By Mahnoosh Arsalan
Staff Writer
Renowned New York poet Vanessa Y. Niu and associate professor of English and world languages and cultures, Jiayan Mi, came together at the College’s Bliss Hall for a duo poetry reading on April 27 in celebration of Chinese American culture. The event was hosted by Dr. Mi as his new poetry collection “The Wormhole Rose” was just published, where he also held a book signing for himself and Q&A for Niu.
Niu is a New Yorker whose poetry has been recognized by The Kennedy Center, New York Fashion Week, The Guggenheim and Teen Vogue. She attended the Special Music School in New York and recently graduated. She now studies here in New Jersey at Princeton University.
Niu performed numerous poems with powerful range. She went from discussing young love and summer nights to the physics behind the universe, the mundanity of being human and the act of self-isolation. It was evident how personal her poetry was, her vulnerability with a completely unknown audience is extremely commendable. She was able to take these raw, emotional parts of herself and make them relatable for audiences and even teach others about some aspects of her culture. Her personification, creative descriptions, fluid writing and excellent performance really captured the audience, taking them along the road for her life journey.
During the Q&A at the end of the event, Niu gave the audience insightful messages on poetry and life. When asked about her exigence for writing poetry, she said “there’s so much art in everything you do in life,” and that “the spirit possesses me.” These two short and sweet answers really illustrate the importance of passion and the arts.
The arts and humanities are extremely vulnerable forms of expression, so when paired with the idea that art is in every aspect of life, it can make expression feel so raw and scary. Niu did an excellent job in portraying this awkward emotion in her poetry, it connected with the audience in a beautiful way.
In addition to the incredible poetry by Niu, the College’s very own Dr. Mi did a live reading of some poems from his new book “The Wormhole Rose.” Mi’s performance was translated into English by other professors from the English department as well as Niu, but even without the translation, Mi’s performance evoked emotion from the audience.
He sprinkled in some humor throughout the readings and made the audience feel very comfortable in their position, but was still able to hit the audience where he wanted to and keep everyone hooked. Mi held a book signing at the end of the event, a lovely closing to the whole afternoon.
Ultimately, these two strong poets came together for an emotional and introspective afternoon. This event not only highlighted the importance of the arts, but also the need for more voices of color. The arts should continue to be a place where all voices are welcome. Hopefully, this event connected this idea to students at the College, showing them what a lovely space poetry can provide.
