During the third quarter of 2024, I had begun to think of multiple ways to bring into practice the idea of community writing; the idea of poetry as process, as construction, as continuous draft, as material, as multi-lingual, as multi-media, as visual, long durational and multi-authored. I had become very interested with the craft of poetry as a shared process more than a solitary practice. That would become my focus at the Text Laboratory Residency Programme organized by The House of Text, tekstin talo in Helsinki, the 2025 summer. How does a community write a poem (or poems as the case may be), and how can a work make space for everybody – even those without the fancy for or knowledge of the pen – to feel at-home-enough, to share their pulse with us. It was at the heart of this rumination, that this two-year-old unpublished poem, ‘Collage’ finally found its way into being.

‘Collage’ is a poetry installation that incites community writing. A poem – an ode to memory – that first chronicles the poet’s recollections, becomes the canvas for mutual reminiscence. The installation creates space for the possibilities of a cross-cultural story, crafted by both the poet and the audience– establishing collective authorship. 

In the exercise, the audience are encouraged to fill in blank spaces in the work and in the language of their choosing. This action completes the work and creates not only a sense of ownership but serves as a portal to the analysis of self, memory and nostalgia. 

An audio production of the work was also tested, with the poem recorded and contributions made by residency program coordinator, facilitators and fellow residents. This ensured collaboration and an extended experience of the work.

‘Collage’ is a very versatile work, and its showing at the Runokku ‘Poetry Moon’ Festival was the first installment of this experiment. I am looking forward to exploring this work in different ways, shape and form and I am excited to see what new territories, audiences and stories it leads me to.