We will examine contemporary poetry writing and its impact on todays culture on this panel.
Ranjit Hoskote
Ranjit Hoskote: Poet, cultural theorist, curator – Bombay-born Ranjit Hoskote plays all roles with equal prowess. Having authored more than thirty books, ranging across poetry, art criticism, cultural theory and translation, Ranjit Hoskote has duly earned himself a distinct place in the country’s contemporary arts scene.
He is the author of more than 25 books, ranging across poetry, art criticism, cultural history and poetry in translation.
Hoskote has been a Fellow of the International Writing Program, University of Iowa (1995) and writer-in-residence at Villa Waldberta, Munich (2003), Theater der Welt, Essen/Mülheim (2010) and the Polish Institute, Berlin (2010). He has been research scholar-in-residence at BAK/basis voor actuele kunst, Utrecht (2010 and 2013). As a curator of contemporary art, he has organized 30 exhibitions since 1993. He co-curated the 7th Gwangju Biennale (Korea, 2008) with Okwui Enwezor and Hyunjin Kim; he was the curator of India’s first-ever national pavilion at the Venice Biennale, titled Everyone Agrees: It’s About to Explode (2011).
Monica Mody
Monica Mody, Ph.D., M.F.A., is a poet, writer, theorist, and educator. She is the author of the cross-genre experiment Kala Pani, a poetry collection Bright Parallel (Copper Coin), and three chapbooks including Ordinary Annals. She was born in Ranchi, India, and lives in San Francisco, ancestral homeland of the Ramaytush Ohlone peoples. Monica comes to her writing and scholarship as a border-crossing and cross-genre practitioner. She received her Ph.D. in East-West Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), an M.F.A. in Creative Writing (poetry) from the University of Notre Dame, and a Bachelor of Arts and Laws (Hons.) from the National Law School of India University. Her poetry has been a part of art shows including Rites of Passage: 20/20 Vision and the Popadum! art show.Monica teaches as core faculty at the PhD Program in Visionary Practice and Regenerative Leadership, Southwestern College Santa Fe, and as adjunct faculty at the School of Consciousness and Transformation, California Institute of Integral Studies. She has studied and circled with elders, wisdom-keepers, and medicine holders from many earth-based and indigenous traditions, developing an interconnected worldview rooted in ancestral healing practices. When living in New Delhi, Monica started Open Baithak, a multilingual poetry in performance series, and co-founded Riyaaz, a multi-genre writer's group that met fortnightly. She was involved with citizen movements including Voices Against 377 and the Nigah Queer Collective.