Artemis 2017

by Nikki Giovanni, Starroot, Tricia Scott (Contributor)

Artemis dedicates the 2017 issue to internationally acclaimed poet, Nikki Giovanni,
for her courage and lifetime commitment to social justice. Like the goddess Artemis,
Nikki Giovanni serves as a beacon to those of us who believe in the power of art
to bring light into the world. We at Artemis think of Nikki Giovanni as godmother
to this journal. From the 1980's until today, she has given generously of her time and
talent to nurture and support the work of artists and writers in her adopted home
here in Southwest Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains.

Artemis gives special thanks to the following for their support of this journal:
Richard Dillard, Hollins University Professor of English and Editor of The Hollins
Critic, for initiating an archival collection of Artemis Journals in 1977. Journals
can be found in the Wyndham Robertson Library Special Collections Department.
The Roanoke Arts Commission for awarding Artemis a generous grant that helped
finance the Artemis 2016 Journal Launch.

The Roanoke Taubman Museum of Art for graciously donating space at the
Taubman Black Box Theater for the 2016 and 2017 Artemis Journal Launches.
Like many non-profit cultural organizations, Artemis relies upon the passionate,
committed few who give their expertise, time, and energy. After many successful years,
Artemis took a 14-year hiatus. When it was resurrected in 2014, with the help of
Maurice Ferguson and Virginia Lepley, we have been continually astonished by the
response, and by the rich community of artists and writers Artemis is bringing together.

92 pages, Hardcover

Published April 16, 2017

About the author

Yolande Cornelia "Nikki" Giovanni Jr. was an American poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator. One of the world's most well-known African-American poets, her work includes poetry anthologies, poetry recordings, and nonfiction essays, and covers topics ranging from race and social issues to children's literature. She won numerous awards, including the Langston Hughes Medal and the NAACP Image Award. She was nominated for a Grammy Award for her poetry album, The Nikki Giovanni Poetry Collection. Additionally, she was named as one of Oprah Winfrey's 25 "Living Legends". Giovanni was a member of The Wintergreen Women Writers Collective.
Giovanni gained initial fame in the late 1960s as one of the foremost authors of the Black Arts Movement. Influenced by the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement of the period, her early work provides a strong, militant African-American perspective, leading one writer to dub her the "Poet of the Black Revolution". During the 1970s, she began writing children's literature, and co-founded a publishing company, NikTom Ltd, to provide an outlet for other African-American women writers. Over subsequent decades, her works discussed social issues, human relationships, and hip hop. Poems such as "Knoxville, Tennessee" and "Nikki-Rosa" have been frequently re-published in anthologies and other collections.
Giovanni received numerous awards and holds 27 honorary degrees from various colleges and universities. She was also given the key to over two dozen cities. Giovanni was honored with the NAACP Image Award seven times. One of her more unique honors was having a South America bat species, Micronycteris giovanniae, named after her in 2007.
Giovanni was proud of her Appalachian roots and worked to change the way the world views Appalachians and Affrilachians.
Giovanni taught at Queens College, Rutgers, and Ohio State, and was a University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech until September 1, 2022. After the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007, she delivered a chant-poem at a memorial for the shooting victims.