Illawarra First Nations artist Kirli Saunders has released her new collection of poems, Eclipse. Photo: Children of the Revolution.
Proud Gunai woman and Illawarra multidisciplinary artist, writer, singer-songwriter and consultant Kirli Saunders (OAM) is gearing up for the official launch of her new book Eclipse.
Released by Allen & Unwin last month, the book can be found on the shelves of Dymmocks in Wollongong and is launching later this month with Collins Booksellers Thirroul.
Saunders’ third poetry collection and the latest of eight books including Returning (2023), Afloat (2024) and The Land Recalls You (2024), Eclipse is a profound and visionary collection of poetry accompanied by the artist’s original minimalist portraits and sketches drawn “from the earth”.
“It’s quite special because there’s a sort of conversation between the poetry and illustrations,” Saunders says.
Offering a glimpse back to the ‘old ways’, while offering a fresh blak queer lens through which to view the present and future, Eclipse explores personal narratives, First Nations wisdom and the “many shapes of love, from one of Australia’s most prolific young creatives”.
The collection, written on Dharawal and Wodi Wodi Country, is broken into three sections – terrain, the depths and constellations.
“Between 2022 and 2024 it felt like there was eclipse on eclipse. Culturally speaking, eclipses are an incredible meeting of sun, moon and earth,” Kirli says.
“This work is about the duality and coming together of parts that sometimes feel separate.
“During this period in my life I had love, heartbreak, grief, great joy and great loss – so the full gamut of human experiences comes together in this collection.”
Visually, the collection stands apart from Saunders’ earlier works thanks not only to the simple black and white line drawings weaved throughout but also, a use of “concrete poetry”, where graphic space plays a central role in both design and meaning, by using words arranged into objects.
The poems span a variety of themes with a goal of “bringing people back to land, sea and sky”.
“There are poems for making coolamons and gathering shellfish, poems about our children and aunties, poems for members of my family like my mother and brother, poems for the queer girls I’ve loved, poems for the heartbreakers and the neurodivergent and love letters to the land, sea and sky,” Saunders says.
Eclipse launches with support from Collins Booksellers Thirroul at Ryan’s Hotel, 138 Phillip Street, Thirroul on Wednesday 19 March from 6:30 to 7 pm. Pre-order your copy here and pick it up at the launch for signing.
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