This week on My Poetic Side, we look at a second term as US Poet Laureate for Arthur Sze and the poet named as a Guggenheim 2026 Fellow.
Arthur Sze Appointed to a Second Term as U.S. Poet Laureate
The Library of Congress has announced that the current Poet Laureate Arthur Sze has been appointed to serve a second term in the position. The appointment will run for the period of 2026 – 2027 and he will be the 25th Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry.
In September 2025, Sze who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico began work as the poet laureate on a project to expand an appreciation of poetry through a focus on the translation of poems written in languages other than in English. This is a theme that is echoed in his most recent book “Transient Worlds: On Translating Poetry” which includes translations from 13 different languages and offers the poets own personal guide to the world of poetry in translation.
30th April will mark the end of the poets first term and he will be returning to the Library of Congress for a special and rare conversation with Simon Armitage, the Poet Laureate of the UK. The pair will be discussing the process around writing and translating poetry. Armitage has recently translated “Gilgamesh”.
As part of his second term Sze will be working on “Words Bridging Worlds” his signature project and will also be undertaking a U.S. tour which will include a number of public events, readings, discussions and workshops which will all focus on translation and poetry.
It is possible for the Librarian of Congress to appoint a poet to serve in the role for several terms, Sze is not the first poet to have been granted this honour. He joins a very long list of poets who have served in the role including Rita Dove, Philip Levine, W.S. Merwin and Charles Simic.
Edgar Kunz Named as Guggenheim Fellow
The poet, author and assistant professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, Edgar Kunz, has been named as a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation fellow for 2026. The award is given for both prior achievements in his career and his future work.
The dean of the faculty that he is attached to stated that the fellowship was a testament to the extraordinary gifts that Kunz has and that his remarkable poetry takes a deep look at the very rawest of human experiences without flinching, and in a voice which is reachable to readers in a way which is outside the boundaries of much contemporary poetry. H also stated how proud the University were of his achievements.
Kunz has penned two collections of poetry, the first of which was published in in 2019, the second in 2023. His work has been features in a wide range of publications from the New Yorker to The Atlantic. He has only recently joined the staff at VCU, prior to that he directed the creative writing centre at Goucher College.
Fellowships are awarded every year to artists and scholars across a range of disciplines. The Guggenheim Foundation has been supporting those working in the creation of arts or in humanities research since 1925 providing a monetary award that allows individuals to continue with independent work. This year that have appointed 223 fellows from 55 disciplines from a potential pool of 5000 candidates.
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