I am beyond thrilled to be included in this exhibition.. My poem “validation” is featured in the inaugural Queens Poets & Poems Exhibit at Queens Borough Hall for National Poetry Month, April 1st-31st, 2012. The exhibition is curated by the Queens Poet Laureate through 2013, Paolo Javier. Paolo – thank you SO MUCH!

The show is free and open to the public during regular work hours.

Here’s the address:

Office of the President, Borough of Queens
120-55 Queens Boulevard Rm. 223
Kew Gardens, NY 11424
(E, F to Union Turnpike/Kew Gardens stop)

Here’s a list of the participating poets and poems:

Lorraine Schein (Sunnyside), “Dreambox”
Norman Stock (Jackson Heights), “How to Become the Poet Laureate of Queens”
Jill Hoffman (Forest Hills), “10. Demeter”
Arlene Gay Levine (Forest Hills), “The Road”
Franklin Bruno (Jackson Heights), “Occupation”
Mark Lamoureux (Astoria), “Mysterons”
Matthew Hittinger (Astoria), “Golden Circe Sips Her Coffee”
Rigoberto Gonzales (Forest Hills), “Point It Out”
Hassanal Abdullah (Jackson Heights), “My Grave”
Rajiv Mohabir (Woodhaven), “The River-Son’s Betrayal”
Vicky Byron (Richmond Hill), “Sketch Artist”
John Rice (College Point), “Outside the Bar in Sunnyside, Queens”
Audrey Dimola (Long Island City), “Validation”
Maria Terrone (Jackson Heights), “The One Chosen”
Andrés Castro (Kew Gardens), “Ignorance Is Not Bliss In Jordan”
Nicos Alexiou (Astoria), “Astoria”
Kate Donohue (Astoria), “What With the Blue Flames Leaping Obediently From the Lungs of a Gas Stove”
Angelica Harris (Glendale), “Taurus Rising”
HaaJar “Hajee” Johnson (Astoria), “Journey Life”
Kevin Michael Wehle (Flushing), “The Boogeyman’s Accomplices”

I’m going to echo Paolo’s sentiment and repost: “Many thanks to Terri Osborne, Cultural Affairs Coordinator at the Boro Prez Office, for spearheading this new and vital initiative to lend greater visibility to contemporary poetry in Queens.”

Can’t wait to see it!

Read my poem “validation” HERE. The subject is something very close to my heart so I’m even more excited that it was chosen for this exhibition.