Three separate activities in celebration of Fort Atkinson resident and nationally recognized poet Lorine Niedecker’s birthday will be hosted by the Hoard Historical Museum, the organization has announced.
Activities include a bike tour, featuring locations that are of significance to Neidecker’s life and work; a discussion led by Lauren Carlson, a Niedecker Fellowship winner, and a temporary exhibition featuring the written works of female authors who also are residents of Fort Atkinson.
A synopsis of each activity follows.
‘Pedaling and Poems’
The bike tour, which will be held Saturday, May 13, is titled: “Pedaling and Poems.”
The tour will be led by Hoard Historical Museum Director Merrilee Lee, with participants leaving “Market Square,” the location of the Fort Farmers Market, 19 E. Milwaukee Ave., at 9:30 a.m. The tour will conclude at the same location.
According to information released by the museum, the tour will highlight several locations of significance to Niedecker while participants discuss her poetry.
Within the release, Lee said she was excited to share Niedecker-related history and her poems.
“Every time I read her poetry, something different stands out to me and I feel like I have a different understanding of her works,” Lee was quoted as saying in the release.
The tour will remain within the city limits of Fort Atkinson, she said, adding that while the late poet’s former home is located on Black Hawk Island, the distance between the city’s downtown area and the home’s location was deemed too far to travel as part of the tour.
The tour is free, and participant as encouraged to bring a favorite Niedecker poem, according to the release.
Carlson presentation
Also on Saturday, at 2 p.m., the museum will be hosting Carlson, the inaugural Lorine Niedecker Fellowship winner.
The museum is located at 401 Whitewater Ave., Fort Atkinson.
According to the release, the Niedecker Fellowship is the combined efforts of the “Friends of Lorine Niedecker,” group and the “Write On, Door County,” program. Along with fellowship selection, Carlson was provided with a two-week residency, which divided her time between Door County and Fort Atkinson.
Carlson, a resident of Manistee, Mich., is a poet and spiritual director. She holds a master’s degree in poetry from the Warren Wilson MFA Program for Writers, and her poetry can be found in such publications as the “Crab Creek Review,” “Salamander Magazine,” “Terrain,” “The Windhover,” and “Waxwing.” Additionally, she serves as the editor of “Tinderbox Poetry Journal,” according to the release.
In the release, Lee described Carlson as a Niedecker “fan,” who is working to share Neidecker’s work with a new generation of poets and poetry fans.
On Saturday, Carlson will be speaking about her two-week fellowship, her time writing at Write On, Door County and her week on Black Hawk Island. She also will be sharing some of her poetry written during her time in Door County and Black Hawk Island, the release stated.
The program is free and open to the public.
Fort Atkinson’s ‘women authors’
Visitors to the Hoard Museum will be treated to a temporary exhibition featuring the works of Fort Atkinson’s “women authors,” according to the release.
Along with the exhibition, visitors to the museum will find a Niedecker-themed building-wide scavenger hunt.
The exhibition, and visiting the museum, is free and open to the public.
For more information about Niedecker or poetry events scheduled as part of the weekend’s birthday celebration, visit: www.explorefortatkinson.com/write-on-the-river.
The museum is open Tuesdays through Saturdays, from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Admission is free. For more information about the museum, call: 920-397-9914, email: info@hoardMuseum.org, or visit its website: www.hoardmuseum.org.
About Niedecker
Niedecker was born May 12, 1903, according to the release, which further describes her as an “Objectivist poet who published several books of poetry and lived on Black Hawk Island outside of Fort Atkinson.”
The poet died in 1970, the release stated, noting that the Fort Atkinson community is still engaged with honoring her legacy by celebrating her life and works.
Hoard Historical Museum Director Merrilee Lee stands ready with her bike in Market Square, Fort Atkinson, to greet bike tour participants. A tour, featuring sites of significant related to poet Lorine Niedecker will be offered Saturday morning. Contributed photo.
Lauren Carlson, a Lorine Niedecker fellowship winner, will offer a presentation Saturday afternoon. Contributed photo.
Click on the arrow above to view Fort Atkinson Online’s edition of “What’s up? with Michael Clish.” This episode features an interview with Ann Engelman, the president of The Friends of Lorine Niedecker, group. The nonprofit organization works to maintain Niedecker’s poetry and legacy as a focal point in Fort Atkinson.
Correction: Amy Lutzke, Assistant Director at the Dwight Foster Public Library, notes that the mural painted at the Fort Atkinson Middle School and seen behind Michael Clish and Friends of Lorine Niedecker President Ann Engelman was painted by Erika Koivunen of ACME Ironworks and painter Amy Zaremba, who worked to create a mural and recycled metal sculpture in the main hallway of the middle school. A reference to middle school mural painters made during the interview within the video is incorrect. Fort Atkinson Online regrets the error.
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