POEMS/PSALMS - ROCHFORD STREET

Mark Roberts of Rochford Street Review

Rochford Street Review has very kindly published the full speech presented by Sarah St Vincent Welch during her Calcutta/Kolkata style launch of my Bitumen Psalms at The Shop Gallery in Glebe. This was part of the Flying Islands 2025 group launch event. Hazel Hall's review will appear over the next week or two. Greatly appreciated.

Rochford Street Review is a wonderful selection of reviews, poems, essays, interviews and visual arts. The striking print After the Fires 3 in the latest issue is by featured artist Gary Shinfield. You should follow. 

Have I mentioned I’ll be reading with Ali Whitelock at Smith’s on Monday, June 9? It’s a 7 pm start and includes a great open mike. More here.

Photo: Mark Roberts, editor, is pictured at the 2025 Flying Islands event in 

The Shop Gallery, Glebe. That all happened amongst art by Brian Purcell.

CRACKER DUO OF POETS

Yes I’m going to harp on about it! Expecting a cracking good night on Monday — featured with Ali Whitelock at That Poetry Thing That is on at Smith’s on Mondays. Starts 7. 00 pm with an open mike which is always a fabulous diversity of voices. 

Ali Whitelock is known for her ingenious use of metaphor and her gobsmacking word warp and flair. Originally from Glasgow, she spends her days writing, mentoring, fantasising about living in a windswept cottage in winter on the Isle of Skye and shouting at the telly when the Liberals come on. Meanwhile Ali and her French, chain-smoking husband have as of recently settled into living in an old church in Yass which at least, like Canberra, has a good winter — often cold, foggy and … windswept. Click here for Ali's books including The Lactic Acid in the Calves of Your Despair (Wakefield Press).

I’m reading from my latest collection Bitumen Psalms (Flying Islands) which includes a long sequence of tiny poems (haikuish) mainly from along the Hume Highway. Another celebration of place. Smaller sequences touch on caring roles and poke at Tai Chi and other things … no I mean it … there’s a section called Things. Fitting for That Poetry Thing don’t you think. I’ll also read from The Wear of my Face (Spinifex Press) which has a broad range of topics, some of them quite topical. Not sure what I’ll pick yet.

Hope to see you Monday evening, Smith's Alternative, 76 Alinga Street, Canberra City. By the way there is a lot of work going on in the city — traffic changes and detours. Allow extra time to find your way about. Or park in the multi-storey or shopping centre car parks and walk through.

POETRY FESTIVITIES

Poets in the Newcastle Writers Festival —
here I am with Bronwyn Rodden (right).

Countdown 

And action!

Had a fantastic weekend at the Newcastle Writers Festival earlier this month. Another group launch/reading from Flying Islands new releases and an opportunity to see long-term poet friends and colleagues in person instead of mainly on Facebook. Pictured on standby above: Maggie Ball (MC), Nathanael O'Reilly (left), David Adès, Tug Dumbly, Brian Purcell, the empty chair (me), Bronwyn Rodden — and Maggie in action. All the poets were sensational — the audience seemed to agree.

My next readings include: 

•National Folk Festival over Easter with Postcards from the Sky 

•Manning Clark House April 24 — (just an informal gathering of Flying Islands poets at 5 pm and dinner) then Christopher/Kit Kelen Flying Islands Series Editor and MCH featured poet of the month 

•Yass Book Store (watch for changes there) April 26 — with Jane Baker, Victoria McGrath, Robyn Sykes, Ali Whitelock.

POETRY RAGE

Poet and co-MC Maggie Ball
launches 100 Poets

 

Poet Sarah St Vincent Welch launches
Bitumen Psalms (Kolkata/Calcutta style).
Photo: Dylan Jones

Poet and singer/songwriter Clark Gormley (left)
has a moment with co-MC Richard James Allen

So it was a raging success! A ton of Flying Islands poets, friends and supporters at The Shop Gallery in Glebe, January 26, all celebrating this year’s seven new Pocket Poetry titles, alongside Flying Islands’ first anthology 100 Poets! 

The pocket books are: Filmworks by Brian Purcell, Flower Ash by Huang Fan — translated by Josh Stenberg, The Heart’s Lush Gardens by David Adès, Separation Blues: Poems 1994-2024 by Nathanael O’Reilly, Stranded by Bronwyn Rodden, Tadpoems by Tug Dumbly and my own Bitumen Psalms. 100 Poets is edited by Brian Purcell and Flying Islands Series Editor Kit Kelen. 

Richard James Allen, poet, filmmaker, choreographer and performer was an entertaining emcee for the 2025 Pocket Poets section. The engaging Maggie Ball, poet, novelist and podcaster, launched 100 Poets and kept the lively mood going during readings by quite a number of contributing poets. 

All the launch speeches were thought provoking. A special mention to dear friend and collaborator Sarah St Vincent Welch, writer, image-maker, editor, and writing teacher. Sarah gave me a Calcutta style launch where basically every time the new book (tied with red ribbon) is held high, the whole audience applauds resoundingly. And they did. It added to the joy of this celebratory occasion. I especially enjoyed Sarah’s personal story of having to write out Psalms at school, a writing exercise she enjoyed. Very special thanks also to Dylan Jones for the book design and Kate O’Connor for the author photo. 

The readings were inspiring, amusing, enlightening. Across these new poetry titles, you will find poems on the history of great films, poems of wonder and sadness, poems of cultural or political absurdity, poems that get to the heart of the matter, travel through times and homelands, and poems that explore the strange worlds of everyday life and other complexities. 

Phyllis Perlstone reads her poem
published in 100 Poets

Visit https://flyingislandspocketpoets.com.au/product-category/2025/ to see these books and their striking covers. Click on each cover image for full information (and from where I borrowed descriptions in the above paragraph). Subscribe to receive all of this year’s new releases and a bonus two Flying Islands books. Alternatively, you can just order individual titles. 

A bonus for us all was sharing the space with poet, musician and artist Brian Purcell’s solo exhibition Floodlands. Whether tantalising waterscape or delectable still life, Brian’s paintings move with colour and vitality. You can see more here: https://brianpurcell.art Of course we all owe enormous thanks to The Shop Gallery owners, poet and artist Anna Couani and sculptor Hilik Mirankar.

At The Shop Gallery:
Floodplains exhibition by Brian Purcell;
Pocket Poetry sales on the pavement

Poet and exhibiting artist Brian Purcell
— also co-editor of 100 Poets

POETRY & PLACE = JOY

 

[Riff] 

Unbelonging 

Place. ‘Mind your place.’ It’s not your place. It’s not my place. A place at the table. Stay in your place. Do you have a place? Give up your place. 

Place. New place old place lived in that place moved to this place moved from place to place settled in this place are you settled will you ever settle? Settled. Settler! 

Belonging. Not belonging. Unbelonging. 

Longing. 

This place. That place. No place.

Displaced. 

Place through the eyes of longing. Joy of place. 

Place through the eyes of unbelonging, longing. Poetry. Poetry of place. Joy of place. 

That’s the one. Joy of place. Poetry. Place poems. Share the joy. Here’s one. Hope you enjoy. 

grasses breezy 

land alive with skitter and crawl 

wedge-tails circling the rising air 

smaller raptors stooping 

dropping through sky 

Excerpt from the title sequence in my latest collection 

Bitumen Psalms (RRP $12.50 Flying Islands Pocket Poets, 2024/25)

One of eight new FIPP titles

Watch for readings

ST BRIGID PATRONESS OF POETRY

 

Pleased to be reading with Irish-Australian poets Moya Pacey and Rosa O'Kane at the Canberra Irish Club on Saturday. We are celebrating St Brigid patron saint for poetry, learning, healing, protection, blacksmithing, livestock, and dairy production. Also Celtic Goddess for the same.

There's a great read at Image — 'Brigid: The original female trailblazer' — where you will learn that Brigid liberated women from slave and bondswomen roles, had healing powers, was a master brewer of ale and as Abbess managed 15000 nuns. Ireland only recently gave her a public holiday of her own putting her finally on the same level as St Patrick!

Anyway come along on Saturday at 1.00 pm — there'll be poetry, singing, dancing and stew! And I'll show you my new book Bitumen Psalms.

POEMS ABOUT UNBELONGING

In Bitumen Psalms you follow the Hume Highway from the inland Yass region (NSW) where Lizz Murphy lives, all the way to Wollongong on the South Coast where she used to live. Lizz often writes about place and belonging. In the long title sequence of micro and haiku-ish poems, she is all too aware of her unbelonging — always just passing through. 

In these pinch-size poems she attempts to engage more closely:

grasses breezy 

land alive with skitter and crawl 

wedge-tails circling the rising air 

There are also glimpses of her own patch in the village of Binalong, through Tai Chi, her other passion.

Raising arms (six times) 

Mt Bobbara becomes golden 

blue shadowstreak  each rock 

inscribed on the horizon 

 — from Opening the Heart

There's a photo of Mt Bobbara at dusk in another recent post — here.

So that's a bit of the blurb. There's more on the Flying Islands Pocket Poets website here: https://flyingislandspocketpoets.com.au/?s=murphy My thanks to Dylan Jones who designed Bitumen Psalms and was a wonderful collaborator.

You can also read about the other seven new titles. Order Bitumen Psalms (RRP $12.50, pb; $6.25, e-book) from the website or better still subscribe to receive all eight plus a couple of extra collections.

LAUNCHING THE YEAR WITH POETRY

Nothing like the launch of a new collection at the start of the year to get you back into it. Bitumen Psalms will be launched with six other Flying Islands Pocket Poets collections and their special anthology 100 Poets on Sunday January 26 (yes Australia/Survival Day) at 2 pm in The Shop Gallery, 112 Glebe Point Road, Glebe. All welcome. 

I am thrilled that long-time friend and stunning writer Sarah St Vincent Welch has agreed to do the honours. Her words as always will be eloquent and thoughtful. Sarah was one of my readers at manuscript stage offering fabulous support and advice. Dylan Jones, designer and photographer did an excellent job of typesetting and designing Bitumen Psalms and was also a dream to work with. Looking forward to the road trip to Sydney with this talented team. Forever grateful. 

Please see the invitation above for all the new books. The other 2025 Flying Islands Pocket Poets are David Adès, Tug Dumbly, Huang Fan translated by John Stenberg, Nathanael O’Reilly, Brian Purcell, Bronwyn Rodden. The 100 Poets anthology is edited by Brian Purcell and Kit Kelen. RRP $12.50 pb; $6.25 e-book. Buy the books on the day or order online. Support Flying Islands Pocket Poets by subscribing. 

These new releases will also be launched as a group at the Newcastle Writers Festival in April. Watch for various individual launches and events in between.

COMING BACK TO IT

Coming back to it.  Finding that the keyboard tray in this gifted desk offers a perfect space just under the laptop for scribbling research in a journal. Finding the decorative letter opener waiting with its sparkling faux gemstones and the marcasite butterfly – surprisingly ergonomic — and remembering the dear poet who chose this farewell present. Also remembering that when I open letters (invoices in!) I forget that I have a letter opener. I love letter openers. Sitting in the room at the front of the house reclaiming its ‘writing room’ status and recalling the view of the tracks just as the CountryLink train flashes passed. Thinking of the passengers on their way to Melbourne and reminding myself I always get directions wrong. So. Edit: Sydney. Then. Catching the sunset. And Venus I think. Next. Try catching poems.

My Poetry — Online & On Air

 

Well this quick cut & paste is a bit off the planet! I'll be back asap to reintroduce more links etc.

In the processing of addressing this issue now — you can also GO TO THIS LINK ON THE FABULOUS SPINIFEX PRESS FOR A RANGE OF PRINT REVIEWS & VIDS INCLUDING THE WEAR OF MY FACE LAUNCH 

Online — video and Zoom

2023

Poetry: The Indelible Stencil - roving poetry performance Boorowa as part of Hilltops arts trail. 

It’s All Connected (Spinifex Press, March) online launch 

2022 

Regeneration Roadtrip - a Navigate Arts multi-arts interactive journey: Bitumen Psalms (excerpt from title poem of a forthcoming collection) Stories from the Studio - Southern Tablelands Arts 

2021 

3 CR Spoken Word Lizz Murphy talks to Di Cousins about The Wear of my Face ArtSound FM - Poetry on the Radio: Scintillate from The Wear of my Face (Spinifex Press 2021) 

Book Launch of The Wear of my Face (Spinifex Press 2021) 

The Wear of my Face — reading selected poems

International Page and Stage a Community Arts Partnership (CAP) project — Rites of Women from Opposite Ends of the Earth with Marion Clarke (Northern Ireland), Amy Louise Wyatt (Northern Ireland), Lizz Murphy (Australia), Kiri Piahana-Wong (New Zealand) and Makyla Curtis (New Zealand) 

 

Irish Poetry Reading Archive — James Joyce Library UCD: 

A Woman’s Work (after Jenni Kemarre Martiniello) from The Wear of my Face (Spinifex Press 2021) The Weight of Tomatoes from Two Lips went Shopping (Spinifex Press 2000) 

$600 from Six Hundred Dollars (PressPress) Departure from Stop your Cryin (Island Press) Felt from The Wear of my Face (Spinifex Press 2021) 

Out of the White from Walk the Wildly (Picaro/Ginninderra) 

Brown Hills from Two Lips went Shopping (Spinifex Press 2000) 

Syria’s Children from The Wear of my Face (Spinifex Press 2021) 

 

2020 

Association for the Study of Australian Literature (ASAL) Conference - ASAL 2020 (Virtual} - Poetry Reading #3 July 2, 2020: Susan Hawthorne with Merlinda Bobis, berni jansson, Robyn Rowland, Patricia Sykes and Lizz Murphy 

Online interviews: 

2021 

Belfast Telegraph - ‘Place is belonging and writing about place can be a search for belonging' (October 16). 

The Monthly – Interview with Gordon Hewitt (November 4} 

3CR Spoken Word – interview with Di Cousins 

Online reviews - The Wear of my Face: 

2021 

The Canberra Times – by Penelope Layland Social Alternatives – by Sarah Jane Whiteley Verity La – by Hazel Hall

GRAND POETRY INDEED SATURDAY FEB 3

Well here we are the day after St Brigid’s Day — how many Brigid’s crosses did you weave? Me? None. But I’ve got myself ready for a celebratory luncheon at the Canberra Irish Club in Weston Creek tomorrow, Saturday, February 3. 

It’s a program of dance, music, song and poetry and it’s going to be fabulous. The four poets are myself, Jenni Kemarre Martiniello, Moya Pacey and Kimberly Williams. We are Irish or have a bit of the Irish in us and we all have published rather grand poetry, if I do say so myself. 

I’ve also watched the quite fascinating show Finding Brigid broadcast by RTE. Siobhán McSweeney — y’know — the droll nun in Derry Girls — goes searching for the real St Brigid. I encourage you to visit: https://www.rte.ie/player/movie/finding-brigid/326119208110 

Brigid is more than a good match for St Patrick and now she too has her own public holiday in Ireland. In contemporary Ireland, St Brigid’s Day is increasingly used to celebrate the successes and achievements of women. I know this is last minute, but hope to see you at the Irish Club. Here's the link: www.trybooking.com/1168634 $25 or $20 for Comhaltas members. Many thanks indeed to Mary Collier for the invitation.

RAINBOW SUITE

 

When you look out the kitchen window and see a distinctive golden glow to everything, that you can't quite describe and find yourself thinking it's the exact gold — pink-gold/brassy gold/amberish gold/slightly blood tainted gold as — and take your own word for it and dash outside and sure enough! The neighbouring land is a rainbow spot. This is possibly the longest bow I've seen stretching from neighbour on the left to neighbour on the right, some distance. I haven't heard who got the pot of gold. 

(Speaking of gold, there is bound to be a tube of paint with just the right name ... ) More views with and without in the changing light. And now for some haiku — I hope.

TEXTURED EARTH — CANBERRA TO YASS

What a great afternoon at Tyger Gallery in Yass (Saturday, October 22). Inspirational talks by four of the Canberra artists — Josie Cosgrove, Karyn Fearnside, Liz Perry, Monique van Nieuwland — on show in Textured Earth from the mainly Canberra-based group Networks Australia. 

Vivid photographic works suggesting texture and planets by multimedia artist Josie who has a passion for science and art; a close focus on banksias and the ‘placid’ natural world as a rest from her more usual political world by Karyn; a journey through the earth in layers with earth-based colourings including desert sands by Liz; and a walk through buried/composted fabrics recycled into weaving by up-cycler Monique. Stratification in so many senses. All fascinating. 

Thanks to Deborah Faeyrglenn, Networks Australia member (not in this particular group show) for drawing this exhibition to my attention.

Photo 1: Josie Cosgrove describes the creative process behind her planet series (microscopic photography, inkjet print on wooden panels with matte laminate) — and shows samples of merch which include dresses (see Josie) and bags.

Photo 2: Karyn Fearnside with Volcano Banksia and River Banksia to her left and shares the story behind her mixed media (includes ink and eucalyptus dyes) drawings also on exhibition and (Photo 3) wool and other yarn tapestry samples.

Photo 4: Liz Perry describes the stratosphere of her work Terra Firma and the range of materials used including woven raffia, paper, cellulose, wool, cotton wefts, with earth pigment dyed cottolin warp and bone.

Photo 5 & 6: Monique van Nieuwland talks about the upcycling and composting of fabrics prior to weaving Stratification II (recycled cloth as a weft, dyed naturally in mud and compost and marked with rust).

Background: Tyger is a non-profit gallery with proceeds going towards future exhibitions and fifty percent towards local charities. New exhibition: Life Needs to Move paintings by Laura Prochowski — showing until November 12.

By the bye Tyger Gallery is in the space which for many many years was the Yass Youth Centre. The last Yass Youth Worker was Binalong’s Wyatt who held the position for eight years until his premature passing (RIP), and prior to that Bill Murphy (my late husband) for eighteen years. As Wyatt would tell you himself, Bill mentored him in his early years in the position. But more to the point, Bill had an interest in music and photography and Wyatt was a graduate of the Canberra School of Art (now ANU) with a big focus on screen printing — circles. Canberra artists exhibiting in Yass — more circles and  connections. 

SPRING POETRY BINALONG TO THE ACT

Getting back into the spring of things-poetry with A Brush with Poetry today at 2 pm and That Poetry Thing tomorrow night. 

If you feel like a country drive — and the weather is perfect for it — join us at Café on Queen, Queen Street, Binalong. You’ll find us in The Hive out the back but go through the café itself and order your coffee, wine, snacks first. They will be quietly delivered to you during the reading. It’s an open mike and everyone is welcome to share a poem or two. You’ll hear an array of poetry voices and styles. Music and song also welcome. Coordinator Robyn Sykes is in demand on the festival scene and this weekend is performing at Folk by the Sea (Kiama) so we’ll be celebrating twelve years of Brush without her … maybe we can keep it going until the next one (end November).  A Brush with Poetry is a Binalong Arts Group event. Free event but donations welcome.

Well known ACT weekly event That Poetry Thing That Is On At Smith’s Every Monday sees the launch of a new anthology of poems celebrating birds. Edited by Canberra’s Penelope Layland and Lesley Lebkowicz and illustrated by Canberra artist Fenja T Ringi, The Book of Birds will be launched tomorrow night from 7 pm with readings by some of the Canberra and national contributors. 

This month’s Manning Clark House Poetry night is on Thursday 28th at 7 pm. Award winning Barkindji poet Paul Collis is the feature. His latest book (and first poetry collection) Nightmares Run like Mercury was published by Recent Work Press in 2021. Book and pay ($10) at http://www.trybookings.com/CLLHI — you can pay cash at the door ($10/5 concession).

Photo:

Taken near Binalong from moving vehicle — had to crop mirrors and thumbs. Enjoying wide open spaces after high-hedged wriggly roads in rural Ireland. Both beautiful. Apparently Paul Collis was in Ireland earlier.

EAT THE STORMS

Delighted to be included in the latest Eat the Storms podcast edited by Dublin’s Damien Donnelly, tomorrow 5 pm Irish time (2 am Australian EST). Of course, as a podcast it can be accessed any time after on most platforms. Also featured: Roisin Smith, Simon Maddrell, Roger Waldron, Isabela Basombria Hoban. Isabella’s book Rain Love Death Poets will have its Irish launch at the Ennistymon Book Town Festival Saturday August 26 - see you there Isabela. 

ANCIENT OAK PILGRIMAGE

 

The fairies oblige us but only up to a point ... We collect presents on the way. Ruby thinks my one sycamore (?) leaf and two blackberries is a bit sad compared to her colourful selection of meadow flowers and leaves. 

It’s a ten minute walk but as the forest is in full summery glamour it’s maybe a half hour or more before we find what we’re looking for. Up this track then that track. Brambles, leafy carpets, low young limbs, a bounding squirrel. Walk along that outer edge of the forest. Find another track from another direction. Peer into the forest for the distinctive shape, peer in for the surrounding pole markers. Google Maps telling us we are one minute away every time we check. Aroona — giftless (hands and head full of clues and phone maps) — eventually picks a lime green leaf. Bingo (the fairies are happy). Before us, the Belvoir Oak! Part of Ireland’s living history. All the more magnificent for its ageing. (500 years.) The front half of its eight metre girth broken away, the remaining half carved and etched, cloaked with lichen, ivy and ferns — AND — I’ve just read — a rare fungus. It’s thick foliage surprises me — I thought it was mostly beyond that. There are new acorns.

 

Thank you fairies — but you did it again. Sent us in the wrong direction afterwards, again — tampered with Google Maps, again — teased us with incorrect advice from walkers, again. Brought us out at the lock gates this time, yet another half hour from the entrance we used. At last, sound advice from extremely fit extremely sweaty forest runners. (The trainer can run the forest in the dark!) We are confident. Still somehow go slightly off course. At least it’s a main road this time. Wth a hotel. Coffee, chips … taxi to our car …

 

Our first pilgrimage to the Belvoir Oak — it only took three attempts to find the actual tree — was in January 2022, mid-winter. I’ll see if I can find that post — also our first encounter with the fairies!

 —

Maybe the fairies just wanted us to have the extra scenic views?

I said I’m fine but next time I see a log I’m sittin for a bit — and even better — a tree stump appeared! With wood creature.

 

Links that may be of interest:

Belvoir Oak nominated for Tree of the Year —

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/500-year-old-belfast-oak-in-running-for-title-of-uk-tree-of-the-year/a1624059967.html

 

https://www.itv.com/news/utv/2023-08-15/belfast-tree-nominated-for-tree-of-the-year

 

Woodland Trust — 

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/tree-of-the-year/