In March 2021 I was commissioned by Freshly Greated to write a ‘found poem’ celebrating memories of Great Yarmouth Market Square – ‘Market Memories’.
Language from community discussions on this well remembered part of Great Yarmouth, was recycled to create a found poem that was then recited by residents as part of a tribute film. It was a really lovely project to work on – the market in Great Yarmouth is one of my favourite places and there was an incredible amount of material shared.
Because we were in the pandemic all discussion was done on community forums so I printed out all the chat and references and noted the most popular mentions and memories that were shared by most, as well as really stand out comments to honour the real love for the market people have. The poem was then shared with the commissioning team and went through rounds of edits. The sense of warmth shared about the place was amazing. It was a very unusual way to work but I created a whole range of shape poems out of the material as well which were mini experiments – plus played a soundtrack of music inspired by all the musical references in the conversations! Because it was a found poem, it felt right that the voices on the video were also community voices too – these were contributed by the Freshly Greated community producers team.
Found poetry is the process of writing using language ‘found’ in conversation, or in text.
The written equivalent of a collage, the first poem I exhibited as visual art was a ‘found poem’, called ‘Class Shit = Art Disease’ which appeared at the Mill Road Social Centre in Cambridge. Found poetry is often associated with Dadaists and recently been popularised by comedian Dave Gorman.
GY Market Place is one of the longest trading markets in the UK and is rich in history and heritage. Many of the stalls have been run by the same families for generations, with the Easter Fair a long standing favourite event with residents.
You can see Market Memories here: