News and Press Releases

NYC Cultural Affairs


News and Press Releases

Advisory Commission
Artist Certification
History
Meet the Commissioner
News and Press Releases
Employment Opportunities
Annual Reports
Request Agency Logo
Accessibility
FOIL Requests
Rule Making
Contact Us

Advisory Commission

Artist Certification

History

Meet the Commissioner

News and Press Releases

Employment Opportunities

Annual Reports

Request Agency Logo

Accessibility

FOIL Requests

Rule Making

Contact Us


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 26, 2018

CONTACT: publicaffairs@culture.nyc.gov; 212-513-9323

FOR “POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY,” NEW YORK CITY ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF THE #POETWEETNYC POETRY CONTEST

Five winning #PoetweetNYC entries were selected by a panel of judges led by First Lady Chirlane McCray & published in Metro New York

NEW YORK—On Thursday, April 26, New York City hosts the annual “Poem in Your Pocket Day,” a citywide celebration that encourages all New Yorkers to appreciate poetry and highlights the importance of literacy during National Poetry Month. Throughout the month of April, organizations have held poetry events across the five boroughs, and on April 26, all New Yorkers are encouraged to carry a poem in their pocket to share with friends, family, and colleagues.

The City partnered with Metro New York to host the ninth annual #PoetweetNYC Twitter poetry contest from April 16 to April 20. @NYCulture and @NYCMayorsOffice received dozens of #PoetweetNYC submissions over the course of the week. The five winning entries were published in Metro New York on April 26. This year, in honor of both Earth Day (April 22) and the 40th anniversary of the City’s Materials for the Arts program, submissions focusing on sustainability and the local environment were encouraged. Contest winners will also receive a reusable mug, bottle, or bag supporting the GreeNYC B.Y.O. Pledge.

The panel of judges that selected this year’s winning poetweets included:

· Chirlane McCray, First Lady of New York City

· Jennifer Benka, Executive Director, Academy of American Poets

· Mark Chambers, Director, Mayor's Office of Sustainability

· Tom Finkelpearl, Commissioner, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs

· Alice Quinn, Executive Director, Poetry Society of America

“This year’s #PoetweetNYC winners capture the humor, passion, and love of language that our twin themes - Poem in Your Pocket Day and Earth Day – inspired in Tweeters from NYC and beyond,” said NYC Cultural Affairs Commissioner Tom Finkelpearl. “Congratulations to our esteemed group of Twitter poets published in today’s paper, and to everyone who entered. These pocket-sized verses would be ideal to carry around today – as would any poem that moves us to think and to celebrate poetry with our friends, family, and neighbors.”

2018 #PoetweetNYC Winners

@Dream_Yard

Winter overslept, hit snooze 3 times over.

But from glass and brick caves, the city awakes to

Daffodil sunbursts and evergreen clover.

Rub your sleepy eyes,

The cold fog replaced by crimson Hudson River skies. #PoetweetNYC

http://twitter.com/Dream_Yard/status/986960504798285824

@lenalandwill1

#PoetweetNYC I found one man's trash turned it to treasure/an aluminum crown adorns me as I run towards forever/another's empty box became my sacred trove/what they discard/I mold into art and let natural beauty rove.

http://twitter.com/lenalandwill1/status/986026115625111554

@stardogstudio

Treetop tenements

My loud neighbors, The Sparrows

(The chattering class)

john morse, 2015 #haiku

#PoetweetNYC

http://twitter.com/stardogstudio/status/986047712289173504

@ZSicardi

Compost: Your dinner’s ghost

Haunting a plant with carbon’s past

Allowing it to boast.

Take an oath to growth and cycle what we sow

Or low and behold, you’ve trifled all we know.

Almost, ever growing close

To seeing the freeing of seedlings vast

Honoring our host.

#poetweetNYC

http://twitter.com/ZSicardi/status/986436885613547520

@browngirlcu

Haiku RT for Earth Day and #PoetweetNYC

Garden = Church:

Stained earth hands divine

a host of revelations

Beckoned by the light

http://twitter.com/browngirlcu/status/986010085892730881

For additional Poem in Your Pocket Day activities, ideas, and events, follow the #PocketPoem hashtag on Twitter.