I love co-creating with other writers, artists, and organizations! Below are some past examples:
Poetry Posters
Free, downloadable broadsides you can print out, put on your wall, or share.
I started making these large-print poetry posters as a way of showcasing the words of people who participated in my poetry workshops. My inspiration came from the Broadsided project, which pairs writing and artwork on beautiful broadsides printable on standard letter-size paper.
I love how these poetry posters keep on giving! First in how featured poets felt heard and seen. And then, hanging on walls or passed out in writing workshops, empowering and inspiring new poets to put their words out into the world.
New posters coming in 2025!
Poetry Performances
In partnership with Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, I hosted five annual poetry performances. Rather than reading from a page, poets performed their work by heart and explored what that meant for their work, themselves, and their listeners.
Poet-performers included Ed Bok Lee, Sharon Chmielarz, Donte Collins, Andrea Jenkins, John Minczeski, Patricia Kirkpatrick, and Heid E. Erdrich.
Past partners and locations for
Known by Heart workshops:
- Avivo, Minneapolis
- Abiitan Mill City, Minneapolis
- BARN—Bainbridge Artisans Resource Network
- Dreamland Arts, Saint Paul
- Embodied Health, Saint Paul
- Ebenezer Senior Living, Minneapolis and Bloomington
- Metropolitan Regional Arts Council
- Neighborhood Involvement Program
- St. Paul Public Library
- St. Anthony Park Area Seniors
- Seal Hi Rise / St. Paul Public Housing Agency
- Springboard for the Arts
- The Studios of Key West
- Winona Teen Voices
- Write On, Door County
More about Known by Heart
My first Known by Heart activities were funded by a 2011 Minnesota State Arts Board grant. At the time, I was exploring memory, both as a tool in presenting my own work and as a theme in my work, particularly in poems about my father and his evolving dementia and memory loss.
That project led me into teaching in community settings and to the poetry performance partnership with Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library.
Starting in 2013, I began to offer workshops, mainly for older adults and others living with disabilities, fostering creativity, healing, and art-making across the lifespan.
In 2015, I founded an informal arts group to extend this work, and repurposed the Known by Heart name. Learn about more past Known by Heart activities in the archived blog, newsletter, and events list.
Naomi Cohn 