Ekphrasis

"Ekphrasis," in its most narrow sense, is a written description of a work of visual art. In its broader application, it is any art directly responding to another work in a different genre or medium. I have appropriated this term for my own use. As the natural real-life extension of both my teaching and the kind of ruminative writing I do here, just about once a month I host an artsy workshop called "Ekphrasis." I have taken the name to mean the description, or even translation, of experiences -- especially faith encounters -- into art.

Ekphrasis is a gathering of Christians who do art -- any kind of art. We have writers (poetry and prose), painters, musicians, composers, and at least one actor[ess]. Many of them are students and former students; several are teachers. We come together to share our original work and/or performances, and to critique what is shared. These meetings are always very lively, full of fantastic conversation and good, solid advice for revision and improvement. I have a high standard of quality, and attempt to impart that to the participants. If you live in Eastern PA and would like to participate, you may request an invitation. Meanwhile, I thought it would be a good idea to post a kind of report about the meetings here, especially about any cultural conversations that come up, as an extension of its influence. The first report will be my next post, which will repeat some of the introduction here. Enjoy!