Poet William Fuller, a 1975 Lawrence University graduate, shares some of his work in a reading Thursday, Feb. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in the Milwaukee Downer Room of the Seeley G. Mudd Library. A reception and book signing will follow the reading, which is free and open to the public.
Fuller, whose work leans toward the experimental, has produced an impressive body of work, including four books and five chapbooks. His first collection of poems, “byt,” was published in 1989, but it was 1993’s “The Sugar Borders” that earned him widespread recognition. “Aether” was released five years later and his fourth book, “Sadly,” was published in 2003. The chapbook “Avoid Activity” also was released in 2003. His newest collection of poems, “Watchword,” is slated for publication next year.
“William Fuller writes poems which stage collisions of different kinds of diction — literary, philosophical, corporate and colloquial,” said Lawrence Univesity assistant professor of English Faith Barrett, who helped arrange Fuller’s visit. “Responding to the project of the language poets, his work is at times playful, at times elegiac, but always committed to an exploration of the limits and the powers of lyric voice.”
After earning a bachelor’s degree magna cum laude in English from Lawrence, Fuller attended the University of Virginia, earning his Ph.D. in English in 1983. In addition to writing poetry, Fuller is senior vice president and chief fiduciary officer in the Trust Department of Chicago’s Northern Trust Company.
Fuller’s appearance is supported by the Mia T. Paul Poetry Fund. Established in 1998, the endowed fund brings distinguished poets to campus for public readings and to work with students on writing poetry and verse.
