Today in our poetry news round-up we look at some giant sculptures in Knowsley, the death of Kazue Morisaki and a poetry trail in Tallinn.

Residents Confused by Giant Sculptures Based on Poet’s Work

All across the borough of Knowsley, residents are confused by a number of giant sculptures that have popped up almost overnight. The art installations are key features of the Knowsley celebration for their year as the Liverpool City Region Borough of Culture, and form part of an art trail.

The sculptures are a celebration of the links that Knowsley has to Edward Lear, the poet who penned The Owl & the Pussy-Cat. He wrote the work whilst he was living at nearby Knowsley Hall.

The art trail will be running from 20^th June until 4^th September and has an impressive 32 sculptures dotted all over Knowsley for people to find. They are located in the town centres, public places and also in the parks. Organisers are hoping that people will not only join in and follow the trails but document their finds by photographing them and posting them on social media using the free downloadable app that they have. The app also has a map to help people find the sculptures.

Each of the designs is the creation of a number of artists with input from members of the local community. A number of the local schools have also worked on the project, creating around 50 small creatures that will also be hidden around the borough.

Japanese Poet of Note, Kazue Morisaki Dies Aged 95

The Japanese poet and writer of non-fiction Kazue Morisaki has died at the age of 95. She had been suffering from acute respiratory failure and died in hospital on 15^th June. She was well known for her work which looked at the struggles of women.

Morisaki was born in Korea when the country was under the rule of the Japanese. She graduated in 1947 from the predecessor of what is now Fukuoka Women’s University.

Whilst she was based in the Chikuho coal mining area she was able to work with Gan Tanigawa the late poet and also Eishin Ueno the late author on the release of a literary magazine which was first published in 1958. The following year she also launched a literary magazine aimed at women.

Much of her work focused on the struggles of women including “Pitch-Dark” (Makkura) which was about females working in the coal mines and “Karayuki-san” a term which refers to those Japanese women who made the move to live abroad in order to work in the sex industry.

Tallinn Poetry Trail

As part of a poetry trail in Tallinn, Estonia, lines from 30 different poems have been spray-painted onto the local streets.

The idea for the poetry trail was created by two young Estonian poets and has been approved by the city council. The idea is that the lines will stop people and get them talking. Poetry was chosen from a number of well-known poets including Maarja Kangro and Tõnu Õnnepalu and also some newer lesser-known poets.