Poetic Journeys ™ was developed by the Creative Writing Program at the University of Connecticut and was inspired by the MTA New York City Transit ’s Poetry in Motion® series.The UConn series features poems written by university students,faculty,and staff on placards designed by students in the School of Fine Arts’ Design Center.

The first poetic journey began in the fall of 2000 when graduate student Stephanie Roach’s poem “Birdlimed ” appeared on all of the campus buses. Poems have since appeared in elevators in the Homer Babbidge Library and the College of Liberal Arts building, and on postcards, mugs and t-shirts.

Poetic Journeys™ grants poets and designers a unique collaborative artistic experience. It offers the campus community and visitors a respite from their busy days and an opportunity, each time they board a bus or step into an elevator, to embark on a different kind of journey.

Project sponsors include the Creative Writing Program, the Design Center, the UConn Co-op, the UConn Transportation Department, and AETNA. Thanks to AETNA’s support, the format and production of the series was upgraded for the 2002-2003 academic year.

While this exhibit features placards from UConn’s Poetic Journeys ™ series, it also presents a representative selection of posters from poetic adventures conducted by other transit systems, including Dallas, Iowa City, London, Los Angeles, and New York. It provides an opportunity for viewers to examine and learn more about the ways in which encounters with poetry in everyday settings enable us to think about poetry while we move, rapidly or slowly, through space and time. It helps demonstrate that such encounters make us more aware of the greater world of which we are an integral part.

Dodd Center, West Corridor
Curators: Jenny Spinner and Norman Stevens

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