April 2018 Monthly Meeting

In honor of National Poetry Month, Christian J. Collier led a workshop on methods of bringing poems to life. He applied some performance poetry techniques to traditional poetry-writing advice like "make it sensory."
Chris is a 2015 Loft Spoken Word Immersion Fellow. This program is made possible by a major grant from the Surdna Foundation and by the generous support of Loft members.
He is an accomplished artist, public speaker, and educator who has shared the stage with several members of HBO’s Def Poetry cast, legendary poet and activist Ishmael Reed, Grammy-nominated artist Minton Sparks, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame members The Impressions, etc. Mr. Collier has also given two TEDx Talks and been featured on an episode of TNT’s State Farm Neighborhood Sessions with multi-platinum recording artist Usher Raymond. Repeatedly, he has been featured on the IndieFeed Performance Poetry Channel, which prides itself on featuring the best spoken word artists working today. Some of his works have been featured on The Guardian, and appear in The American Journal of Poetry, The Seven Hills Review, TAYO Literary Magazine, Dirty Chai, Freeze Ray, Voicemail Poems, Calliope Magazine, and The Origami Poetry Project to name a few. His 2009 chapbook Ghosts & Echoes has sold hundreds of copies independently solely off the strength of readings and live performances.
Chris is a 2015 Loft Spoken Word Immersion Fellow. This program is made possible by a major grant from the Surdna Foundation and by the generous support of Loft members.
He is an accomplished artist, public speaker, and educator who has shared the stage with several members of HBO’s Def Poetry cast, legendary poet and activist Ishmael Reed, Grammy-nominated artist Minton Sparks, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame members The Impressions, etc. Mr. Collier has also given two TEDx Talks and been featured on an episode of TNT’s State Farm Neighborhood Sessions with multi-platinum recording artist Usher Raymond. Repeatedly, he has been featured on the IndieFeed Performance Poetry Channel, which prides itself on featuring the best spoken word artists working today. Some of his works have been featured on The Guardian, and appear in The American Journal of Poetry, The Seven Hills Review, TAYO Literary Magazine, Dirty Chai, Freeze Ray, Voicemail Poems, Calliope Magazine, and The Origami Poetry Project to name a few. His 2009 chapbook Ghosts & Echoes has sold hundreds of copies independently solely off the strength of readings and live performances.