The Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District (MTD) has partnered with the Champaign Urbana Poetry Group for a public art project featuring poetry on buses. The first featured poem was authored by Ann Hart of Mahomet. Ms. Hart's poetry will be displayed on MTD's 40-foot buses from April 1 through June 30, 2016.
The Champaign Urbana Poetry Group conducted a contest for the featured poem. April is National Poetry Month, and the CU Poetry Group used that as an opportunity to introduce the contest. There was no fee to enter and the contest was open to all students and residents in Champaign County.
The Champaign Urbana Poetry Group convened a panel of experts to select the winner. There were twenty contest entries which covered a wide range of styles, subject matter, and age ranges. The judges had a difficult time picking a winner but eventually chose Ms. Hart's poem:
We eight short lines
give you a chance
to look at us as
if you meant to
and smile that smile
(you know the one)
so the person sitting below this poem
will think we’ve shared a secret ;)
Ms. Hart and Mr. James O'Brien, Organizer of the Champaign Urbana Poetry Group, visited MTD on March 25. CU Poetry Group presented Ms. Hart with a framed print of the poem as it will be posted on MTD's buses. Mr. O'Brien delivered prints of the poem which can be enjoyed on all of MTD's 40-foot buses through June 30, 2016.
