Meredith Bergmann, is a U.S. sculptor, poet, and essayist whose work is said to "forge enriching links between the past and the concerns of the present.", her memorial to which prominent African-American poet, novelist, children's writer, and playwright during the Harlem Renaissance, is in the collection of the New York Public Library?
Meredith Bergmann Meredith Bergmann, is a U.S. sculptor, poet, and essayist whose work is said to "forge enriching links between the past and the concerns of the present." She studied at Wesleyan University and graduated from The Cooper Union with a BFA. While at Cooper Union she discovered sculpture and spent several years traveling around Europe and studying in Pietrasanta, Italy. Her memorial to Countee Cullen is in the collection of the New York Public Library. In 2003, she unveiled the Boston Women's Memorial on Commonwealth Avenue Mall in Boston which includes statues of Phillis Wheatley, Abigail Adams, and Lucy Stone. In 2006, Bergmann's statue of the famous contralto Marian Anderson was unveiled on the campus of Converse College in Spartanburg, SC. In 2010, Bergmann created a sculpture of a slave girl named Sally Maria Diggs, or "Pinky," whose freedom was purchased for $900 in 1860. Bergmann also completed a commission commemorating the events of September 11, 2001 for New York City's Cathedral of St. John the Divine entitled "Memorial to September 11".
What Work Is What Work Is is a collection of American poetry by Philip Levine. The collection has many themes that are representative of Levine's writing including physical labor, class identity, family relationships and personal loss. Its primary focus on work and the working class led to it being studied with emphasis on Marxist literary criticism. The focus on work is expressed in thematically different ways throughout the collection. Furthermore, much of the collection was shaped by concerns for blue collar workers as well as nationwide political events. Critical acclaim for Levine has also led his poetry, including this collection, to undergo further analysis by critics and students.