Remembering Our Friend Iris Berman

IRIS BERMAN

 Poet  * Graphic Designer * Artist  

WHO IS IRIS BERMAN?

Iris Berman is a graduate of Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont and also attended The Art Students League in Manhattan. Her major influence was Richard Pousette-Dart from who she learned much about art and spirituality. She also holds a certificate in Electronic Publishing from Pratt Institute. Her artwork has been exhibited in several solo and group shows including the Brooklyn Waterfront Artist Coalition (BWAC) Artists Speak Series.

After many years of not writing, she walked into a poetry reading in the Village about 6 years ago and started writing poetry again. She has studied with Louise Gluck, Barry Goldensohn and William Packard and has attended the Riverside Poetry workshop and the 92nd Street “Y", to name just a few workshop venues. Currently, she is studying with Dorothy Friedman.

She has published locally in Stained Sheets, Nomads Choir, Rogue Scholar, Home Planet News, Medicinal Purposes, and nationally in Song of the San Joaquin. She has appeared at open mics and has been a featured reader at many poetry venues throughout the City.

Visit www.beansaboutit.com to see some of Iris's poetry.

WEAKNESS FOR BEAUTY

Poets have
a weakness
for beauty

Sometimes
it rages
like a fire
in the monotony
of a day

It overtakes them
on a crowded avenue
on a superhighway
or from exposure
to a deserted road

The poet may get
a wild idea
in the middle of
an oppressive afternoon
or in the icy night

They get hot
like jalapenos
with a grand idea
or in a detail
that everyone else
ignores

Sunrises and
sunsets can make
them weep

They see all things
in gashes and flashes
flashes and gashes

In the wound
and in the healing
of the wound

The Little Book of Flowers

Suddenly, a rose isn't a rose isn't a rose. Iris Berman's new collection tantalizes the reader, awakening all the senses for a delectible and sensual feast. Her words, like a waft of perfume, draw you into her private world of flowers for an aromatic massage of the mind.
   — Roxanne Hoffman, Curator and Co-Host of The Longest Running Bar Reading in The Village at The Back Fence
 

Iris Berman at The Back Fence [photo credit: Roxanne Hoffman]