Short courses

Summary

New to writing poetry and looking for inspiration? An emerging poet looking to reinvigorate your craft? Or perhaps you enjoy visiting galleries and are looking for new ways to think and write about art? Ekphrastic poetry might provide a new way to see and respond to art. 

An ekphrastic poem is one written in response to a work of art. This may be a painting, sculpture, photograph, film or even a dance but the poem created will be entirely up to you and the way you uniquely sense and experience the piece be it online, or more traditionally, in person in a gallery. 

Join this short in-person course to visit a series of five galleries in and around Glasgow and find inspiration to start writing ekphrastic poetry. Guided by a tutor, find art pieces to write poems about at each of the locations below, which are located near public transport and publicly accessible:  

• Hunterian Art Gallery 
• Transmission 
• Kelvingrove 
• GOMA 
• Burrell Collection 

Meeting in-situ at each location, this is an ideal course for those new to writing poetry or curious to discover new ways to be inspired by public art in Glasgow. 

Over a series of approachable writing exercises, our expert tutor will explain: 

• A variety of ways to pay attention to, observe and encounter art  
• Different creative approaches and poetic techniques for writing ekphrastic poems inspired by the artworks in each location 

You will also have the chance to discuss and reflect on what you learn with other students and the tutor. 

Choose this course if you want to learn: 

• more about how to write about art in imaginative new ways using prompts that kickstart or rejuvenate your writing 
• how to write poems and apply poetic techniques  
• how to share your work and improve by editing and refining your work  
• (for those who submit for assessment) how to improve with written feedback and how to reflect on your writing process.