2011 News and Poetry Posts 2011

 

 

Andrew’s poetry in major anthology

December 20th, 2011

Six of Andrew’s poems have been included in the new 1108 page anthology, Australian Poetry Since 1788, edited by Geoffrey Lehmann and Rober Gray and published by the University of New South Wales Press.

The rationale for the antholgy is stated on the inside jacket:

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“A good poem is one that the world can’t forget or is delighted to rediscover. This landmark anthology of Australian poetry, edited by two of Australia’s foremost poets, Geoffrey Lehmann and Robert Gray, contains such poems. It is the first of its kind for Australia and promises to become a classic.

“Included here are Australia’s major poets, and lesser-known but equally affecting ones, and all manifestations of Australian poetry since 1788, from concrete poems to prose poems, from the cerebral to the naïve, from the humorous to the confessional, and from formal to free verse. Translations of some striking Aboriginal song poems are one of the high points.

“Containing over 1000 poems from 170 Australian poets, as well as short critical biographies, this careful reevaluation of Australian poetry makes this a superb book that can be read and enjoyed over a lifetime.”

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The poems the editors selected from Andrew’s body of work are: “Four Men”; “The Grasshopper Heart”; “A Good Night”; “The Muff Bees”; “Warrior-Monk”; and “Lighting a Match”.

Retailing for $69.95, Australian Poetry Since 1788 can be purchased from bookshops, or from the publisher at: http://www.newsouthbooks.com.au/isbn/9781742232638.htm

Several reviews of Australian Poetry Since 1788 can be found here:

http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/entertainment/a/-/entertainment/10348507/book-review-australian-poetry-since-1788ForceRecrawl/

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/poetic-justice/story-e6frg8n6-1226145770823

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/arts/australian-poetry-since-1788-shows-were-not-averse-to-a-lot-of-verse/story-e6frg8nf-1226143450027

http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/1788-and-all-that-verse-20110930-1l0x4.html

Tags: News · Poems

 

 

Poems in Oct & Dec Quadrant

December 13th, 2011

Two recent issues of Quadrant have included poems by Andrew.
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“Shell Crab Haiku” was published in the October 2011 issue and is posted on the Quadrant website here: http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/10/shell-crab-haiku
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“Fisherman, Busselton Jetty” was published in the December 2011 issue and is posted on the Quadrant website here: http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/12/fisherman-busselton-jetty

Tags: Poems

 

 

Painter inspired by Andrew’s poem

July 29th, 2011

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Calabrian artist Krisztina Szabo wrote to Andrew this week stating, “Recently I have found a beautiful poem of yours that inspired me to paint a  picture. Actually I would like to post your poem on my blog”.

The poem Krisztina referred to is “Almond Blossom Haiku”. Read Andrew’s poem and view Krisztina’s paintings at: http://arteonweb.blogspot.com/2011/05/mandorlo.html

Paintings (above and below) – ALMOND BLOSSOM / MANDORLO (1 & 2) by Krisztina Szabo

Tags: News

 

 

Judges’ report on tanka competition

July 26th, 2011

The winner of the 2011 Fremantle Press Online Tanka Competition has been announced today.

Andrew was one of the judges. Wendy Jenkins was the other.

Andrew wrote the final Judges’ Report on behalf of both judges. The Report, which has been posted on the Fremantle Press blogsite (here), is reproduced below:

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Judges’  Report – Fremantle Press Online Tanka Competition

There were a number of strong  entries for the 2011 Fremantle Press Online Tanka Competition. The judges, Wendy  Jenkins and Andrew Lansdown, settled on a shortlist of three tanka and, after  some to-and-fro, selected ‘Old Flame’ by Rose van Son as the winner:

Old  Flame

 

all the  candles lit

just a  flicker now and then

the bowl  tightly fits

what is  left of you and me

murmurings  behind closed doors

        © Rose  van Son

As Wendy commented in a recent post, ‘ “Old Flame”  uses metaphor to evoke the passing of time and dying down of love’s  first flame’. Both Wendy and Andrew felt that ‘Old Flame’ had a mysterious, open  quality. It is an atmospheric poem, conveying both visual and emotional  shiftings of light and shadow.

Rose van Son handles the tanka form skilfully, keeping the  5-7-5-7-7 syllabic structure, with each line consisting of a balanced phrase,  and achieving a shift of thought after the third line. Rose also handles the  title well, making it an integral part of the tanka, and using it to focus the  reader’s perceptions. (Note: Using a title with a tanka is an acceptable  innovation—for although traditionally tanka do not have titles, they are often  accompanied by ‘headnotes’, consisting of a phrase or a sentence explaining the  poem’s setting, etc.)

Two other tanka entries deserve particular mention:  ‘Treasure’ by Annamaria Weldon and an untitled tanka by Gary Colombo De  Piazzi. [READ THE REST OF THE REPORT HERE.]

Tags: News

 

 

Andrew on YouTube

July 24th, 2011

Dr_Irina Webster recently interviewed Andrew for her Inspiring Author TV website. The 14 minute interview has now been posted on that website and on the YouTube website.

View the interview on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONZu8v85ut0&feature=player_embedded

View the interview on the Inspiring Author TV website here: http://www.inspiringauthortv.com/watch.php?id=ONZu8v85ut0

Tags: News

Poem in 2nd ed. Dear Dad anthology

July 22nd, 2011

Australian Poetry Ltd has produced a second edition  of Dear Dad, which includes a poem, “In from the Garden”, by Andrew.

Celebrating dads,  this anthology makes an attractive alternative to the average Father’s Day card. It includes fine poems about dads from poets across the country. This is the second and final edition of Dear Dad.

The second edition features a new original  cover design by Melbourne artists Gracia & Louise.

Order copies of Dear Dad from the Australian Poetry website here.

Tags: Poems

 

 

Two Poets launched and on sale!

July 21st, 2011

The Fremantle Press launch Two Poets was a great success.

The book contains Andrew’s latest collection, The Colour of Life, which consists of 97 poems, most of them previously uncollected. The other collection in the book is Songs Sul G by Kevin Gillam.

View photographs of the launching on the Fremantle Press website here.

Read sample poems from Two Poets here and here.

Fremantle Press has posted media information about Two Poets here.

Purchase Two Poets throught the Fremantle Press website here.

The West Australian newspaper has a pre-launching article about Two Poets on its website here.

Photograph (above) courtesy Fremantle Press:

Back row: Tracy Ryan (The Argument), Andrew Lansdown (Two Poets), Liana Joy Christensen (Voicebox Fremantle), Caitlin Maling (Out of the Asylum) Front row: Michael Heald (The Moving World), Georgia Richter (Fremantle Press Editorial), Kevin Gillam (Two Poets), His Worship Brad Petitt (Mayor of Fremantle), Amanda Joy (WA Poets Inc.) and John Charles Ryan (dotdotdash magazine).
Read more about Two Poets on this website here.
Tags: News

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Andrew to judge tanka competition

July 8th, 2011

Fremantle Press has invited Andrew to co-judge its tanka competition. The other judge is Wendy Jenkins. Read the competition details on the Fremantle Press blogsite here: http://www.fremantlepress.blogspot.com/

To assist entrants, Fremantle Press asked Andrew to write an overview of the tanka, its history and formal requirements. Andrew’s short essay has been posted on the Fremantle Press blogsite and is reproduced here:

 

Talking about Tanka

by Andrew Lansdown

 

The tanka is a poetic form with a long and rich history. It originated in Japan in the sixth or seventh century and quickly became that nation’s dominant poetic from. The first national poetry anthology, Man’yoshu, compiled in the eighth century, contains 4,500 poems, of which 4,200 are tanka. The 21 imperial anthologies compiled between 905 and 1439 contain over 33,600 tanka.

The Japanese word “tanka” means “short poem” or “short song”. True to its name, a tanka is a short poem consisting of five lines and 31 syllables. The lines are measured by syllables and form a pattern of 5-7-5-7-7 syllables respectively.

Arrangement of lines by syllables is a key feature of the tanka and this feature can be reproduced as effectively in the English language as in the Japanese. The 5-7-5-7-7 syllabic structure guides the phrasing of the poem and lends balance to not only the individual lines but also the poem itself. … [READ MORE – https://andrewlansdown.com/poetry/poetry-collections/consolations/]

Tags: News

 

 

Andrew interviewed in the West Australian

July 6th, 2011

Collections of verse in a human keyThe Books Editor of the West Australian newspaper, William Yeoman, interviewed Andrew and three other poets whose books will be released by Fremantle Press this week.

Excerpts of the interviews appeared in an article titled “Collections of verse sung in a human key” in the West Australian on Tuesday, 5 July (“Today” section, page 7).

Read the full article here: http://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/entertainment/a/-/arts/9786754/collections-of-verse-in-a-human-key/

Photograph (by Simon Santi for the West Australian) from left to right: Andrew Lansdown, Kevin Gillam & Michael Heald

Tags: News

 

 

Invite to the lauch of Two Poets

June 30th, 2011

Fremantle Press will launch Two Poets on Thursday 7 July.
As the title indicates, the book features the work of two poets – Andrew Lansdown and Kevin Gillam.
Each poet has contributed a 100-page collection: Andrew’s is called The Colour of Life, while Kevin’s is called Songs Sul G.
Learn more about Two Poets from the Fremantle Press website.
Two Poets will be launched at the Fremantle Arts Centre, 1 Finnerty St, Fremantle, at 6.30 pm on Thursday 7 July. Come along if you can!

Tags: News

 

 

Poem in Quadrant

June 28th, 2011

The June issue of Quadrant contains Andrew’s poem “Being Bamboo”. You can read it on the Quadrant website: https://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/6/being-bamboo

Tags: Poems

 

 

Poetry reading at Moon Cafe

June 28th, 2011

Andrew has been invited to read at the Perth Poetry Club on Saturday, 9 July. Come and hear him read poems from his latest collection, The Colour of Life in Two Poets (Fremantle Press, 2011).

The Perth Poetry Club meets at the Moon Cafe in William Street, Northbridge, on Saturdays between 2.00 – 4.00 pm.

Tags: News

 

 

Poems on bushwalking website

June 8th, 2011

Dave Osborne recently requested permission to use some of Andrew’s poems on his WalkGPS website, which is dedicated to bushwalking in the Perth (WA) region. He has now posted two of Andrew’s poems – “Desertion” and “Tanka”. To read them, follow the links in the 7 June 2011 “What’s New” entry at http://www.walkgps.com/what’s{622e8f302d1fb91812edd8a3c16e0696cd1f0e82e697b7a9609cca725af619bb}20new.htm  While there, take a cyberwalk through the site: it is quite impressive.

Tags: Poems

 

 

Five poems in Quadrant

May 18th, 2011

Quadrant magazine has published five of Andrew’s poems in its May 2011 issue. One of the five is a gunsaku, “Seven Birds”, consisting of seven tanka. The first of the seven bird tanka is written in slant (half) rhyme and reads:

 

Bird and Bull

 

The dotterel,

stalking, sniping—so little

by the muzzle

and muddy hoof of the bull

drinking at the dam’s puddle.

          © Andrew Lansdown

 

Read the remaining six tanka in “Seven Birds” on the Quadrant website: http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/5/seven-birds

Andrew’s other poems can also be read on the Quadrant website:

“In Dependence” –

http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/5/in-dependence

“Wheatbelt Willy-Willy” and “The Gravity of the Slight” –

http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/5/two-poems

“Spores” –

http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/5/seven-birds

Tags: Poems

 

 

Getting the Word Out Poetry Evening

May 11th, 2011

The City of Armadale is hosting a Getting the Word Out Poetry Evening on Tuesday 24th May, 6.30 – 8.30 pm. Andrew is one of several poets invited to read for the event. Admission is free and all are welcome.

Tags: News

 

 

Andrew to tutor Advanced Poetry Workshop

May 11th, 2011

Peter Cowan Writers’ Centre (PCWC) is running a series of 10 Advanced Poetry Workshops throughout 2011.

Andrew is one of nine professional poets invited to be a facilitator for one of the workshops. Other facilitators include Shane McCauley, Lucy Dougan, Andrew Burke and Dennis Haskell.

The Advanced Poetry Workshops are a new initiative by PCWC aimed at assisting already accomplished poets to move to a new level of achievement.

Last year, applicants had to submit five recent poems to PCWC, to be assessed by Professor Andrew Taylor (who initiated the Workshops and is also one of the facilitators). Twelve poets were chosen from over 30 applicants to attend 10 sessions on the second Saturday of each month from February to November.

Andrew’s workshop will take place on Saturday 14th May and will cover “Alternative Poetic Forms”. The synopsis of his workshop reads:

TS Eliot claimed that one poet is superior to another primarily on the basis of his or her critical faculties. Writing in traditional poetic forms supports and strengthens our critical faculties by providing objective guidance and goals. It also enhances our creativity by prompting us to think in ways that are new to us. This workshop will focus primarily on the traditional Japanese poetic forms of haiku, gunsaku, tanka and choka, all of which are conducive to contemporary descriptive, reflective and imagist poetry.

Tags: News

 

 

Post on D.S. Martin blog

May 11th, 2011

My PhotoThe Canadian poet, D.S. Martin has posted a brief biographical note about Andrew, accompanied by 3 of Andrew’s poems, on his site, Kingdom Poets. See it at: http://kingdompoets.blogspot.com/2011/05/andrew-lansdown.html

Tags: News

 

Comment by John Jenkins

April 28th, 2011

Writing in Island magazine, the Australian poet John Jenkins recently made the following observations about Andrew and his poem “Leaf and Load”:

Andrew Lansdown struck me, too, as being particularly gracious to his fellow readers. Sympathetic and sensitive, he was always interested in how a poem someone read came about, its inspiration and means; its sources and resources. He had an acute ear and was, clearly, a marvellous listener. He showed me a poem of his, “Leaf and Load”, which I have used in creative writing workshops: a model of direct observation, about a leaf which bends under the weight of a swollen droplet of water during a storm. It is simple, yet exquisite, Zen-like in its clarity and attention to detail. For a second, this poem communicates what we know to be impossible: the direct apprehension of subject matter—a leaf bowed by a rain-drop—somehow unmediated by poet, poem or language; as if artifice could simply erase itself, leaving only the presence of reality. In my opinion, Lansdown remains the doyen, in Australia, of this sort of exquisite, small-scale, nature poem. Easy to attempt, devilishly hard to do!

This is an excerpt from John Jenkins’ recollections of the Tasmanian Poetry Festival in 1994, written to celebrate the Festival’s 25th anniversary, and published as part of a multi-part essay, “Written in Silver: The Tasmanian Poetry Festival”, published in Island, No. 121, Winter 2010, pp. 50-51.

The poem, “Leaf and Load”, to which John Jenkins refers is:

Leaf and Load

 

The rain is breaking its phials

on the ornamental plum. From

the verandah I choose a leaf,

 

glistening with wet, and watch

until each vein becomes a rill

running into the midrib-river

 

and on to the leaf’s tip

where the waters gather in a blister

to weight the leaf downwards

 

by imperceptible degrees. Slipping

from the chlorophyll plane, the rain-

drop hangs from the leaf-tip

 

as a ball-bearing might hang

from the point of a magnet, held

by the barest contact between

 

curve and cusp. Like a miniature

transparent balloon tied by a child

to a tap, the drop swells,

 

bulges with a fragile elasticity,

bowing the leaf with its growing load,

until loosed at last by gravity.

 

Released, the leaf leaps up,

shudders to an easy equilibrium

in the light, impacting rain.

           © Andrew Lansdown

First published in the literary magazine Westerly, “Leaf and Load” is included in Andrew’s poetry collections The Grasshopper Heart (1991) and Birds in Mind (2009).

Tags: General

 

 

Late notice of launching

April 8th, 2011

Wombat Books has arranged a launching for Andrew’s new collection of children’s poetry, Allsorts: poetry tricks and treats.

The launching will take place at 6.30 pm on Saturday, 9th April in the hall of the Morley Baptist Church in Vera Street, Morley.

It’s late notice, but all who appreciate Andrew’s poetry are most welcome to attend.

Tags: News

 

 

New on this website – William Hart-Smith

March 20th, 2011

Many years ago Andrew published a selection of 18 poems by William Hart-Smith in Artlook magazine. That selection, along with Andrew’s introductory essay, has now been posted on this website. Read Hart-Smith’s superb poems here.

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Tags: News

 

 

New on this website: Geoff Page

March 17th, 2011

Eminent Australian poet Geoff Page has given Andrew permission to use some poetry critiques from his book, 80 Great Poems from Chaucer to Now (UNSW Press, 2006).

Six of Geoff’s critiques have been posted on this website so far. They can be read here:

T.S. Eliot, “Journey of the Magi” –

https://andrewlansdown.com/favourite-poems/ts-eliot/

Gerard Manley Hopkins, “Carrion Comfort” –

https://andrewlansdown.com/favourite-poems/gerard-manley-hopkins/

James McAuley, “Because” –

https://andrewlansdown.com/favourite-poems/james-mcauley/

William Carlos Williams, “This is Just to Say” –

https://andrewlansdown.com/favourite-poems/william-carlos-williams/

King David, “Psalm 23” –

https://andrewlansdown.com/favourite-poems/david-king-of-israel/

Les Murray, “The Mitchells” –

https://andrewlansdown.com/favourite-poems/les-murray/

 

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Also, read nine of Geoff’s poems on Andrew’s website here:

https://andrewlansdown.com/fellow-writers/geoff-page/

Tags: News

 

 

Poem in Quadrant

March 16th, 2011

Quadrant magazine has published Andrew’s gunsaku “Black” in its March 2011 issue. You can read the four-haiku sequence on the Quadrant website at http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/3/black

Tags: Poems

 

 

Forthcoming book

March 6th, 2011

Later this year, Fremantle Press will release a collection of Andrew’s poetry in a book titled Two Poets.

The other poet represented in the book is Kevin Gillam.
Each poet has contributed a 100 page collection: Andrew’s is called The Colour of Life, while Kevin’s is called Songs Sul G.
Learn more about Two Poets from the Fremantle Press website.
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Tags: News

 

 

Three haiku in Famous Reporter

March 2nd, 2011

Famous Reporter 42 has published three of Andrew’s haiku. Here’s the first one:

 

A dilemma—

two pretty women walking

opposite ways.

        © Andrew Lansdown

Tags: Poems

 

 

Poem in Captivated!

March 2nd, 2011

Captivated! has published Andrew’s poem “Beliefs about Ibises” in its February 2011 issue.

Tags: Poems

 

 

Poem in Meanjin

February 17th, 2011

Meanjin has published Andrew’s poem “Wren Haiku” in its Autumn 2011 (Vol. 70, No.1) issue.

Tags: Poems

 

 

New poetry collection for children

January 11th, 2011

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Wombat Books has published a new collection of poetry by Andrew titled Allsorts: poetry tricks and treats.

The book contains nature, narrative, fantasy and humorous poems in free verse, rhymed verse, limercks, haiku, ballads and sonnets.

The final 70 pages of Allsorts include personal observations from the poet about the poems in the collection, lesson/writing suggestions for students and aspiring poets, a comprehensive glossary of poetic forms and techniques, and a set of seven indexes identifying the poems that employ these different forms and techniques.

The collection is delightfully illustrated by the poet’s wife, Susan Lansdown.

Click here (or on the book cover) to read publication details and sample poems.

Click here to order a copy of the book.

Tags: News

 

 

Poem in Quadrant

January 8th, 2011

Quadrant magazine has published Andrew’s “Tanka about Pain” in its January-February 2011 issue. You can read the four-tanka sequence on the Quadrant website at http://www.quadrant.org.au/magazine/issue/2011/1/tanka-about-pain

Tags: Poems

 

 

 

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