Poet awarded at Carnegie

Sam Hamill Lecture Carnegie Lecture Hall 4400 Forbes Ave. Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007 8… Sam Hamill Lecture Carnegie Lecture Hall 4400 Forbes Ave. Wednesday, Oct. 10, 2007 8 p.m. $12 general admission, $8 students/seniors

As if renowned poet Sam Hamill hasn’t achieved enough in his life, he will be adding yet another accomplishment to his already impressive list. At the Carnegie Lecture Hall on Wednesday, the International Poetry Forum will present Hamill with the Charity Randall Award. The award recognizes poets who place as much value on the oral presentation of their poetry as they do the writing of it.

Hamill has written more than 40 books, including 15 volumes of original poetry, four collections of literary essays and some of the most notable translations of ancient Japanese and Chinese classics of the last half-century.

He co-founded Copper Canyon Press and was editor there for 32 years. In addition, he also founded Poets Against War in 2003, compiling the largest single-themed poetry anthology in history, titled “Poets Against the War.” This compilation displays the dissent of American writers and artists and is “a cry against impeding war and a celebration of the long and rich tradition of moral opposition.”

Receiving the Charity Randall Award is just one of Hamill’s many accomplishments. He was also awarded fellowships from many organizations, including the National Endowment for the Arts, the Mellon Fund and the Guggenheim Foundation. Some of his other honors include the Stanley Lindberg Lifetime Achievement Award for Editing, the Washington Poets’ Association Lifetime Achievement in Poetry Award, and two Washington Governor’s Arts Awards.

“I think poetry – mine or anyone’s – appeals to different people for different reasons, some personal, some social, sometimes highly abstract reasons. But I have always believed that the music of poetry, the sounds and rhythms, carry us into that experience we call poetry,” Hamill said.

If poetry speaks to you, come join The International Poetry Forum as it celebrates Hamill’s poetic success this Wednesday at 8 p.m. and see him receive the Charity Randall Award. For tickets and information, call 412-621-9893 or go to www.thepoetryforum.org.