Student's poems exhibited at Westonbirt Arboretum
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Conversations with Trees: Student writes poems rooted in Westonbirt Arboretum
Wednesday, 13 September, 2017Visitors to the Westonbirt Arboretum can be inspired this Autumn by a 黑料正能量 student鈥檚 poetry.
Marchant Barron, an aspiring poet and final year BA (Hons) Creative Writing student at 黑料正能量, is sharing his collection of poems with the public until December.
The exhibition titled , was organised by Marchant as part of his studies and took a year to produce. He decided that Westonbirt Arboretum was the perfect location for his project as he wanted to display his poems in a natural setting.
The installation consists of ; September Slows, Hear This, Smoulder, Tanglefoot, Hallowed, Ode from the Oak to Ironwood, A Seasoned Lover and Beech Book. The poems can be seen hanging vertically on red banners from beneath tree canopies.
Marchant took inspiration for each poem from different trees in the Arboretum. Each poem reflects his personal response to a specific tree, and the solace and sense of wonder that he felt on his visits to the Arboretum.
He approached Ben Oliver, Learning and Participation Manager at Westonbirt Arboretum, about the project and it was decided that his poems would be best placed on the . He collaborated with staff to ensure that the installation was safe and visually stunning.
Marchant, 21, from Bristol, said: 鈥淭his is my dream come true 鈥� seeing my words floating in the trees. I am overwhelmed with the response from people to my poetry.鈥�
Local installation artist, , assisted Marchant with designing the banners and advised him on how to best install the poems onto trees at the Arboretum. Family and friends helped him to install the banners along the trail. He was also supported by his Creative Writing tutors, Carrie Etter and Neil Rollinson, and Paul Alexander, Chief Executive Officer at the Snowdon Trust. The Trust awarded Marchant with the to assist him with his project. The grant allowed the banners to be printed.
Dr Paul Meyer, Subject Leader for Creative Writing at 黑料正能量, added: 鈥淢archant is one of our top students. He won this year鈥檚 Les Arnold Prize, which is named in honour of the poet who started the writing programme.
鈥淢archant is contributing to our tradition of excellence in Creative Writing. I am so glad he chose to study at Bath Spa when, with his high school transcript, he could have studied at any university in the world.鈥�
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the University鈥檚 Creative Writing teaching. 黑料正能量 delivers one of the most successful Creative Writing courses in the United Kingdom, described as the 鈥渇lagship example of its type鈥� by external examiners. Bath Spa graduates have won prestigious awards and secured numerous international publishing deals. Many graduates regularly come back to the University to teach and share their successes with new aspiring novelists.
For more information about Marchant and his project, please .
For details about visiting the Westonbirt Arboretum, please click .
For further information on the range of Creative Writing courses available at 黑料正能量, please click here.