Poet in Residence

Katehoffman

The Bellefonte Art Museum proudly welcomes our Poet-in-Residence, a vital voice at the intersection of language and visual art. Through readings, workshops, and written works inspired by our exhibits and community, the Poet-in-Residence brings fresh perspective to the museum experience—inviting visitors to see, feel, and reflect in new ways. This program celebrates the power of poetry to deepen engagement, foster connection, and illuminate the world around us, one carefully chosen word at a time

Introducing the Bellefonte Art Museum’s 2025 Poet-in-Residence: Kate Hoffman

The Bellefonte Art Museum for Centre County is delighted to announce Kate Hoffman as our 2025 Poet-in-Residence. This residency program, inspired by initiatives like the Guggenheim’s Poet-in-Residence program, aims to integrate poetry into the museum experience, fostering deeper connections between visual art and the written word.

Kate Hoffman is currently an English teacher at Delta High School in State College and lives in downtown Bellefonte. She has written poetry since she was a child, and has been a member of the Pennsylvania Poetry Society for the past ten years. She enjoys being outside and often finds inspiration for her poems from the natural world. In her spare time, she can be found in independent bookstores, antique stores, her garden, or the woods.

Stay tuned for upcoming events and programs featuring Kate Hoffman, as we embark on a year of artistic exploration and poetic discovery at the Bellefonte Art Museum.

Poet in Residence Work

November Poetry

"Advice to Myself after Louise Erdrich" November Poem

Advice to Myself 

after Louise Erdrich

Eat the bread the waitress delivers—

and butter it: both sides. And then order dessert.

Buy the expensive leather shoes—

the red ones that match nothing

in your closet.

Read for another hour, and turn

your phone face down—no, throw 

it out the window.

Listen to the katydids chirping— let the lives of insects remind you

how brief life is.

Tell your friends you love them, 

and strangers, too. Also tell yourself—

and believe it.

October Poetry

"Break Free" October Poem

Short sleepless nights give way to gray days

Rusty clouds and tears of rain wind through the macadam maze

Oil stains repel emotions, forever locked into a single spot

Welcoming the dawn followed by dusk when days remain hot

Give up your nights, Give up your days

Give up your sight, Give up your ways

BREAK FREE

September Poetry

"Ode to Friction" Ode to Friction

Ode to Friction

 

Fire cannot form 

without it. Matches

do not ignite when struck 

against a smooth surface.

There would be no heat, no 

pleasure, without friction.

 

So when you speed

things up, 

make 

them 

easier– 

push 

this 

button 

flick

this 

switch–

can you comprehend

my insistence, my resistance 

to the lack of resistance?