AHS Autumn 2018 Haiga Kukai: Seasonal Results with comments by judge Ron Moss

Leaf

 

First Place

laid to rest
her body sinking
into stone

Quendryth Young

This is an evocative haiku that struck me on the very first reading. The art of linking to an image works best if it is subtle and full of interconnections that are not immediately obvious. The mention of stone is there, but then the imagination is let loose and we wonder who, or what, the body is and how it can be sinking into stone. So many of the finest haiku take us to places we would not normally go and leave us to explore the depth of their impact. The effect is a very pleasing haiga where we can journey between the image and words and find little treasures of insight.

Continue reading “AHS Autumn 2018 Haiga Kukai: Seasonal Results with comments by judge Ron Moss”

AHS Autumn 2018 Haiga Kukai: Non Seasonal Results with comments by judge Ron Moss

Egypt_2000with-borderpixels3

 

First Place

lingering here – all my previous lives

Sheila K. Barksdale

The image I selected for the Kukai had an interesting collection of items lit by early morning sunlight in the curiosity shop window. The winning haiku connects deeply with the image without using description. Instead it immediately sets the scene for more investigation and wonder. The unusual one line construction with a break in the middle adds a visual element that focuses on the evocative “lingering here’’. The ancient symbols of everlasting life glow and glitter and are reflected in the haiku. Much is achieved with only six words and as with all good haiga we can move back and forwards between the haiku and image and discover that they create something unique together.

Continue reading “AHS Autumn 2018 Haiga Kukai: Non Seasonal Results with comments by judge Ron Moss”

Report on Bindii Japanese Genre Poetry Group meeting: 7 April 2018

Our April meeting at the Box Factory was a workshop of members’ Japanese genre poetry written in response to the challenge set last meeting of writing about animals. Other subject matter was also workshopped.  

There was a vigorous discussion of the work presented, mostly haiku, with a sprinkling of tanka/kyoka. We also explored more general principles of writing haiku.

We were pleased to welcome Jeremy Ng to his first attendance at the group. Continue reading “Report on Bindii Japanese Genre Poetry Group meeting: 7 April 2018”

Members’ News, March 2018

In this latest journey around the sun the Autumn equinox has passed for us in The Land Down Under. How deeply ingrained are our notions of up & down and of north & south that we sometimes forget there is no up or down on a sphere spinning in space. North is no more up than is South and the maps and globes that suggest otherwise are somewhat misleading. Such notions have their origins in the northern hemisphere where they have been known to embellish the N on maps and compasses with extra significance. Even today some people will tell you with certainty that a compass points north seeming to forget that a compass needle has two points not one, and following the lines of the Earth’s magnetic field these point north-south or south-north if you prefer. Now where were we, oh yes, the Autumn Kukai. Continue reading “Members’ News, March 2018”

Echoes of Flight: haiku & senryu – launch

JaneLaunch-1
Jane asking the kookaburras to quieten down while she reads.

On March 17th I had the privilege of launching Jane Williams’ new haiku collection, Echoes of Flight in the bushland setting of Waterworks Reserve, on a day of perfect autumn sunshine sharpened with the pungency of eucalyptus leaves and blossom.

Jane Williams is one of the most versatile writers I know. Her work covers a wide range of genres – poetry, short stories and writing for children – In fact, we can look forward to the release of a collection of poems for children and a children’s picture book later this year, making 2018 a trifecta of achievements in publishing her work. She also writes a variety of Japanese-style short form works including haibun, haiga and tanka. This latest collection, her eighth, is a selection of her haiku and senryu.

Jane Williams is a poet who notices things, who pays attention to her surroundings with curiosity and wonder. That curiosity and wonder is evident in the opening poem of her new collection. Continue reading “Echoes of Flight: haiku & senryu – launch”