The Garden

Founded 2003

The Garden became an "official" club in 2003 but had already existed for several years as an informal publication for students interested in publishing their writing, and as an extension of the literature and poetry classes offered within the liberal arts curriculum at Berklee and Boston Conservatory at Berklee.

From its inception, it was meant to be a forum for student writers outside of the classroom where they might find a supportive audience of their peers and develop a sense of artistic community. For many years, the Garden met two or three times a month on a weekday evening in the cafeteria area at Boston Conservatory, where it sponsored a coffee house with coffee and cookies. Students were invited to read their own work or work by other poets, perform monologues, or play music. It began as primarily as a Conservatory club but has since expanded to both College and Conservatory and continues to foster this collaborative literary space into 2023.

Mission

The Garden is a space for poets to join together and share, create, and explore poetry as a community.

Vision 

The club's vision is to be a place where both seasoned and beginner poets alike can interact and be inspired by each other. Members come together to get excited about poetry, whether it be individually, the work of others, or poetry created together. The Garden is a club led by the community—members are encouraged to tell everyone what they want to learn, bring works that they want to share, and by being passionate about the art, members work together to cultivate a space where everyone leaves feeling inspired every time. Poetry is the language of the soul, a language that can articulate sadness and bring joy like nothing else. If you are curious about poetry, love poetry already, or just want to look at the world in new ways, this club is for you.

Goals 

• More poetry on the spot(s)
• Publish a physical book of student work at the end of the year
• More field trips
• Huge emphasis on the theme of collaboration this year!

Events

For almost every year since it's inception, the Garden has published physical books of student work, each with a differing theme and original artwork alongside the literary craft members produce. The club has hosted and joined many poetry open mic nights around campus and outside, and members of the club have been published in Berklee's online magazine, FUSION, as well as collaborating with other departments of Berklee and Boston Conservatory at Berklee, including improv dance and poetry nights with the Conservatory's Dance Division. One previously hosted event was Poetry on the Spot, where members took the club's 1961 typewriter around Boston and shared free, custom-made poetry with passersby.

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