Poets paint images with words; Artists tell stories with color; together they enrich our community!
ART EMBRACES POETRY | 3 Saturdays in 2025...
Saturday, August 23rd | Anything Goes!
Town Hall Theatre
3535 School Street, Lafayette, CA
Lamorinda Arts Council presents local poets and an artist presenting their work from 1:30 to 2:30 in the Town Hall Main Theatre. From 2:30 to 3:30 enjoy a debut event, “3 Min. Teen Open Mic” hosted by LAC’s Youth Ambassador Program founders Emma Wong, Emily Jingzhu Bennett and Sharanya Roy. Teens who have something to say are invited to show up and use the mic on the Main Stage.
Local poets Alfred Garrotto, Phil Scimonelli, Claire Kwon and Elise Dirlam Ching read their work celebrating National Poetry Month at the Lamorinda Art Council's April 5 Art Embraces Poetry program. Local artist Aerin Haro exhibited and spoke about her mixed media art. From 2:30 to 3:30 pm we hosted an All Topics 3 Min Open Mic.
Lamorinda Arts Council presented poets Harleen Serai who is an MFA, Poetry candidate at Saint mary's College; Linda Riebel of Lafayette who read poems ranging in topics from a throbbing heartbeat to a grammar narc; Jennifer Granat who in addition to being a poet is an artist and writer, read from a tryptic about her Nana; and author Joanna Choi Kalbus read from "The Boat Not Taken," about fleeing from war torn North Korea. Featured artist Ellen Reintjes spoke about her series of portraits of her mother spanning 70 years. All these presenters helped us celebrate Girls + Women Influencers for Women's History Month. An All Topics 3 Min Open Mic ran from 2:30 to 3:30 PM followed the presentations. During the No Host After Party in the Lobby artists, poets and guests mingled and enjoyed conversations about the program.
2024 Artists and Poets included: Senait Mesfin-Piccigallo (poet), PeaceDancer Khalilah Ramirez, Dorothy "Dot" Edwards (poet), Bushra Gil (artist), Ophelia Turner (poet), Avery Burns (poet), Lori Lynne Armstrong (poet), Al Garrontto (poet), Salman Ansari (poet), Michael Robinson (painter), Gail Entrekin (poet), Jim Gunshinan (poet), Linda Riebel (poet), Emily Jingzhu Bennett (artist).
Questions? Contact us here.
Our literary programming, including Art Embraces Poetry, is funded by a generous grant from the Community Foundation of Lafayette.
