THE POETRY PLACE

A Place Apart will occupy a quiet corner in the unfinished Memorial Chapel. Here we will share poems, stories and music that connects us to the natural world, focusing on the uniqueness of places and taking delight in being alive in the here and now.

On Friday night Trio Verso will open the programme in A Place Apart with Brian Johnstone reading his poetry to improvised music from Richard Ingham (saxophone, bass clarinet) and Louise Major (double bass). Poets who will be reading and discussing their work, as well as leading walks with words through the woods and workshops over the weekend include:

Anna Crowe: poet, translator and creative writing tutor living in St. Andrews. Anna co-founded StAnza, the St Andrews poetry festival, and was Artistic Director for its first seven years. Her published work includes Punk with Dulcimer (Peterloo, 2005).

Mandy Haggith: an extraordinarily talented writer of poetry, prose and fiction as well as being a "cybercrofter" in Assynt and passionate campaigner on behalf of the worlds forests. Her first poetry collection, Castings (Two Ravens Press 2007) was widely acclaimed.

Brian Johnstone: co-founder and until this year Festival Director of StAnza. Brian will be reading from his new collection of poems, The Book of Belongings (Arc, 2009), as well as performing with Trio Verso on Friday night.

Gerry Loose: a "slow-moving nomad", lives in Glasgow, writes poems and makes gardens; his poems are as often found planted in gardens as on the printed page. His most recent collection of poems is that person himself (Shearsman 2009), and he is currently working on a book about Sunart oakwoods, Ardnamurchan.

Tessa Ransford: Founder/Director of the Scottish Poetry Library, Tessa has numerous published poetry collections, including Not Just Moonshine (Luath, 2008). She is a freelance poetry adviser and practitioner, with special interest in relating poetry to those working creatively in other fields. In the adjacent Lapidus poetry tent there will be workshops on writing poetry of place - culminating each day with open-mic sessions in the chapel for new poets to read their work.

Lapidus will also be hosting family workshops as part of REMIND MIND REMEMBER, a collaborative project between sculptor/letter carver Ian Newton, poet/ecologist Larry Butler with support from geology professor Stuart Haszeldene. making site specific installations, living sculptures and poems (warnings, tributes and epitaphs):
Reminding all of us what we can do to prevent further destruction of our biodiversity with artworks about change, loss and new life - listening to the messages of creatures and plants
Minding together what survives, even thrives in this place, and protecting endangered plants and animals by encouraging new habitats
Remembering to celebrate what is no longer - commemorating all forms of extinct species, and grieving what we have lost and why.