Filigree:
Contemporary Black British Poetry
Authors: Various
ISBN: 9781845234263
Pages:127
Price: £8.99
Filigree, a new anthology of contemporary Black British poetry published by
Peepal Tree Press, a leader in Caribbean and Black British Literature, will be
launched on 23 November 2019 at King’s College, London. It follows in the
footsteps of its predecessor, RED (2010) which has been described by Michael Rosen as,
“a major contribution to the diverse cultures of blackness.” Filigree’s inclusion of fresh voices
from a younger generation of Black British poets illustrates Inscribe’s
commitment to producing groundbreaking anthologies. Included are young Poet
Laureate’s of London, Poets from the Octavia collective, Barbican Young Poets
and The Complete Works as well as a wealth of other recognisable names.
Filigree typically refers to the finer
elements of craftwork, the parts that are subtle; our Filigree anthology
contains work that plays with the possibilities that the word suggests. Writers
were invited to contemplate the ‘unspoken essential’ and ‘intangible tangible. ’Award
winning poet Hannah Lowe author of Chick
and Chan describes what came in
response as “testimonies and remembrances… poems of resistance and bombast, and
hymns of love of all kinds” forming a collection which explores and celebrates
the delicate and finer elements of Black British literature.
In the
anthology’s preface, Dorothy Wang writes, “most (white) poets and poetry
scholars assume, consciously or not, that the only poetic interiority that
matters is a white interiority. Thus, the endless poems by the white poets with
every emotion and quotidian observation presented to the reader as if they were
profound and universal truths, applicable to all mankind.” Filigree defies this assumption, forces its readers to challenge
their ideas of poetic interiority, and celebrates the variety of poetry produced
by these poets. Throughout the anthology’s journey, editor Nii Parkes says he
has, “revelled in the quirky turns of phrase and argument, the contemporary yet
timeless imagery, the boldness of much of the work. At each turn I am more and
more convinced of a future for British poets of colour embroidered with the
finest of prizes and widespread critical recognition.”
Filigree includes compelling work
from established Black British poets residing inside and outside the UK, as
well as new and emerging voices of Inscribe poets who have been nurtured and
supported by the Inscribe Writer Development Programme.
Editor: Nii Parkes
Nii
Ayikwei Parkes is an author, performance poet, and socio-cultural commentator
and advocate for African writing. He is the author of the poetry chapbooks: eyes of a boy, lips of a man (1999), M is for Madrigal (2004) and Ballast (2009), an imagination of the
slave trade by balloon. His novel Tail of
the Blue Bird (Jonathan Cape, 2009) has been hailed by the Financial Times as “a beautifully
written fable…grappling with urgent issues”. Parkes has led forums
internationally and has sat on discussion panels for BBC Radio with literary
heavyweights such as Booker winner, Margaret Atwood. In 2007, he was awarded
Ghana’s National ACRAG award for poetry and literary advocacy.
Foreword: Dorothy Wang
Dorothy
Wang is Professor in the American Studies Program and Faculty Affiliate in the
English Department at Williams College (Massachusetts).
Her monograph Thinking Its Presence: Form,
Race, and Subjectivity in Contemporary Asian American Poetry (Stanford
University Press, 2013) received the Association for Asian American Studies'
award for best book of literary criticism in 2016, garnered honorable
mention in the Poetry Foundation's inaugural Pegasus Awards for Criticism in
2014, and was named one of The New Yorker's "The Books We
Loved in 2016." The first national conference on race and creative writing
in the United States was named Thinking Its Presence (2014) And conceived
of and co-founded the "Race and Poetry and Poetics in the UK"
(RAPAPUK) research initiative, She has also published on Asian Australian
literature.
About Inscribe
Inscribe, is a successful professional writer development programme run by Inscribe
Publications Manager Kadija George, FRSA and Programmes Manager Dorothea
Smartt, both published poets. With its
roots in Peepal Tree’s practice of
editorial development, Inscribe began as a project to develop specific writers
of African and Asian descent in Yorkshire. It was created in 2004 by Kadija
(George) Sesay and joined in 2008 by Dorothea Smartt, taking the ACE funded
programme, national. An essential aspect
of the programme is their series to publish emerging and new writers.
About Peepal Tree Press
Peepal Tree Press is the home of the best in Caribbean
and Black British fiction, poetry, literary criticism, memoirs and historical
studies. In 2017, Peepal Tree won the Clarissa Luard Award for Independent
Publishers, which recognises excellence and creativity in literary publishing.
Based in Leeds, it is an independent company, founded in 1985, and features
both new writers and established voices. In 2009, Peepal Tree launched the
‘Caribbean Modern Classics Series’, which restores to print essential classic
books from the 1950’s and 60’s. Peepal Tree's focus is on what George Lamming
calls the Caribbean nation, wherever it is in the world, though they are also
concerned with Black British writing.
For more information and bookings, please contact:
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