Exploring Erasure Poetry: A Creative Challenge

Erasure Poem & Booklet with Monotype Print and Collage by Julianna Paradisi 2025

In the past I have expressed resistance to Erasure poetry. I am not alone. Erasure poetry is the art of taking an essay, document, letter, recipe-a page of words written by someone else, and “erase” words until a new thought, a poem, is created. My resistance stems from the act of erasing the words of another writer who spent time thoughtfully choosing each one. Some of my fellow Visual Poetry workshop participants agreed.

We were assigned to create an Erasure poem. Part of creative growth requires getting comfortable with discomfort-if you stay in your safe zone, it’s difficult to grow as an artist. So I took on the assignment willing to try something new.

For my reference page I chose the Desiderata, written in 1927 by Max Ehrmann.  I first read it around the age of fifteen and the words still hold their meaning. I hesitated to deface this classic, but hoped I would learn something of value from the experience. 

Rather than “blacking out” words with a Sharpie, I chose to cut out the words I wasn’t going to use. I backed the cut out spaces with a collage. I made a second collage for the facing page. The cover of the booklet is a monotype print I made, with a collage overlay.

Here’s the poem’s text:

Amid noise and haste, remember
peace.
Without surrender, speak truth.
Keep interested-
Let this not blind you to high ideals and heroism.
Be yourself.
Disenchantment is as perennial as the grass.
The years nurture strength.
Be gentle,
the trees and stars have a right to be here.
Be at peace with the confusion of life,
it is still a beautiful world.

                         -Julianna Paradisi 2025