Mark Pirie releases new book Black Gold with Earl of Seacliff Art Workshop
In September, I released a new book of poems with Earl of Seacliff Art Workshop called Black Gold after a break of four years. The book is important to my body of work as it is mostly written in the local New Zealand tradition of poets and poetry and dedicated to James K Baxter who died early at age 46.
Previously my early poetry had been innovating away from this local tradition.
Poets Hone Tuwhare, Kevin Ireland, Clive James, John O'Connor, Michael Duffett (USA), Alistair Te Ariki Campbell, Meg Campbell and songwriter Mahinarangi Tocker receive elegies.
Poet and editor Tony Beyer says of the book: "[Pirie's] poems have real depth and maturity, and I applaud their consistent respect for and celebration of the life of poetry. Respect and compassion for people, too. Pirie’s work always seems to have been headed this way, with an accurate ability to make the personal universal.”