Deaf Poets Society
- 21 Oct 05, 12:00 AM
OK, there isn't really a society of deaf poets. I just couldn't resist the pun. But ASL-signed deaf performance poetry appears to be flourishing in the US, if is anything to go by. Some deaf poets perform without a translator. Peter Cook, who was interviewed for the article, uses a translator when he has a hearing audience because he believes "it's important to reach them and show what ASL poetry is all about".
You can watch a video of Peter performing his own poetry on website.
I've spent some time trying to find comprehensive information on BSL poetry but, as far as I can gather, that information isn't all collected together in one place anywhere. But we definitely do have some BSL poets in the UK. There's an article on page 3 of the Bristol University June 2005 which might help if you're searching for more information on this subject yourself.
Comments
I'm going to the "Here are My Wings" event with Paddy Ladd, Rachel Sutton Spence and Paul Scott tonight. It is being held in Guildford. Ms Sutton-Spense's book, mentioned in the article you refer to, might be a good place to find a lot of information about BSL poetry in one place.