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Just weeks after being named U.S. Poet Laureate by the Library of Congress, Arthur Sze visited 51�ԹϺ��� Davis, sharing his love of poetry and translation with students, faculty and community members.

Sze is the author of 12 books of poetry and the recipient of numerous poetry prizes, including the Bollingen Prize for American Poetry in 2025 for his lifetime achievement in the field. He was the first Poet Laureate for the City of Santa Fe, where he’s lived for more than 50 years.

Sze, also a translator and editor, connected with students and discussed Chinese poetry during the in the Student Community Center Multipurpose Room this past October. The following evening, Sze was joined by poet Carol Moldaw for a open to the campus community.

Both poets, husband and wife, reside in Sante Fe, New Mexico and though they share the same living space, they have very different styles and tones in their writing.

Exploring themes: nature, activism, and time in poetry

In her introduction of Sze, , professor of English, said, “When I think of this poet, I think about being up early in a quiet space recollecting moments not of one’s own presence but of the sheer being of the natural world and its interface with our own, or of translating equally radiant shards of ancient Chinese poetry, a task that Sze will celebrate as the 25^th Poet Laureate of the United States."

Sze read from (Copper Canyon Press, 2025) and (Copper Canyon Press, 2021). The poems traversed themes of activism and violence, past and future wars, wildfires and the environment, and how, as humans, we grapple with the “Rubik’s Cube of time.”

He also discussed process and form, introducing his audience to what he calls a “cascade,” an invented form where the next line picks up a word or words from the previous line without a particular order “so that each line sort of spills into the next line.”

Carol Moldaw: perspectives on women in art and poetry

Moldaw read from (Four Way Books, 2024). One of the throughlines of the collection, she said, is the “cognitive dissonance that women artists often feel — that I feel — living and creating in a world where so much art has been made by men about women. To be a woman artist and to identify with both the male maker and the female model can be uncomfortable, confusing, infuriating and enriching.”

In Go Figure, Moldaw grapples with the complexities of being both muse and artist, sharing similar source material and the same home with another writer, and the idea of being seen versus observed as a woman. Undercurrents of rage, displeasure and frustration were conveyed with grace and beauty.

Both the Mid-Autumn Festival and poetry reading were presented by , the , the and the Departments of , , and .What it means to be the U.S. Poet Laureate

The poet laureate is appointed by the Librarian of Congress after the Library's Literary Initiatives Office solicits nominations from the current and past poet laureates as well as over 100 distinguished critics, scholars, editors, booksellers, leaders of literary organizations and festival directors, and other professionals across the country who are deeply knowledgeable about poetry. Nominators then rank their picks in order of preference.

Sze said he was completely surprised by the honor. Though, Moldaw added, maybe he shouldn’t have been as he was honored the year prior by the Library of Congress with its top prize in poetry, the .

“As the son of Chinese immigrants, and as a sophomore who decided to leave MIT to pursue a dream of becoming a poet, I never would have guessed that so many decades later I would receive this recognition,” . “It’s a recognition that belongs to teachers, librarians, editors, poets, readers — everyone who works tirelessly on behalf of poetry.”

In the coming year, Sze will travel often as he works to promote poetry and poetry translations on behalf of the Library of Congress.

“As laureate I feel a great responsibility to promote the ways poetry, especially poetry in translation, can impact our daily lives,” he wrote. “We live in such a fast-paced world: poetry helps us slow down, deepen our attention, connect and live more fully.”