Author Of Newly Publishes Chapbook Reads Next In Stone Canoe Writers’ Series At Delavan Art Gallery

Syracuse NY, June 23, 2009 – Donna L. Emerson, prominent literary awardee, will read from her recently published chapbook of poems and Stone Canoe Journal prose when this season’s Stone Canoe Writers’ Series concludes at the Delavan Art Gallery on July 11. The Saturday program begins at 2:00 pm.

Body Rhymes, Emerson’s second collection of poems just published by Finishing Line Press, has won praise from reviewers whose words embody the author’s talent as a skilled storyteller whose own works are “expressed with a lyricism that is richly sensual and emotionally charged.” Lynn Lyman Trombetta, author of Falling World, says that in Body Rhymes, Emerson “offers us her marvelous gift for litany, her love of imagery, and a humor that’s always pierced by the sharpest arrow of tenderness.” Trombetta adds further that, across a spectrum of wide experience and connection, Emerson’s collection of 20 poems “distinguishes itself by its fierce loyalty to this difficult, radiant world, by its compassion, and its keen eye for the truth.”

The July 11 reading marks the second time Emerson is being featured at Delavan Art Gallery. In January of this year, her poignant photography and accompanying story shared a prominent space in the gallery’s visual art display of works included in Syracuse University’s third edition of the Stone Canoe Journal, a publication that celebrates artists in Upstate New York and those who have ties to the area. Emerson lives in California, but she visits her family homestead in Bath, NY every summer. For her appearance in the Stone Canoe Writer’s Series, Emerson has included several readings about that farm, such as “Morning Ride” from Body Rhymes and “House On A Hill” from the Stone Canoe Journal.

Accomplished in other careers, Donna Emerson draws from her experiences as a college teacher and licensed clinical social worker for her photography and writing. Her photographer’s perceptive eye for detail focuses on the extraordinary in what is most familiar. As a poet, Emerson approaches her subject with a listening heart that allows readers to feel with her “a wonder at the courage she has witnessed, and inspiration at the truth she captures.”

Emerson’s most recent literary award is “Best of the Best” from the California State Poetry Society. Her poetry has appeared in journals such as So To Speak, Phoebe, and South Carolina Review, among many others. In addition to Stone Canoe, her prose has appeared in Passager, Tiny Lights and Of A Certain Age: Voices of Experience. Aside from the Delavan, Emerson’s photography has been shown in Northern California galleries, as well as in books and private collections. Body Rhyme’s cover, “Portrait of Three Roses,” is by Emerson.

Along with Emerson’s presentation on July 11, Delavan Art Gallery boasts another major happening that day. There will be a closing reception and following discussion period for “Price Check: Syracuse,” the gallery’s Wild Card Show, with curators of that show, Courtney Rile and Roslyn Esperon in attendance from noon through 5:00 pm. The gallery’s featured exhibit, “Reflections” remains up through August 1.

Delavan Art Gallery is a 3,800 square foot showcase and sales venue for fine art created by area artists. Conveniently located in downtown Syracuse at 501 West Fayette St., just a block beyond Armory Square, the gallery is free and open to the public. Off-street parking is available and the gallery is handicapped accessible. Regular Gallery hours are Thursdays and Fridays from noon – 6:00 pm, Saturdays from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm and at other times by appointment.

Author Of Newly Publishes Chapbook Reads Next In Stone Canoe Writers’ Series At Delavan Art Gallery

M3P Media LLC © 2009