Member Spotlight:
Gay Guard-
Chamberlin
Photograph of Gay Guard-Chamberlin by Doug Chamberlin.
June 2021
Gay Guard-Chamberlin is a Chicago poet and artist living in the redolent Devon Ave. neighborhood. Her first book of 36 poems, Red Thread Through a Rusty Needle, was released by New Wind Publishing. Gay has a Masters in Interdisciplinary Arts from Columbia College, Chicago. She has also studied and taught an array of topics, from collage and papermaking to women’s self-defense and InterPlay.
As often as possible, she and her sister in California, Anara Guard, perform their poetry together as Sibling Revelry; in April of this year they co-taught a workshop in Collaborative Poetry online for the Chicago Public Library’s celebration of Poetry Month. Gay also edits manuscripts, teaches creativity to adults, and poetry to young writers.
When did you begin writing poetry?
I’m not sure but I do remember when I was 11 or 12 and I had submitted a poem about dandelions to (the then very austere) Poetry Magazine. Read more ⟶
Mad for the Moon
I'm an unapologetic lunatic
for all things numinous
lovely and luminous
I’m fanatic for the fantastic
the phosperescence
of biolumenescence
the opalescent essence
of moonlight in refraction
the knowing reflection
inside an abalone shell
its lustrous glossy gleams
like the iridescent dreams
of miniature moons
milky-pearl planets crystal spheres
singing bowls for the waning years
Spotlight Archive
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Poets & Patrons is dedicated to
supporting poetry development
in the Chicagoland area.
Wilda Morris © 2017
Introduction
Wilda Morris © 2017
Poets & Patrons was founded in 1954. It is dedicated to supporting poetry development in the Chicagoland area. It does this through sponsoring and hosting congenial, professional workshops at The Harold Washington Library; running an annual Chicagoland Poetry Contest with modest cash awards for multiple categories; facilitating free writing workshops at area museums and outdoor venues (Write! Chicago); and an annual Awards Ceremony. Poets & Patrons is an excellent vehicle for defining your work, meeting with other fine poets for unique critiques, and exploring with others the power of well-crafted verse.
We meet in workshops four times a year and have started a series of meetings called Write! Chicago, where poets gather in a specific Chicago location and write afterwards. The workshops are designed to increase skill in writing both traditional and non-traditional poetry. We also sponsor 2 contests each year. Please see our Contest page for more information.
Unless otherwise noted, the workshops will be in room 6-N on the third floor of the Harold Washington Library, 400 S. State Street, Chicago, Illinois.
Poets & Patrons evolved from a common desire to promote a meeting ground for poets and poet enthusiasts in the Chicago area. Learn more ⟶