Justin Spring

Justin Spring is a prizewinning poet, writer, and video artist who works in many mediums: print, audio (CD), video (DVD; Internet). Free downloadable selections of all of his work is available at: http: //justin-soulspeak.blogspot.com/ Mr. Spring's written poetry has been published in such distinguished periodicals as American Poetry Review as well as in numerous quarterlies and anthologies. He is the author of seven collections of written poetry and seven CDs of SOULSPEAK oral poetry. In addition, he has created over 100 DREAMSTORY videos, as well as four fiction and non-fiction prose works: MIRRORS: The Aborigine Poetry of Eldred Vanoy, SOULSPEAK: The Outward Journey of the Soul, ALICE HICKEY: Between Worlds, and RIVER MOTHER: The Face of the Sphinx. Finally, he is the author of a unique art/poetry book, SOULPRINTS, which features his integrated visual art and poetry. Justin Spring is one of the few poets who works not only in the written mode of composition but also in a contemporary version of preliterate oral poetry called SOULSPEAK-as well as in a new, revolutionary video form called DREAMSTORIES. Many consider his work in the oral and audio/visual area to be pioneering. Among the recent poetry prizes and honors he has received are: For his written poetry: The 1997 State of Florida Individual Artist Fellowship, Finalist 1994 Academy of American Poets Walt Whitman National Prize Contest. Finalist 1997: Academy of American Poets Walt Whitman National Prize Contest. For his SOULSPEAK oral poetry: The 1993 Homer Award for Spoken Poetry, Tampa Bay Poetry Council 1995 POETICA Hall of Fame Award For his DREAMSTORY poetry videos: The 2005 John Ringling Individual Artist Fellowship, The 2006 State of Florida Individual Artist Fellowship, The 2006 State of Florida Individual Artist Enhancement award For his prose works (fiction and non-fiction) The 2010 Ringling Towers Literary Award for ALICE HICKEY: Between Worlds In 2009 he received the Ringling "Ageless Creativity" award for his lifelong contributions to poetry. Mr. Spring was educated at Columbia College and is the founder of SOULSPEAK (www.soulspeak.org). He divides his time between Florida and Mexico.