Wednesday Night Poetry features arts festival organizer
One of the organizers of the Arts & The Park celebration, Donna Dunnahoe is this week’s feature for Wednesday Night Poetry at Kollective Coffee+Tea, 110 Central Ave. The regular open mic session for all poets will begin at 6:30 p.m. and Dunnahoe performs at 7 p.m., followed by another open mic session. Admission is free and open to all ages.
Dunnahoe is a textile artist who uses natural fibers from wool, cotton and the hair of her dog, Darcy. She also incorporates fused glass and stoneware in her weaving and dyes she brews from native plants.
In 2006, with her artist husband Hugh, Dunnahoe moved to Hot Springs from Anaheim, Calif. “We left one tourist town that was built on fantasy (Disneyland) to become a vital part of another tourist town built on its natural and historical wonders,” she said in a news release. For four years Dunnahoe was executive director of the Fine Arts Center of Hot Springs and is currently working with the Hot Springs Area Cultural Alliance in planning workshops and other events for this year’s Arts & The Park celebration.
She began writing as a kindergarten teacher and later as a storyteller on the boat ride in Disneyland’s Storybook Land. But for several years she has kept most of her writing private. “However, the storytelling urge has sprouted its wings again,” Dunnahoe said. “So I guess it’s time to start sharing a few stories and poems.” Her topics include childhood, the arts, and love. She describes her poems as simple but full of imagery and humor, while occasionally striking a chord of heartache. But her overriding theme is hope. “I believe the creativity in all of us helps us to communicate, to connect, and find a common ground — a place for love to grow.”
This week’s Wednesday Night Poetry is an event of the Arts & The Park celebration which is sponsored by the Hot Springs Area Cultural Alliance. Visit http://www.hotspringsarts.org for more information.