Local writers, working in a variety of genres and forms, meet with participants for two, 90-minute sessions during consecutive weeks. Each writer, inspired by a work(s) of art in the Museum’s collection, chooses the theme, format, and form for the workshop; allowing both the writers and participants maximum choice. Participants have an opportunity to also share their writing. Sign up for both sessions with one writer or sample across disciplines.

Theme
Truths we reveal by hiding: framing and metaphor in the craft of poetry

A photo, painting, or piece of writing carefully frames an idea or image, one moment in time. This writing workshop utilizes two images as inspiration for what's beyond the frame—the context of the memory we don't often recount or recall, the blurred margins that give greater meaning and depth to art. Using a series of prompts or bringing in a finished piece, this exercise focuses on writing about what the eye, or the mind's eye, does not see so easily.

Inspiration images
John Roddam Spencer, Psyche Returning from Hades (ca 1870-73), and Barbara Ess, I Am Not This Body (1990)

Meet your Instructor
Ellen O’Connell Whittet is an essayist and lecturer at UC Santa Barbara. Her work has appeared in The Atlantic,, Vulture, Paris Review, Buzzfeed, Salon, and she is the author of the memoir What You Become in Flight.