Carlow University’s Madwomen Reading Series presents a reading by Richard Blanco, the fifth poet to read at a U.S. Presidential inauguration.
| University Communications | For Immediate Release |
| Drew Wilson, Director, Media Relations | September 18, 2015 |
| 412.578.2095 (phone) | |
| 412.260.6807 (cell) | |
| 412.578.2080 (fax) | |
| agwilson@carlow.edu |
Richard Blanco was the fifth poet to read at a U.S. Presidential Inauguration
Pittsburgh, Pa. – Carlow University’s Madwomen Reading Series presents a reading by award-winning poet Richard Blanco at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, October 2, 2015, in the Rosemary Heyl Theatre, located in Antonian Hall, on the Carlow campus. There will be a book table set up in the theatre lobby at 7 p.m., and a reception and book signing will follow the reading. The reading is free and open to the public.
Blanco is the fifth poet to read at a United States presidential inauguration, having read at President Barack Obama’s second inaugural in January, 2012.
In selecting Blanco as the inaugural poet, President Obama said, “Blanco’s contributions to the fields of poetry and the arts have already paved the path forward for future generations of writers.”
In addition to being the fifth inaugural poet in U.S. history, Blanco is also the youngest, first Latino, immigrant, and gay person to serve in such a role. He was recently commissioned by the State Department to write a poem for the ceremonial re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Cuba. This poem, Matters of the Sea / Cosas del Mar, will be released as a bilingual chapbook by the University of Pittsburgh Press.
Born in Madrid to Cuban-exiled parents and raised in Miami, the negotiation of cultural identity and place characterize his body of work. He is the author of the memoirs The Prince of Los Cocuyos: A Miami Childhood and For All of Us, One Today: An Inaugural Poet’s JourneyOne Today and Boston StrongLooking for the Gulf Motel, Directions to the Beach of the Dead, and City of a Hundred Fires. Currently, he is collaborating with renowned illustrator Dav Pilkey on a children’s book of his poem One Today.
Blanco’s many awards include the Agnes Starrett Poetry Prize from the University of Pittsburgh Press, the Beyond Margins Award from the PEN American Center, the Paterson Poetry Prize, and the Thom Gunn Award. A builder of cities as well as poems, Blanco holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering and an M.F.A in Creative Writing.
Blanco’s reading is sponsored by Carlow University’s English, creative writing, and women and gender studies departments.
For more information, please contact Sarah William-Devereaux at sewilliams412@carlow.edu or Jan Beatty at jpbeatty@carlow.edu.
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About Carlow University
Located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Carlow University was founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1929. Offering both undergraduate and graduate programs, Carlow University is a comprehensive master’s institution dedicated to learner-centered education at the collegiate levels and at the elementary school level in the Campus School of Carlow University.