The Sleep Orchard:

by Amy Dennis, Arshile Gorky

The Sleep Orchard is a collection of poetry written in response to the life and artwork of Arshile Gorky. By mapping the differences as well as the deepening intersections between Gorky and the author, these poems highlight the complexities inherent in attempting to understand another's life and art within the frame of one's own consciousness. In addition to meditating on various paintings and the subsequent thoughts they inspire, the text shifts between reflection, recollection, description, confessionalism, and collage, ultimately carving an intimate trajectory through history, memory, vibrancy, and loss.

117 pages, Paperback

Published August 31, 2022

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is another book, like Sina Queyras' My Ariel, that has made me drunk. It is passionate, intense & haunting, exactly what I want poetry to be. Dennis creates these poems with such skill, such attention to the minutiae of these paintings and the emotions they invoke. These poems are also the embodiment of the life of the speaker, moving us from Gorky's time to our own, to the speaker's time. I love the materiality of these poems, and seeing paintings through the eyes of the speaker. There is violence here and discomfort and pain, the messiness of life, but also its vibrancy. I loved this book and shall revisit in again and again.

[Alberto Bassi · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing poetry book based on the intense life of Abstract Expressionist Arshile Gorky. The deep, thoughtful poems are elegantly encompassed with introspections of the author's own life experience.
Beautiful and enriching, as well as delicate, yet powerful read.