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Brian Blanchfield

ブライアン・ブランチフィールド

Buraian Buranchifirudo

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Winston-Salem (birthplace) → Tucson, Arizona → Moscow, Idaho → New York, New York

Career

Occupations
poet, essayist, professor
Active Years
2000-
Affiliations
Pratt Institute (teaching), Otis College of Art and Design (teaching), University of Montana (teaching), University of Arizona (teaching), Iowa Writers' Workshop (teaching), University of Idaho (associate professor), Fence (poetry magazine) poetry editor, PEN Poetry Series guest editor (2015–2016)

Education

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Country: United States
Reported graduate of the institution (specific degree details unclear)
Warren Wilson College
Country: United States
Reported graduate of the institution (specific degree details unclear)

Awards

James Laughlin Award
2014
Work: A Several World
Organization: Academy of American Poets
Result: 受賞
National Book Award (longlist)
2014
Work: A Several World
Category: 詩
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: ロングリスト
Whiting Award (nonfiction)
2016
Work: Proxies: Essays Near Knowing
Category: ノンフィクション
Organization: Whiting Foundation
Result: 受賞
George A. and Eliza Gardner Howard Foundation Fellowship
2015
Organization: Howard Foundation (Brown University)
Result: フェローシップ

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Not Even Then

2004 poetry

Early collection of poems exploring self, other, and fragments of daily life through linguistic experimentation.

selflanguageeveryday life

A Several World

2014 poetry

Takes its title from a 17th-century poem by Robert Herrick and examines questions of subjectivity, individuality, and the collective. Winner of the 2014 James Laughlin Award and longlisted for the National Book Award.

subjectivityindividual vs. collectivelanguage theory

Proxies: Essays Near Knowing

2016 essays

A collection of 24 single-subject essays that probe topics—from foot washing to authorship to owls—from multiple angles; concludes with a long rolling endnote titled 'Correction.'

knowledge and experiencemeditations on the everydayself-reference

Bibliography

  • Not Even Then (2004)
  • A Several World (2014)
  • Proxies: Essays Near Knowing (2016)
  • The History of Ideas, 1973-2012 (2013)
  • Correction. (2016)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
lyrical, experimental styleprose that blurs boundaries between essay and poetry
Recurring Motifs
subjectivity vs. the collectivelanguage and representationdetails of everyday life (e.g., animals, washing, manual acts)

Legacy

A prominent contemporary American poet and essayist known for award-winning work and hybrid forms. His teaching and editorial work have influenced younger writers; Proxies received critical acclaim.

Quotes

  • In each entry Blanchfield picks a subject—foot washing, authorship, owls—and examines it from several angles until the connection between metaphysical principle and lived experience suddenly crystallizes.
    Source: Publishers Weekly (review of Proxies) (2016)

Trivia

  • Hosted and produced the radio show 'Speedway and Swan' on KXCI (episodes 1–32).
  • Served as poetry editor for the magazine Fence.
  • Guest editor for the PEN Poetry Series (2015–2016).
  • Often categorized among contemporary American LGBTQ writers.