The critics gave their reviews, now hear from the artists. Julie Kane speaks about her solo shows and her new works. @artspace in Downtown Shreveport

Critical Mass 9 Literary Artist Julie Kane’s solo exhibition, “I Will Not Write A Pandemic Poem,” (the same name as her winning piece) is a 19-minute-long video based on twenty of her pandemic duplex poems. Kane says, “Visual images from my poems will dance across the screen as my voice can be heard reading the poems in the background. I am eager to see how people will react.” Professional Critic, Poet, and SMU Professor Greg Brownderville chose Kane’s work as Best of Show and quickly recognized her use of the duplex form of poetry popularized by 2020 Pulitzer Prize-winning Jericho Brown (also from Shreveport) Brownderville appreciated her delightful wit with lines like, “Cruising the aisles of the Piggly Wiggly is the new unsafe sex, versus curbside pickup.” The Critic says, “The blend of humor, grief, and terror that Kane uses brings out the blues-like resonances of the duplex form. I can’t help thinking Brown would be delighted to see a form of his making handled so beautifully by a Northwest Louisiana poet.” Kane says, “It meant a great deal to me to have my work selected by Greg Brownderville, a poet and journal editor whom I respect greatly. I was also happy to join the company of fine writers who have won this award in the past.”