Join Artists Reefka Schneider and Poet, Steven Schneider for a presentation on their eco-tapestry of art and poetry, Last Poet in the Woods, Thursday February 27, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. For this special presentation Professor Schneider will discuss the literary traditions of ekphrasis and eco-writing as well as the social, pedagogical and ecological goals of Last Poet in the Woods.

Reefka Schneider, artist, is the creator of the artwork in the highly acclaimed ekphrastic books and traveling exhibits Borderlines: Drawing Border Lives / Fronteras: dibujando las vidas fronterizas and The Magic of Mariachi / La Magia del Mariachi. Reefka’s artwork has been published in Writing Towards Hope: Human Rights in Latin America (Yale University Press) and many prestigious journals. She has had exhibitions of her work throughout the Southwest, including “Dreamwalkers” at the Michael McCormick Gallery in Taos, New Mexico, “Ekphrasis: Sacred Stories of the Southwest” in the Obliq Gallery in Phoenix, Arizona; “Daughters of Juarez” in the Parks Gallery in Taos, New Mexico, and more.

Steven Schneider, poet, is the founder of the MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). Professor Schneider, a member of the Texas Institute of Letters, has pioneered the teaching of culturally relevant literature at UTRGV and through his NEA Big Read grants developed innovative community literacy programming. He is the co-creator with his artist wife Reefka of two bilingual, ecphrastic exhibits and books: Borderlines: Drawing Border Lives / Fronteras: dibujando las vidas fronterizas and The Magic of Mariachi / La Magia del Mariachi.

Last Poet in the Woods is inspired by the contemporary classic, Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv. Join them Thursday February 27, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. to explore the vibrant colors, expansive landscapes and wooded trails in water colored painting by Reefka and the poems written in response to them by Professor Schneider. This program is free with general admission.

For more information, contact (956) 681-3370 and follow Quinta Mazatlán on social media. Quinta Mazatlán is located at 600 Sunset Dr. in McAllen.

Photo Caption: Reefka Schneider and Steven P. Schneider are the creators of Last Poet in the Woods.