where we live.
Join these three incredible creators for a most unique poetry reading experience–some of the poems will be performed at the locations where the photographs were taken; other poems will be read indoors. In all, this promises to be a one-of-a-kind poetry reading and dinner!
ABOUT THE CREATORS
An Officer of the Order of Canada, Lorna Crozier has been acknowledged for her contributions to Canadian literature, her teaching and her mentoring with five honourary doctorates, most recently from McGill and Simon Fraser Universities. Her books have received numerous national awards, including the Governor-General’s Award for Poetry. The Globe and Mail declared The Book of Marvels: A Compendium of Everyday Things one of its Top 100 Books of the Year, and Amazon chose her memoir as one of the 100 books you should read in your lifetime. A Professor Emerita at the University of Victoria, she has performed for Queen Elizabeth II and has read her poetry, which has been translated into several languages, on every continent except Antarctica. Her book, What the Soul Doesn't Want, was nominated for the 2017 Governor General's Award for Poetry. In 2018, Lorna Crozier received the George Woodcock Lifetime Achievement Award. Steven Price called Through the Garden: A Love Story (with Cats), her latest nonfiction book, “one of the great love stories of our time.” Lorna Crozier lives on Vancouver Island.
Peter Coffman is a photographer of places. Whether his subject is a medieval cathedral, a Canadian wilderness, or an ancient pilgrimage road slicing through the landscape, Peter uses his camera to evoke not just the beauty of places but their meanings, their auras and the stories they tell.
Peter’s photography has appeared in galleries in Canada and internationally, and in books and periodicals. He is the author and photographer of Camino (Wintergreen Studios Press, 2017) and photographer of Exploring the Capital (Figure 1, 2017). He lives in Ottawa, ON.
An Ottawa based artist, Diane Laundy’s photographic work is both strongly graphic and deceptively simple. Exploring shape, colour and rhythmic patterns, her work focuses on both natural and urban subjects, often elevating details overlooked by others.
Diane has been a photographer for over eighteen years. Her work has been exhibited in Kingston, Halifax and Almonte and is held in both public and private collections. She lives in Ottawa, ON.
FEES
$60 + HST includes gourmet dinner and poetry reading. Tickets are limited to 20 so that we can safely and joyfully enjoy the evening.
If purchasing a ticket for more than 1 person, please enter the number of tickets required as the “Quantity” below and you will be charged accordingly.