New York, NY (January 31, 2023)—The Academy of American Poets is thrilled to partner with Scholastic to reveal the design of the official 2023 National Poetry Month poster featuring artwork by Marc Brown, creator of the popular Arthur book and PBS television series. The artwork incorporates an excerpted line from the poem “Carrying” by U.S. Poet Laureate Ada Limón. The Academy will distribute the poster free-of-charge to 85,000+ schools, libraries, bookstores, and individuals nationwide in time for the April literary celebration.
“One great gift I received from doing this painting was discovering the beautiful poetry of Ada Limón,” said Brown. “This particular poem, “Carrying”, was a cinematic experience. I could see the rolling meadows, the horses, and smell the cold wet fields. It was also an opportunity to flex my painting muscles, which I don’t get the opportunity to do as often as I’d like. So thank you, Ada Limón, for helping us see and feel our world more deeply through the power of your words.”
Brown was selected by Scholastic—the global children’s publishing, education, and media company—to create the artwork for this year’s poster as part of a new National Poetry Month joint initiative between the publisher and the Academy of American Poets.
National Poetry Month, created and organized by the Academy, is the largest literary celebration in the world with tens of millions of people celebrating poetry in their communities each April. Throughout the month, the Academy of American Poets provides free resources to teachers, serves as the main online information hub, promotes local and national events like Poem in Your Pocket Day, and distributes the official National Poetry Month poster through partnerships with the American Booksellers Association, the American Library Association, and the National Council of Teachers of English.
To request your free copy of the official 2023 National Poetry Month poster, visit: https://poets.org/national-poetry-month/get-official-poster
To learn more about National Poetry Month and all of the programs being offered by the Academy throughout the month of April, visit: https://poets.org/national-poetry-month
About Marc Brown
Marc Brown is the author and illustrator of the bestselling Arthur series and executive producer of Arthur on PBS. The show has won seven Emmys, the Peabody Award, and the 2019 Television Critics Association Award and is now the longest running children’s animated show in history. The Arthur books have sold more than seventy-five million copies, and the show is seen by children all around the world. Trained at the Cleveland Institute of Art, Brown has created more than one hundred and thirty picture books for children. He is currently working on Hop, a new animated preschool television series, and two other television productions based on book collaborations with R. L. Stine. He is married to psychologist and artist Laurie Krasny Brown, with whom he has collaborated on the bestselling Dino Life Guides for Families. Marc and Laurie divide their time between New York City and a small farm on Martha’s Vineyard. They have three grown children and two cats on dietary restrictions.
About the Academy of American Poets
Founded in 1934, the Academy of American Poets is the nation’s leading champion of poets and poetry with supporters in all fifty states and beyond. The organization annually awards $1.3+ million to more than two hundred poets at various stages of their careers through its prize and fellowship programs. The organization also produces Poets.org, the world’s largest publicly funded website for poets and poetry; established and organizes National Poetry Month each April; publishes the popular Poem-a-Day series and American Poets magazine; provides free resources to K–12 educators, including the award-winning weekly Teach This Poem series; hosts an annual series of poetry readings, and special events; and coordinates a national Poetry Coalition that promotes the value poets bring to our culture. To learn more about the Academy of American Poets, including its staff, its Board of Directors, and its Board of Chancellors, visit: https://poets.org/.
About Scholastic
For more than 100 years, Scholastic Corporation (NASDAQ: SCHL) has been encouraging the personal and intellectual growth of all children, beginning with literacy. Having earned a reputation as a trusted partner to educators and families, Scholastic is the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, a leading provider of literacy curriculum, professional services, and classroom magazines, and a producer of educational and entertaining children’s media. The company creates and distributes bestselling books and e-books, print, and technology-based learning programs for pre–K to grade 12, and other products and services that support children’s learning and literacy, both in school and at home. With 15 international operations and exports to 165 countries, Scholastic makes quality, affordable books available to all children around the world through school-based book clubs and book fairs, classroom libraries, school and public libraries, retail, and online. Learn more at www.scholastic.com.