Midwest Creative Gets Ugly at Poetry Palooza

A huge thank you to MC, author of Midwest Creative, the essential Substack that “explores the different ways creativity manifests itself in the Midwest and how we can support the artists that call this region home.” Macey’s thoughtful response to my class “Exploring Your Ugly Streak” at the 2nd annual Poetry Palooza (“a festival celebrating poetry and aiming to recapture the spirit of the Des Moines National Poetry Festival, defunct since the aughts”) was inspiring and invigorating.

She writes, “The art I have left feeling intensely uncomfortable and deeply changed by is the art that explores the ugliness of the human spirit. The art that shows us the people to avoid loving and the people to avoid becoming.” <3 Enjoy

We can't interrogate the world without ugly by Macey Shofroth

On ugly's power within our art

Read on Substack