Woodland Banners Poetry Walk

25 artworks matched with 25 poems in a permanent outdoor installation.

The Woodland Banners Poetry Walk is a stroll through the woods at Frog Pond Farm in Saxapahaw, North Carolina. It features outdoor banner artwork by Steven Durland and poetry by Linda Frye Burnham.

woodland banner

Leaves after Degas banner with poem in the fall

From the introduction to the accompanying book, “Woodland Banners Poetry Walk”:

Steven creates large digital images from leaves and bits and pieces of the forest floor. These images are printed on large outdoor banners and then installed back in the woods where they change with the light, the weather and the seasons. Many of these banners are named after artists whose work Steven thought serendipitously shared color and/or compositional elements with his leaf images. They have names like “Leaf after Klee,” or “Leaves after Orozco.”

Linda noted the names and began researching the words of these artists. She found that they had great power and sounded like poetry. So she repurposed the artists’ actual words, creating a poem for each banner. The poems were printed on aluminum trail markers and placed in the woods near their matching banners. The trail leads from the beginning of the drive way, through the forest to Steven’s Bourbon Dogs & Art yurt studio at the top of the hill.

The Poetry Walk had its grand opening in October 2015. The installation is now viewable by appointment year-round (weather permitting) and during open house weekends which will be announced here on the website. If you would like to visit please contact us. There is no admission charge, but donations to help with upkeep and maintenance are greatly appreciated.

 

Gallery of Poetry Walk images

  • Buds after Magritte with poem
    Buds after Magritte with poem
  • Leaves after Braque with Poem
    Leaves after Braque with Poem
  • Leaves after Marc with poem
    Leaves after Marc with poem
  • Braque poem and start of walk
    Braque poem and start of walk
  • Watch Your Step
    Watch Your Step
  • Leaves after Miro with poem
    Leaves after Miro with poem
  • Motherwell poem
    Motherwell poem
  • Caution POISON IVY
    Caution POISON IVY
  • Leaves after Cezanne, Leaves after Frankenthaler (background) and Maggie the dog
    Leaves after Cezanne, Leaves after Frankenthaler (background) and Maggie the dog
  • Leaves after Frankenthaler
    Leaves after Frankenthaler
  • Buds after Magritte in the snow
  • Leaves after Braque in the snow with dogs
  • Visitors on the Poetry Walk
  • Yurt with walkers
    Poetry Walk visitors approaching yurt gallery
  • Matisse quote
    “Reality begins when you no longer understand a single thing.” —Henri Matisse
  • Leaves after Matisse with poem
    Leaves after Matisse with poem
  • Leaves after Wyeth with poem
    Leaves after Wyeth with poem
  • End Loop 1
    End Loop 1
  • Yurt Gallery
    Yurt Gallery
  • Johns quote
    “Not bad, not good, but interesting in the extreme.” —Jasper Johns
  • Leaves after Orozco with poem
    Leaves after Orozco with poem
  • Dalí poem
    Dalí poem
  • Leaves after Dalí with poem
    Leaves after Dalí with poem
  • Van Gogh quote
    “I have nature, art and poetry. If that is not enough, what is?” —Vincent Van Gogh
  • Leaves after Degas and poem
    Leaves after Degas and poem
  • Picasso poem
    Picasso poem
  • Siqueiros quote
    “I tell you art’s a weapon that can penetrate the eyes, the ears.” —David Alfaro Siqueiros
  • Leaves after Frankenthaler
    Leaves after Frankenthaler
  • Arrow
    Arrow
  • Frankenthaler Spur sign
    Frankenthaler Spur sign
  • Leaves after Gericault and poem
    Leaves after Gericault and poem

 

Thanks

The Poetry Walk has been made possible by a wonderful group of people who supported our Kickstarter project.

We would specifically like to thank the following individuals for backing the two Kickstarter projects that led to Woodland Banners, and Woodland Banners Poetry Walk:

Joe & Mimi Alef, Deborah Amaral, Meg & Bond Anderson, Andrea Assaf, William Atkinson,  Benjamin Vineyards, David Berry, Jerome Bias, Cindy Biles, Lynn Bodenheimer, Andrew Burnham, Jill Burnham, Linda Frye Burnham, Catherine Carter, Jody Cedzidlo, Anne Chapman, Lynn Cox, Sheila Kerrigan & Steve Clarke, William Cleveland, Jules Curry-Corriere, Sue Dayton, Kathie deNobriga, Alexandra DeSiato, Dreams and Wonders, Sheila Durland, Lynne Elizabeth, Nancy Evans, Josephine Fleishman, Jan Freya, Bruce Frye, Jess Frye, Reed Danger Frye, Global Graffiti, Pam Groben, Martha Hamblin, Jan Holloman, Charlie Hubbell, Dwight James, Jean Kaplan, Susan Kern, Ladywench, Audrey Layden, Cat Manolis, Lori Manske, Art Menius, Christopher Moller, Mike Mollett, Allene Monaghan, Danelle Morton, Samuel Pate, Sabrina Peck, James & Deborah Perotti, Sarah Preston, Gary Phillips, David Ross, Roxy Farms Antiques, Warren Schonfeld, Mat Schwarzman, Peggy Seehafer, Antje Shiflett, Diane Sipprelle, Nancy Tregaskes, Twonkykitty, Steve Wallace, Pamela Watts, Roseann Weiss, Anne Willson

 

Visiting

Welcome by appointment. Contact us to schedule a visit. We’re usually here.

We will be around for the holiday weekends (Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year) so if you’d like to come by and view the Poetry Walk just give us a call. 336-212-0629

 

Practical Details

The Woodland Banners Poetry Walk is open by appointment throughout the year and on select announced open house weekends.

Our location is 2800 Austin Quarter Road. Austin Quarter Road is about a mile east of beautiful downtown Saxapahaw. For GPS, use 2800 Austin Quarter Road, Graham, NC 27253, or, if you’re using Google Maps, search for “Bourbon, Dogs and Art.”

You can contact us via email or at 336-212-0629.

 

What folks are saying…

…Well worth the visit. We had a great time there.

…extremely well done. if you have writer’s block or need some creative inspiration or just need to let go of a little stress, take this walk

…This is the most enticing museum show I’ve ever been to – wander through the woods discovering Steven Durland’s big, gorgeous banners, each one a response to another artist’s work. Linda Frye Burnham has written poems taken from the words of the artists, and the poems accompany the visual art. It is curation at it’s deepest level.

…a religious experience

…What a grand afternoon! I will return for more! Thanks so much!