Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Arts & Culture
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Arts & Culture

Syracuse Poster Project Presents ‘Splash Poetry’

Thursday, July 6, 2017, By News Staff
Share
artCollege of Visual and Performing Arts

The Syracuse Poster Project, a nonprofit civic arts organization, wants to brighten up your cloudy days.

man stenciling on sidewalk

The Poster Project has temporarily stenciled a collection of its popular haiku poetry onto downtown sidewalks.

For the past 16 years, the Poster Project has partnered with local poets and Syracuse University illustration students to create an annual series of poster art about the City of Syracuse. These posters, including the recently unveiled 2017 posters, have traditionally hung in the kiosks along Salina and Warren Streets downtown.

In addition to the poster format, for the first time in a creative new venture, the Poster Project has temporarily stenciled a collection of its popular haiku poetry onto downtown sidewalks, kind of like street chalk. The catch? You can’t see them. On a normally dry or sunny day, that is.

Why would a group so interested in the power of the written word want to hide its work? Well, by randomly viewing the poetry only in wet conditions, it reflects the meaning and intent of haiku, which is to evoke a deep or profound realization about a topic as read in a specific environment. In this case, Syracuse is the muse.

Since people tend to be desensitized to text the more they see it in the same places everyday, the Poster Project hopes to avoid that. By appearing only when it rains, the haiku will also help brighten the bleak feelings that arise from our unseasonable weather.

Some haiku topics will be specific to downtown areas while others will be more open to interpretation, but they all will evoke an affirmative feeling about the city of Syracuse for all ages. Since haiku are limited to only three short lines of verse, each poem is simple and concise in making a comment on life in Syracuse or its rich cultural heritage. Through use of a special biodegradable spray material that fades over time, this interactive experience won’t be around for long. Typically, street art like this can last anywhere from two to four months depending on the weather.

Can’t wait until the next rainy day to see this project? Simply download a map found on the Poster Project’s website (www.posterproject.org) to find all ten “Splash Poetry” haiku. Remember to bring your own bottled water. Illustrated poster prints featuring each of the haiku are also available for purchase on the project’s website.

The idea for “Splash Poetry” originated from Syracuse Poster Project board members Joseph Murphy and Jason Evans in partnership with the Syracuse Public Arts Commission. Murphy, a freelance illustrator and member of the New York City Society of Illustrators, has served with the Poster Project for five years. He was a former poster artist for the organization, illustrating Coleman’s Pub on Tipperary Hill. Evans, an architect, has only recently joined the board but is no stranger to site specific art installations. He is responsible for creating the Arterie and Flowscape art murals downtown as well as the Hanover Square Bike Plant Rack.

 

  • Author

News Staff

  • Recent
  • Sociologist Shannon Monnat to Lead Maxwell’s Center for Policy Research
    Monday, May 16, 2022, By Jessica Youngman
  • Student Speaker Ghael Fobes Mora Shared Highlights of the Class of 2022
    Monday, May 16, 2022, By News Staff
  • Maxwell Prepared Mike Tirico ’88 for His ‘Most Challenging Assignment’
    Monday, May 16, 2022, By Jessica Youngman
  • Message From Chancellor Kent Syverud
    Monday, May 16, 2022, By News Staff
  • ‘You Will Do Marvelous Things in the Future’: Chancellor Kent Syverud Speaks to Class of 2022 During Commencement (Video)
    Monday, May 16, 2022, By News Staff

More In Arts & Culture

Syracuse University Art Museum Piloting Object-Based Teaching and Research Faculty Fellows Program

Faculty from all disciplines are invited to apply for a pilot Faculty Fellows Program being hosted this summer by the Syracuse University Art Museum. The program focuses on object-based teaching and research. It is both a way for the art…

Innovator Lorrie Vogel ’88 to Deliver 2022 VPA Convocation Address

Innovator Lorrie Vogel ’88 will deliver the 2022 convocation address to bachelor’s and master’s degree candidates of the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) at the college’s convocation ceremony on Saturday, May 14, at 7:30 p.m. in the stadium….

M.F.A. Exhibition ‘Steady/Retcon’ to be Exhibited on New York City’s Governors Island

  Master of fine arts (M.F.A.) candidates in the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) are presenting the thesis exhibition “Steady/Retcon” over two weekends in May at the Syracuse University Governors Island House, 407A Colonels Row, Governors Island, New…

Department of Drama Presents ‘As You Like It’

The Department of Drama presents the final show of the 2021/2022 season with “As You Like It,” a ravishing new musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic story by Shaina Taub and Laurie Woolery. The production, directed by Rodney Hudson, will perform…

Movie Based on SU Press Book ‘Harry Haft: Survivor of Auschwitz, Challenger of Rocky Marciano’ Debuts

“The Survivor,” a movie based on the Alan Scott Haft book, “Harry Haft: Survivor of Auschwitz, Challenger of Rocky Marciano,” debuted on HBO and HBO Max on Wednesday, April 27. It is being released on Holocaust Remembrance Day, commemorating the…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2022 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.