Presented in partnership with Humanities Washington as part of Handwork 2026 and National Poetry Month.

Author Tara Campbell invites participants to explore art through creative writing while engaging with selected works from BIMA’s Crafting Futures: Emerging Artists Invitational exhibition, part of Handwork 2026.

Go beyond the wall plaque and discover new ways of looking at an object, sculpture, or curated piece through guided observation and writing exercises. The term worldbuilding often applies to speculative fiction, but every writer creates worlds with their words. In this workshop, you’ll exercise your worldbuilding skills in an ekphrastic context, imagining new meanings behind what you see. Information about the objects and artists will be shared along the way, but the focus is interactive: you’ll have opportunities to forge personal connections with the works, the museum, and each other. 

Humanities Washington Speakers Bureau is made possible with support of the State of Washington via the Office of the Secretary of State, the Thomas S. Foley Institute of Public Policy and Public Service at Washington State University, 4Culture, the Wildhorse Foundation, and generous contributions from other businesses, foundations, and individuals.

Registration open to writers and art enthusiasts of all levels. No prior experience needed—just curiosity and imagination.