The Mural as Muse Poetry Exhibit

A month-long exhibit, both at AMP and online, in celebration of National Poetry Month, inspired by AMP’s “art of work” mural.

The Mural as Muse exhibit grew out of the poetry workshop of the same name, led by poet Ed Lent (Ezra Lovecroft) at AMP. This exhibit draws from the ekphrastic poetry selections composed by workshop participants in response to AMP’s mural. 

In Greek, ékphrasis means “description.” Ekphrastic writing describes a work of visual art, using the artwork as a source for personal and imaginative interpretation. In AMP’s gallery, workshop participants could take in the mural from the three viewing levels, reflect, and respond to the artwork through creative writing. 

Curated by poet Ed Lent, The Mural as Muse poetry exhibit shares examples of poems created in response to the art, showing the breadth and depth of the genre and offering inspiration. 

About Ed Lent, Exhibit Curator

In 2023, Ed Lent (Ezra Lovecroft) was a featured poet in the Connecticut Poetry Society project, “Poems Illuminating Art,” a video collection of ekphrastic poetry created for the New Britain Museum of American Art in response to works of art in the museum’s collection.

This year, Ed is bringing his passion for the intersection of art and poetry to the American Mural Project as the curator of The Mural as Muse poetry exhibit and facilitator of the workshop of the same name. The ekphrastic poetry selections on display were created in response to AMP’s five-story, collaborative mural that celebrates American workers on a grand scale.