On Friday evening, writer Forrest Gander appeared at the Phoenix Art Museum for a special event hosted by the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing in concert with the University of Arizona Poetry Center. The Poetry Center regularly hosts events in Tucson, but made a special presentation in Phoenix, with Gander as the headliner.


Gander read from his books, as well as presented works from other poets, alongside slideshows and videos in order to provide additional visuals for those in attendance, which consisted of several dozen community members and students.


Prior to Gander's presentation, local poet Giancarlo Huapaya also delivered a reading, one of which was dedicated to Forrest Gander.


Gander's 2011 poetry collection, Core Samples from the World, was a finalist for both the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Award. His other books include two novels, As A Friend and Trace; the poetry collections Eye Against Eye, Torn Awake, Science & Steepleflower; and the essay collection Faithful Existence: Reading, Memory & Transcendence.


Gander’s essays have appeared in The Nation, The Boston Review, The New York Times Book Review and other publications. He is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Guggenheim, Howard, and Whiting Foundations, and he has received two Gertrude Stein Awards for Innovative Poetry.

You can find photos from the event here: https://flic.kr/s/aHskVomB15