[Durham INC] City Council Approves New Durham Poet Laureate

[City of Durham Communications]

[Title: City of Durham Communications Department]


News Media Contact
CommsMedia at DurhamNC.gov<mailto:CommsMedia at DurhamNC.gov>


News Release
For Immediate Release: September 4, 2024

City Council Approves New Durham Poet Laureate
Poetry Fox Chris Vitiello to Serve Three Years as Next Durham Poet Laureate

DURHAM, N.C. – The City of Durham now has a new poet laureate.

Last night, Mayor Leonardo Williams and the City Council appointed Chris Vitiello as the new Durham Poet Laureate<https://www.durhamnc.gov/5212/Durham-Poet-Laureate>. Vitiello‘s experience as a writer, performer, critic, teacher, and Durham’s beloved Poetry Fox<https://www.poetryfox.com/> laid the foundation for his term as Durham Poet Laureate. He will serve a three-year term through June 2027.

The Durham Poet Laureate Program champions the art of poetry and spoken word and provides free educational opportunities for residents and visitors. The City’s Cultural and Public Art Program<https://www.durhamnc.gov/450/Cultural-Public-Art-Development> received 16 applications from local and regional poets. A panel of community members, writers, educators, and City staff recommended Vitiello. The recommendation was endorsed by the City and County’s Durham Cultural Advisory Board<https://www.durhamnc.gov/452/Durham-Cultural-Advisory-Board> during their June 2024 meeting. Based on their recommendation, the City Council approved his appointment during their September 3 regular business meeting.

Vitiello’s tenure will be themed “Poems Everywhere.” He plans to teach free writing workshops, start a public reading series, and launch a program that will feature poems in public spaces. “How do you connect people to poetry and grow their appreciation for the medium? You write poems right in front of them. You write poems about them, their lives, the people, places, and things they love and know and long for,” Vitiello said.

As the Poetry Fox<https://www.poetryfox.com/>, Vitiello writes custom poems, on demand, on vintage typewriters at dozens of events each year. His most recent poetry books are Irresponsibility and Obedience (both Ahsahta Press). As a teacher, Vitiello’s experience includes working in public/private K-12 schools, university Master of Fine Arts (MFA) programs, and corporate and community settings. He has curated exhibitions at the Ackland Art Museum at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, The Carrack, and The Fruit. In 2017, he won the Rabkin Prize for Visual Arts Journalism.

Vitiello is Durham’s second poet laureate. D.J. Rogers was appointed as Durham’s first poet laureate and served from 2022 to 2024. Visit the City’s Poet Laureate webpage<https://www.durhamnc.gov/5212/Durham-Poet-Laureate> to read a sample Vitiello’s poetry and learn more about this program.

About the City of Durham General Services Department
The General Services Department<http://durhamnc.gov/733/> builds and maintains City properties to make Durham a great place for people to live, work, and play. Guided by the City’s Strategic Plan<https://durhamnc.gov/183/Strategic-Plan>, the department’s core functions include the acquisition and sale of properties, design and management of new construction and renovation projects, building maintenance, landscaping and urban forestry services, cemeteries management, sustainability and energy management, cultural and public art program management, and supporting the nonprofit Keep Durham Beautiful<https://keepdurhambeautiful.org/>.

About the City of Durham Cultural and Public Art Program
The City of Durham Cultural and Public Art Program<https://www.durhamnc.gov/450/Cultural-Public-Art-Development> affirms Durham’s rich cultural and arts community is a part of what makes Durham neighborhoods thrive, attracts tourism, catalyzes business development, and brings residents together. The Program seeks to bring cultural and public art opportunities into the everyday experience of Durham residents through delivery of culturally relevant programming. Under the Arts, Culture, and Sustainable Communities Division within the General Services Department<https://www.durhamnc.gov/733/General-Services>, the Program manages the City’s public art collection, festivals and special events funding, and two public advisory bodies: the Durham Cultural Advisory Board<https://www.durhamnc.gov/452/Durham-Cultural-Advisory-Board> and the Public Art Committee<https://www.durhamnc.gov/453/Public-Art-Committee>. Residents and artists interested in art-related opportunities can sign up for alerts through the Monthly Newsletter<https://durhamnc.us21.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=e37a443a4b800f3fd6907ccc9&id=ab75d82b26>.

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