Writing the Walls

Writing the Walls joins the imaginative process of the written word with the creative power of the visual arts.   Launched by Artistic Director Mara Mills, Studio Theater in Exile, and Livia Straus, co-Founder and President of Hudson Valley MOCA, the project is now in its 15th year.   As originally conceived, the poems, selected by a jury of peers, were performed in front of the inspiring artworks. There were no seats, simply an audience moving along with the poets, viewing one work and then another.  Over the years the audience grew from a small gathering of 35, to multiple performances of up to 100 participants, the power of the poets’ words enhancing the visual experience.  What amazed was that the insights of the poets meshed with those of the artists, each art form enriching the other. 

The project became a model for other institutions to emulate.   

In 2020, with the pandemic lock down, Writing the Walls, the voices of the poets and the beauty of the works included in the prophetically named exhibition, How We Live, went on-line, continuing into 2021 as Writing Off the Walls.  We saw the positive energy of an expanded audience, the opportunity to hear the poets in their own voices and to see the works that inspired them, available any time one chose. Learning from the experience, live performances will continue to be coupled with on-line readings and viewing, reaching a larger population, democratizing the performances.

Writing the Walls started in 2007 as a collaboration between Mara Mills (Studio Theater in Exile) and Livia Straus (HVMOCA). Since then, poems and plays have been written and inspired by the art at HVMOCA.