Poetry of Publishing is a series of collaborations between first year Graphic Design students and six Nottingham poets; Gregory Woods, Di Slaney, Sue Dymoke, Trevor Wright, Lytisha Tunbridge and Hazel Warren who responded to an open call by the university’s strategic partner, Nottingham UNESCO City of Literature.
The project challenged students to interpret, manipulate, and subvert the content of 30 contemporary poems to create a new publication. Although it had to be something ‘publishable’, the brief was open to interpretation, giving students creative freedom to choose which methods to employ. From illustration and typography to photography and film, students each used a different approach to create personal and unique visions inspired by the poems.
At the start of the project in mid-March, contributing poets were invited to attend an event at the university. However, the Covid-19 outbreak meant that new safety measures were put in place, and the live event was replaced with recorded interviews with the poets. Workshops and activities also had to be reworked for online delivery. Despite these unprecedented circumstances, the students rose to the challenge and adapted to a new way of working, as the project went digital.
The Graphic Design students valued the collaborative nature of the project, and the chance to explore their work in print.
Ella Eldridge, 19, said: “Working during lockdown was a creative challenge due to the lack of stability, resources and sometimes motivation. However, I found the combination of tutorials and design blogs helped me to see the project through to the end. Moreover, it was great to experience working with the poets as it gave an insight into the real design world.”
A specially commissioned online gallery, Poetry of Publishing, has now been created to showcase the students’ final designs, allowing the work to be shared publicly and with the poets themselves.
Module leaders Joe Pielichaty and Ellie Wild were extremely happy with the outcome of this collaborative project. They said: “The standard of thinking, experimentation, crafting, and production that was achieved in such restricted circumstances was nothing short of astounding.
Their outcomes are as much a testament to the students’ ongoing tenacity as they are to their creativity, ingenuity and love of local poetry.”
To explore the students’ work visit https://poetryofpublishing.car…