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Patricia Smith

パトリシア・スミス

Patricia Smith

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1955 （Chicago, Illinois, U.S.）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Religion
Baptist (upbringing)
Residence History
Chicago → Howell, New Jersey

Career

Occupations
slam poet, spoken-word performer, playwright, poet/author, writing teacher, journalist
Active Years
1980-
Affiliations
Stonecoast MFA Program (faculty), Sierra Nevada University (MFA core faculty), Lewis Center for the Arts, Princeton University (faculty), VONA (resident), Vermont College of Fine Arts (post-graduate residency)
Influenced By
Derek Walcott (produced a one-woman play of her work), Spoken-word/slam peers and predecessors (e.g., Taylor Mali, Saul Williams)

Education

Southern Illinois University
Country: United States
Northwestern University
Country: United States

Awards

Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize
2014
Work: Shoulda Been Jimi Savannah
Organization: Academy of American Poets
Result: 受賞
Rebekah Johnson Bobbitt National Prize for Poetry
2014
Work: Shoulda Been Jimi Savannah
Organization: Library of Congress
Result: 受賞
Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award
2018
Work: Incendiary Art
Organization: Kingsley and Kate Tufts Poetry Awards
Result: 受賞
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Poetry
2018
Work: Incendiary Art
Organization: NAACP
Result: 受賞
Los Angeles Times Book Prize (Poetry)
2018
Work: Incendiary Art
Organization: Los Angeles Times
Result: 受賞
National Book Award (Finalist)
2008
Work: Blood Dazzler
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: 最終候補
National Poetry Series (winner)
2006
Work: Teahouse of the Almighty
Organization: National Poetry Series
Result: 受賞
Patterson Poetry Prize
Organization: Patterson Prize
Result: 受賞
Pushcart Prize
Organization: Pushcart Press
Result: 受賞（複数回）
Robert L. Fish Memorial Award
Organization: Mystery Writers organizations
Result: 受賞
International Literary Hall of Fame for Writers of African Descent (inducted)
2006
Organization: International Literary Hall of Fame
Result: 選出

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Incendiary Art

2016 Poetry

A collection that grapples with black bodies and racial violence, using a variety of poetic forms (prose poems, ghazals, sestinas, sonnets), anchored by reflections on the killing of Emmett Till.

race and violencememoryembodiment

Shoulda Been Jimi Savannah

2012 Poetry

A collection that addresses urban life in Chicago and Detroit, first love, Motown culture, and personal/cultural memory, praised for its emotional depth.

urban lifemusic (Motown)personal memory

Blood Dazzler

2008 Poetry

A poetry collection addressing Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath; it served as the basis for a sold-out dance/theater production.

disaster and communitylossrecovery
Adaptations
  • [Theater/dance] Blood Dazzler (stage adaptation)

Teahouse of the Almighty

2006 Poetry

A selection of free-verse poems on love, family, religion, feminism, and the role of poetry; received strong critical praise.

religionfamilyfeminism

Life According to Motown

1991 Poetry

Her first book, reflecting on growing up in Chicago in the 1960s and lessons drawn from Motown culture.

coming of agemusic (Motown)urban memory

Bibliography

  • Incendiary Art
  • Shoulda Been Jimi Savannah
  • Blood Dazzler
  • Teahouse of the Almighty
  • Close to Death
  • Big Towns, Big Talk
  • Life According to Motown
  • Africans in America
  • Janna and the Kings
  • Gotta Go Gotta Flow

Adaptations

  • One-woman play production of selected poems produced by Derek Walcott
  • Dance/theater production based on Blood Dazzler (performed at Harlem Stage, NYC)
  • Play adaptation based on Life According to Motown (staged by Company One Theater)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
performance-rooted poetic stylecolloquial and sonically attentive voiceformal experimentation (prose poems, ghazals, sestinas, sonnets)
Recurring Motifs
African-American experienceurban life (Chicago, Detroit)music (Motown)violence and lossmemory and family

Legacy

Patricia Smith is a highly regarded contemporary American poet who bridges performance and the written word. She is celebrated for multiple major poetry awards and for her dominance in slam poetry competitions; after a journalism controversy earlier in her career she rebuilt her reputation through acclaimed poetic work addressing social themes.

Academic Societies

  • Academy of American Poets (associated via awards)

In Popular Culture

  • Appearance in the documentary SlamNation (1996)

Quotes

  • I got introduced to poetry via the stage, where there isn't a place to crawl behind the language.
    Source: Interview with Tony Leuzzi (Xavier Review, 2008) (2008)

Trivia

  • Four-time individual National Poetry Slam champion (one of the most successful poets in slam competition).
  • In the 1990s a fabrication controversy at The Boston Globe led to the newspaper returning an award; she later rebuilt her career as a poet.
  • Married to journalist and author Bruce DeSilva.
  • Has taught at the Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University and other MFA programs.