Musings of the Artist: (Honest) Conversations with Montse Andrée

Sue William Silverman is an award-winning author of eight works of nonfiction and poetry and her most recent book is Acetylene Torch Songs: Writing True Stories to Ignite the Soul. This conversation, just like her book, is centered around writing personal narratives. We discuss putting our most vulnerable selves on the page, the fluidity of memory, writing about other people and much more. If you are a writer of memoir and personal essay– or hope to be, then this is the episode for you! This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Ross Gay is the author of four books of poetry: Against Which; Bringing the Shovel Down; Be Holding, and Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude. In addition to his poetry, Ross has released three collections of essays—The Book of Delights (a New York Times bestseller), Inciting Joy, and his newest collection, The Book of (More) Delights. This conversation, much like Ross’s work, is about joy, curiosity, belonging and caring for one another. It was, truly, one of my favorite conversations I’ve had in this space, and I’m thrilled to be able to share it. This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Gregory Orr is a poet who is known to be a master of the short, personal lyric. About Gregory, Mary Oliver wrote “He speaks now, in these many short poems, which in their entirety are really one long poem, of mysteries, of those things –emotions, situations, mind and heart states–which are beyond the definitive.” Gregory is the author of more than 10 collections of poetry. He has also published a beautiful book about lyric poetry called Poetry as Survival along with a stunning memoir, The Blessing. His latest book of poetry is Selected Books of the Beloved. In this conversation we talked about lyric poetry, anxiety, surviving trauma and the power of art to save a life. In 2018 Gregory performed a poem-and-poems-set-to-music using his “beloved” poems, featuring the Parkington Sisters. We didn't get to discuss this during our conversation but you can check it out here: The Beloved Poetry & Music | Video You can read more about Gregory on his website http://gregoryorr.net/. His wife, painter Tricia Orr's art can be found on her website, http://www.trishaorr.com/. Finally, you can listen to Gregory's conversation with Krista Tippett for the On Being podcast here. This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Philip Metres is a poet, translator and director of the Peace, Justice and Human Rights program at John Carroll University. He is the author of ten books, including Shrapnel Maps, The Sound of Listening: Poetry as Refuge and Resistance, Pictures at an Exhibition, and Sand Opera. Tomás Q. Morin is a poet, translator, and editor. His books include the collection of poems Machete and the memoir Let Me Count the Ways, as well as the poetry collections Patient Zero and A Larger Country. Both Philip and Tomás have received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, among many other honors. I met Tomás and Philip through my MFA program and knowing they are friends I thought it would be fun to be in conversation with them together! We talked all about vulnerability and art, literature as a home and companion, form enacting subject in writing and the discovery that happens in the creative process. This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Nabil Ayers is a musician, music exec and author. His memoir My Life in the Sunshine was released in June. He has also written about race and music for The New York Times, NPR, Pitchfork, Rolling Stone and GQ. As the President of Beggars Group US, Ayers has run campaigns for artists including The National, Big Thief, Grimes, Future Islands and St. Vincent. As a drummer he has performed in several bands including The Long Winters and Tommy Stinson. On his own record label, The Control...

Laura Warrell is a writer based in Los Angeles. "Sweet, Soft, Plenty Rhythm" is her first novel. The story follows a 40-year-old jazz musician and womanizer Circus Palmer–but this book centers the women in his life. It is a telling of their stories, not only his. Laura and I talk about her wonderful debut and her path to publication which is an inspiring tale of persistence. And, from a bit of a different angle, we muse on that perennial question: can we separate the art from the artist? You can find Laura's work here: https://www.laurawarrell.com/ This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Theme music is by Madisen Ward.

Ama Codjoe is a poet based in New York City. She is the author of Bluest Nude and Blood of the Air. Her poems and essays have been published in many outlets and her work has twice appeared in The Best American Poetry. Her poems often engage with visual art—especially art by Black women artists. This conversation is much about the body. On how we relate to nudity and nakedness, on being in the body as an artist and on living a fully sensual life. Ama shares about her writing process and ekphrastic poetry, and we also talk about the many ways we love outside of the mainstream definition of that word “love.” As we are moving into a new year I’m thinking about how Ama’s book Bluest Nude and this conversation I had with her has been a great gift to my life this past year. I hope that if you don't already know her work that discovering it now might bring about this same opening in you. To find out more about the Hear Me Now exhibit at The Met that Ama mentioned, she kindly passed along this link: https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2022/edgefield You can find Ama’s work here: https://www.amacodjoe.com/ This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Theme music is by Madisen Ward.

Diana Khoi Nguyen is a poet and multimedia artist. She is the author of the poetry collection, Ghost Of (Omnidawn Publishing, 2018) which was a finalist for the National Book Award and L.A. Times Book Prize. In this episode we talk about grief, complex emotions, silence, and breaking that silence through art. Note: There is a bit of static in the beginning on my end that I wasn’t aware of while recording - but it gets better! This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Ingrid Rojas Contreras is a writer who was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia and now lives in San Francisco, California. Her first book was the novel Fruit of the Drunken Tree and her most recent book is a family memoir called The Man Who Could Move Clouds. In this episode we chat all about language. On writing between two languages and cultures, and the evolution of language. We also talk about anxiety, dreams (what they can tell us about ourselves!) and much more. This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Elinor Carucci is an Israeli-American Fine Art Photographer based in New York City. Her photographs are included in the collections of The Museum of Modern Art New York, the Brooklyn Museum of Art, Houston Museum of Fine Art, among others. Her work has been published in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, W, Aperture, and many other publications. She has published four monographs: Closer, Diary of a Dancer, MOTHER and Midlife. In this episode we chat about her wonderful book Midlife and the gifts of getting older. We also discuss long term projects, and the nuances of moving between cultures and existing in two languages. This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Victoria Chang is a poet, writer and editor. Her new book of poetry is The Trees Witness Everything (2022). Her other books include Dear Memory: Letters on Writing, Silence and Grief (2021) and OBIT (2020). In this episode, we chat about collaboration in art, her wonderful and varied use of form in her writing, and her current role as poetry editor at The New York Times Magazine. We also talk about growing up between cultures, and the realization that the very things that make us different are often, as Victoria notes, our strengths. This episode was audio produced by Katie McMurran. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Melissa Febos is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir, Whip Smart, and the essay collections, Abandon Me and Girlhood. Her craft book, Body Work: The Radical Power of Personal Narrative, will be published on March 15th. In this episode, Melissa and I chat about her wonderful book Body Work. We talk about writing as a spiritual practice (and mode of discovery), learning to quiet that pesky voice saying “who cares?” while making art, and some of the other common fears and worries creatives face. This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

David Hilliard is a fine art photographer based in Boston. He received his BFA from Massachusetts College of Art, and his MFA from Yale University. Through the use of diptychs and triptychs, his beautiful work documents his life and the lives of those around him. In this episode, David talks about his life in photography and how his love of theater, film, and storytelling influence the images he makes. We also chat about the perks of middle age, on being introverted as an artist, and what it’s like when personal work becomes public. Photographers David mentioned in this episode: Cheryl St. Onge: https://cherylestonge.com/ Corinne May Botz: https://www.corinnebotz.com/ Billie Mandle: https://www.billiemandle.com/ This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Fernando A. Flores is a writer based in Austin, TX. His books include the collection Death to the Bullshit Artists of South Texas, the novel Tears of the Trufflepig, and his upcoming book is Valleyesque. In this episode, Fernando and I talked all about the ups and downs of the creative life, on living between cultures, the difference between writing vs. publishing, and the question Fernando asks that I’d like to put on a t-shirt: “Is this good for my creative brain?” This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Michael Kleber-Diggs is a poet, essayist, and literary critic. His debut poetry collection Worldly Things was published last year and he is also a contributor to the book There’s a Revolution Outside, My Love: Letters from a Crisis. Michael teaches creative writing through the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop and at colleges and high schools in Minnesota. In this conversation, Michael and I discuss his writing story, hope and sorrow, the power of mentorship to change a life and more. This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Janelle Lynch is a New York-based artist whose images reveal an inquiry into themes of connection, presence, and transcendence. She uses an 8x10-inch view camera, and her recent work is deeply informed by her training in perceptual drawing and painting. Janelle’s photographs are in many private and public collections, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the International Center of Photography, New York; and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. She has three monographs published by Radius Books: Los Jardines de México (2010); AIGA award-winning Barcelona (2013), which also features her writings; and Another Way of Looking at Love (2018). In this deeply honest conversation Janelle speaks about influence in art, her practice, her expanded view of the word “family”, and ambiguous grief. If you’d like more of this conversation there is a written interview with Janelle here. This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Jill Andrews is a musician and songwriter living in Nashville. Her EP "Ellen" was released this fall. In this episode Jill and I chat about the perils and gifts of being highly sensitive, moving out of our 30s, art-making, and more. Plus, find out the book Jill would like to put in people’s stockings! This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Daisy Hernández is a writer and cultural activist. She is the author of the award-winning memoir "A Cup of Water Under My Bed" and coeditor of "Colonize This! Young Women of Color on Today's Feminism". Her latest book is "The Kissing Bug: A True Story of an Insect, a Family and a Nation's Neglect of a Deadly Disease". In this episode, we have a wide-ranging conversation about spirituality, writing, the nuances of language and cultures and more! This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Aline Smithson is a visual artist, editor, and educator based in Los Angeles. She is also the Founder and Editor- in-Chief of Lenscratch, a daily journal on photography. In this conversation, Aline talks about her trajectory to fine art photography: from painter, to fashion editor to photographer. We discuss roadblocks and fear, long-term projects, the nuances of rejection, building community in the art world, and much more! If you are feeling a little stuck creatively then this is the episode for you. Get ready to be inspired! This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.

Emily Bernard is an author and professor. She holds a B.A. and Ph. D. in American Studies from Yale University. Her most recent book is the essay collection Black is the Body: Stories from My Grandmother’s Time, My Mother’s Time, and Mine. In this wide-ranging conversation, Emily speaks on motherhood, fear, forgiveness, rejecting shame and staying true to who you are as an artist. We also dive deep into having “the blues” - and I truly think it was the most joyful conversation on depression I’ve ever had! Emily radiates kindness, and is just a remarkable person. This episode was audio produced by Aaron Moring. Music is by Madisen Ward.