IN PERSON AND LIVE STREAMED

Sunday 1st October, 19:30 – 21:00 BST
Venue: The British Library
Tickets: From £5 – £10 (Concessions available)

Poets Kwame Dawes and Claudia Rankine close this year’s festival with an exploration of its theme ‘Intangible Heritage’.

This meditation on the things that make us who we are, explores the depths of custom and tradition, and the unspoken and felt elements that shape our narratives and identities.

Don’t miss out on their enlightening perspectives, experiences and reflections.

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Kwame Dawes has authored 36 books of poetry, fiction, criticism, and essays, including, most recently, Nebraska (UNP, 2019), Bivouac (Akashic Books, 2019), and City of Bones: A Testament (Northwestern, 2017). Speak from Here to There (Peepal Tree Press), co-written with Australian poet John Kinsella, appeared in 2016. He is Chancellor’s Professor of English at the University of Nebraska and a faculty member at Pacific University. Kwame is Director of the African Poetry Book Fund and Artistic Director of the Calabash International Literary Festival.

Claudia Rankine is the author of five books of poetry, including Citizen: An American Lyric and Don’t Let Me Be Lonely: An American Lyric; three plays including HELP and The White Card as well as numerous video collaborations. She is the co-editor of several anthologies including The Racial Imaginary: Writers on Race in the Life of the Mind. In 2016, Rankine co-founded The Racial Imaginary Institute (TRII). Claudia is the recipient of numerous awards and honours and is the former Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets. Claudia recently became Professor of Creative Writing at New York University.

Accessing the event

The event will take place in Pigott Theatre, The Knowledge Centre, The British Library, 96 Euston Road ,London NW1 2DB and will also be livestreamed.

About the event

Produced in association with the British Library as part of Africa Writes 2023.

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