Local poet Nan Doolittle, left, and Ethel Craven-Sweet are all smiles after Friday evening’s Crown of Sonnets reading titled “She Lives On” at Gallery One Visual Arts Center.
The audience for Friday evening’s Crown of Sonnets program titled “She Lives On” at Gallery One Visual Arts Center was standing room only.
Katherine Camarata reads her sonnet on Ida Nason Aronica to begin the night as seven local poets paid tribute to eight women from the Kittitas Valley.
Washington State Poet Laureate Rena Priest started the evening off with a series of poems.
Support Local Journalism |
Ethel Craven-Sweet bowed her head in silent reverence, sitting in the front row, as local poet Nan Doolittle recited her sonnet in tribute to her mother Ethel Craven. It was part of Friday evening’s Crown of Sonnets program titled “She Lives On” at Gallery One Visual Arts Center.
When Doolittle finished, Craven-Sweet raised her hand, index finger extended, as if to acknowledge something her mother told each of her 13 children when they were growing up: “We are somebody.”
The night, coming as an extension of the First Friday Art Walk at the downtown gallery, was an evening of poetry and a community gathering, paying tribute to eight women from the Kittitas Valley as part of Women’s History Month.
“It was absolutely wonderful,” said Craven-Sweet, who grew up in Roslyn and went on to become the second African-American woman worker hired at Boeing. “It just makes my heart feel so good that they would honor my mother this way.
“All 13 children were born and raised in Roslyn. (My mother) made sure that we all went to high school and some of us to college, which was very important. So, tonight’s poetry reading about her is perfect and a great show of respect.”
Seven local and regional poets delivered their thoughts and reflections on the historical women of the Kittitas Valley: Ida Nason Aronica, Donna Nylander, Ethel Craven, Rachel Page, Irene Rinehart, Sarah Spurgeon, and Clareta and Leta May Olmstead-Smith.
“I thought it was a fantastic community celebration of poetry and women and women’s contributions. I also thought it was a beautiful coming together of community,” Ellensburg Poet Laureate Marie Marchand said. “There was a lot of hope and positivity, and that’s the beauty of what poetry can bring.
“ ‘She Lives On,’ was a celebration of Kittitas Valley women’s history. It’s about connecting the present to the past. The Crown of Sonnets itself is a form that connects one to another.”
In keeping with the March theme of Women’s History Month, the poets themselves were women. Seven poets stood in descending order from the top of the stairs to the bottom rung, passing the microphone upward as each sonnet tied to the next.
Katherine Camarata (Ida Nason Aronica), Sarita Dasgupta (Donna Nylander), Nan Doolittle (Ethel Craven), Rachel Page (Cory Eberhart), Marie Marchand (Irene Rinehart) Katharine Whitcomb (Sarah Spurgeon) and Maya Jewell Zeller (Leta May and Clareta Olmstead-Smith) shared their spoken word to a capacity audience that filled the main gallery and mezzanine.
“Mom would be pretty embarrassed because she was kind of a quiet person,” Ida Nason Aronica’s son Allen said with a smile. “But she’d be honored, and later on she’d appreciate it. It’s a good thing she’s included and I’m sure she would have liked it.”
The Ellensburg Arts Commission and the Ellensburg Poet Laureate Program played host in special recognition to eight women from the Kittitas Valley. The Crown of Sonnets included special readings by Washington State Poet Laureate Rena Priest.
“I think it was a tremendous way to honor these women,” said local artist Jane Orleman, who was there to represent her friend Sarah Spurgeon. “These women all added to our community. My art is with a paintbrush, but I thought the (spoken word) was a nice artistic tribute. It captured the spirit of the evening.”
The night also included original work by poets Katherine Camarata, Xavier Cavazos, Sarita Dasgupta, Jampa Dorje, Nan Doolittle, Cory Eberhart, Marie Marchand, Joanna Thomas, Maya Jewell Zeller and Katharine Whitcomb.
Rodney Harwood: award-winning journalist and columnist. Lover of golf and the written word. I can be reached at rharwood@kvnews.com
{{description}}
Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.
Thank you.
Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Ends: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
