Wheatgrass Books Kicks Off National Poetry Month with The Lost Words Exhibition and an Evening of Poetry & Music in the Round

Wheatgrass Books invites the community to celebrate the opening of National Poetry Month with a special evening on Thursday, April 2nd, featuring the opening reception for The Lost Words Poetry and Art Collaboration followed by a dynamic poetry and music program.

The evening begins at 5:30 pm with a reception for The Lost Words Poetry and Art Collaboration, an exhibition of original works inspired by The Lost Words by Robert Macfarlane. For this project, six poets and six visual artists were paired to create new works responding to “lost words” of nature—terms for plants, animals, landscapes, and natural phenomena that have slipped from everyday language or reflect elements of the natural world now under threat.

Artists Traci Isaly, Alayna Rasile, Carly Schoen, Meghan Purcell, Chloe Nostrant, and Ellie Wright interpret their chosen words across a range of visual media, while poets Yetta Stein, Tessa Moeckel, Kate French, Rose DeMaris, Beth Hewey, and Molly Damm contribute newly written poems created in conversation with their artistic partners. The exhibition will remain on view at Wheatgrass Books throughout National Poetry Month. At 6:30 pm, the poets will read their “Lost Word” poems aloud.

At 7 pm the celebration continues with an evening of voice, verse, and music featuring readings by poets Gabriel Furshong, Melissa Kwasny, and Montana Poet Laureate Allen Morris Jones, interwoven with original songs by Aaron Parrett.

To commemorate the evening, Aaron Parrett of Territorial Press has created a special broadside triptych featuring one poem from each participating poet.

Together, these events invite readers, writers, artists, and music lovers to gather in celebration of language, creativity, and the living world.

For more information, please contact Lisa at WheatgrassBooks@gmail.com