![A person in a red sweater stands in front of a colorful mural, Robert Lynn Lambdin’s 1958 [Heroes of World War II] painting, in Meditz Gallery depicting diverse soldiers and a nurse, with an American flag in the background.](https://www.fairfield.edu/_files/images/news/individual-article-hero/2026/4458591561_news_2026_may_for-which-it-stands-recap_article-hero_1536x865_05202026.jpg)
The Fairfield University Art Museum welcomed University and local community members to the Walsh Gallery to share poetry and prose in response to the current exhibition, For Which It Stands…
Art Speaks!
One of the beautiful things about artwork is the multitude of ways viewers can interpret a piece. Each of us brings a unique perspective—drawing on our experiences and opinions. When we view it, art speaks.
On Thurs., April 9, the museum hosted Art Speaks!, an evening of poetry and prose in the Walsh Gallery at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts. Community members were invited to share written works inspired by—or written in response to—works on view in For Which It Stands…
“AGAINST the GRAIN”
LeeAnn Weaver MFA’26, P’28, development coordinator in the Office of Advancement, attended the event with other MFA in Creative Writing program colleagues and shared a poem inspired by Katharine Kuharic’s painting, Girl’s Army–the bitches, on view in the Walsh Gallery.
Titled “AGAINST the GRAIN,” Weaver’s piece incorporated text from “America the Beautiful” and wrestled with the images in the painting.
“These exhibits are such a rich place for creative inspiration,” said Weaver. “Looking initially at this painting online, I felt moved to write the words in the poem I read.
Seeing it up close and reading the artist’s bio, I appreciated it in a completely different way. Visual art can stir up emotions that can be beautifully translated to words, and vice versa.”
The Black Soldier’s Flag Fights Back
Local resident Patricia Wade Walker shared a nonet—a nine-line poem with a descending syllable count beginning with nine—titled “The Black Soldier’s Flag Fights Back” in response to Robert Lynn Lambdin’s painting [Heroes of World War II], on view in the Bellarmine Hall Galleries.
The daughter of a Black veteran, she told attendees about the personal connection she felt upon seeing the piece, and how it inspired her to write a poem to explore what the soldier in the painting may have experienced, particularly during a time when troops were segregated.
Art Speaks! is an annual series offered by the Fairfield University Art Museum, as a way for visitors to engage creatively with the works on view.
A participant who has attended the past three Arts Speaks! events commented that “art forms universal connections and that’s the beauty of these moments. You never know what connections are going to form at an event like this.”
