The Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies is honored to welcome acclaimed poet Jane Hirshfield for an evening of poetry, conversation, and community.
Join us on May 12 at the Madison Public Library as Hirshfield reads from her latest book, The Asking: New & Selected Poems. After the reading, enjoy a discussion and audience Q & A with Heather Swan, Nelson Institute faculty affiliate and senior lecturer in the English department.
Local bookstore Mystery to Me will have copies of The Asking available for purchase, and Hirshfield will be signing books at the end of the event.
About Jane Hirshfield
Jane Hirshfield is an award-winning poet, essayist, and translator whose work has been recognized for its profound exploration of interconnectedness, ecological awareness, and the search for meaning. She is the author of 10 collections of poetry, including The Beauty, longlisted for the National Book Award, and Ledger, a powerful meditation on climate and ethical responsibility. Hirshfield has received fellowships from the Guggenheim and Rockefeller Foundations and is a chancellor emerita of the Academy of American Poets. Read more about Jane Hirshfield
A Campuswide Exchange of Art and Science
Hirshfield’s visit is part of a larger effort to connect poetry, art, and science at UW–Madison. Before the public reading, she will participate in a workshop — Listening to Nature: An Interdisciplinary Creativity Experiment — with a selected group of scientists, artists, writers, and poets, to explore how different disciplines listen to and interpret nature. Many poets and artists draw inspiration from scientific discoveries, and research shows that poetry and art can, in turn, enhance scientific creativity.
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