Artspeak Radio with Traci Brimhall and Jim Ramirez

Artspeak Radio, Wednesday, July 1, 2026, 9am -10am CST, 90.1fm KKFI Kansas City Community Radio, streaming live audio www.kkfi.org Producer/host Maria Vasquez Boyd welcomes Kansas Poet Laureate Traci Brimhall and artist/writer Jim Ramirez. TRACI BRIMHALL is a university distinguished professor of creative writing at Kansas State University, as well as the 2025 Poet-in-Residence at the Guggenheim. She is the author of five collections of poetry, most recently Love Prodigal (Copper Canyon Press, 2024). Her nonfiction debut, The Grief Artist, will be published by Sarabande Books in 2026. Known for her poems that often marry the ordinary with the surreal, Brimhall’s work has appeared widely in journals and magazines such as The New Yorker, Orion, The Atlantic, The New Republic, Poetry, The Nation, and The New York Times Magazine. Through fellowships with the National Endowment of the Arts, National Park Service, and Academy of American Poets she’s taught writing workshops in farm schools, art museums, libraries, medical communities, and the outdoors. She’s also received a Karnes Fellowships through Purdue Library’s Special Collections to study the lost poem drafts of Amelia Earhart. She is the current poet laureate of Kansas, where her initiatives have centered on uniting the state’s agricultural roots with the literary arts. Through poetry cookbooks, food-based mad lib poems, and bringing poetry to the State Fair, her literary arts advocacy seeks ways to bring the nourishment of language to all Kansans. As Poet Laureate of Kansas, Brimhall will conduct public readings, workshops, lectures, and presentations that serve communities across the state. Her plans for the laureateship will focus on connecting with Kansans through the shared experience of language, Kansas’ agricultural roots, and food. “I am delighted to serve Kansas as the next Poet Laureate,” Professor Traci Brimhall said. “I love connecting with others and building community, and I can’t wait for the next few years of celebrating creativity in the Sunflower State.” As the Poet Laureate of Kansas, Traci promotes arts as a public resource to all Kansans. Currently, Traci offers two prepared talks as laureate: WHY CAN’T THE HEART STOP ASKING? Poetry is an art of attention. But sometimes the more attention we pay to the world, the more astonishing and confusing it can be. The medical researcher Jonas Salk said: “What people think of as the moment of discovery is really the discovery of the question.” I believe this also holds true for poetry. What images do we see each day that excite our minds? What sounds do we hear that awaken our hearts? What poems ask for our attention and reward us with discovery? This presentation will use poetry to create surprises, explore our curiosities, and find new questions. MEMORY FEAST In so many communities there is an appetite to find language for our experiences and connect with others. Joyce Carol Oates said: “If food is poetry, is not poetry also food?” I believe cuisine can be a link to open a memory, a great way to connect with those we love, and a source of inspiration for poetry. This presentation will use poetry to connect us both with our senses in daily activities as well as help us recall memories that remind us of family, culture and community. Poetry can be a place of nourishment, a bounty of the sensory, a feast of words. The above programs are designed for a roughly 60-minute time frame but can be adjusted if necessary. Traci may be able to accommodate other program or appearance requests, but priority will be given for the listed programs. Kansascommerce.gov JIM RAMIREZ is an experienced, passionate and adventurous Design Professional with a sharp, creative eye for layout, color, typography, photography, and consumer-relevant product innovation. He is also a patent holder, photographer, fine artist, and published author. Where I’m Supposed To Belong is a memoir Jim wrote about a trip he took to Europe. The memoir consists of four parts. Part One: He arrives in Amsterdam and makes his way to the French Alps in an attempt to climb the most famous mountain in professional cycling, L'Alpe d'Huez, in less than an hour. Part Two: Nice. The French Riviera. Part Three: Avignon. Part Four: Barcelona. Reproduced throughout the book are the actual train tickets, restaurant receipts, and sketches he did along the way. Available at Amazon. “Where has Papu been?” is a children's book Jim wrote and illustrated that teaches children about different places around the world, and places he's actually traveled to. Places like Paris, France, where they’ll climb the Eiffel Tower. Hong Kong, for a ride in a sampan. They’ll take a walk over the Brooklyn Bridge and down the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The book is filled with colorful illustrations and many more landmarks in many more great cities. Available at Amazon. Who We Are is a book Jim wrote and designed about the genealogy of his parents. Available at Amazon. "My feeling is, if a creative idea comes to you, wherever they come from, you owe it to that idea to see it through [email protected]