Don McKay (born 1942) is a Canadian poet, editor, and educator.

Life

McKay was born in

Owen Sound Owen Sound ( 2021 Census population 21,612) is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada. The county seat of Grey County, it is located at the mouths of the Pottawatomi and Sydenham Rivers on an inlet of Georgian Bay. The primary tourist attract ...

, Ontario and raised in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. McKay was educated at the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...

and the

University of Wales The University of Wales (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Prifysgol Cymru'') is a confederal university based in Cardiff, Wales. Founded by royal charter in 1893 as a federal university with three constituent colleges – Aberystwyth, Bangor and Cardiff � ...

, where he earned his PhD in 1971, with a dissertation on the poetry of Dylan Thomas. He taught creative writing and English for 27 years in universities including the University of Western Ontario and the

University of New Brunswick The University of New Brunswick (UNB) is a public university with two primary campuses in Fredericton and Saint John, New Brunswick. It is the oldest English-language university in Canada, and among the oldest public universities in North Ameri ...

. In 2008, he was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

. McKay has lived in southwestern Ontario, New Brunswick, Vancouver Island and Newfoundland.

Poetic career

McKay is the author of twelve books of poetry, including ''Birding, or Desire'' (1986), ''Apparatus'' (1997) and ''Paradoxides'' (2012). He has twice won the

Governor General's Award The Governor General's Awards are a collection of annual awards presented by the Governor General of Canada, recognizing distinction in numerous academic, artistic, and social fields. The first award was conceived and inaugurated in 1937 by the ...

, for ''Night Field'' (1991) and ''Another Gravity'' (2000). In June 2007, he won the

Griffin Poetry Prize The Griffin Poetry Prize is Canada's most generous poetry award. It was founded in 2000 by businessman and philanthropist Scott Griffin. Before 2022, the awards went to one Canadian and one international poet who writes in the English language. ...

for ''Strike/Slip'' (2006). Beginning in 2002, he has also published five books of non-fiction prose, mixing

nature writing Nature writing is nonfiction or fiction prose or poetry about the natural environment. Nature writing encompasses a wide variety of works, ranging from those that place primary emphasis on natural history facts (such as field guides) to those in w ...

, thoughts on poetics, and philosophical and environmental reflections. Critical discourse has included him in a group of Canadian poets known as the 'thinking and singing poets,' along with Robert Bringhurst, Dennis Lee, Tim Lilburn and Jan Zwicky. McKay, published since 1973, is described as ' a poet with a patient eye, an acute arresting ear, over flowing with details of ornithology, botany, weather, industry, books and music; nuanced descriptions, philosophical phrasing, folksy idiom. madcap humour and elegy'. Others, consider 'awe, astonishment and wonder to be the keynotes of McKay's poems and poetics' and that his prime subject matter to be 'the workings of the human mind'. McKay has also made a wide impression as a teacher and editor. He was the co-founder and a manuscript reader for Brick Book
.
one of Canada's leading poetry presses, and was editor of the literary journal ''

The Fiddlehead ''The Fiddlehead'' is a Canadian literary magazine, published four times annually at the University of New Brunswick. It is the oldest Canadian literary magazine which is still in circulation. History and profile ''The Fiddlehead'' was establis ...

'' from 1991 to 1996. He has participated in the Sage Hill Writing experience in

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

and was Associate Director for poetry at the

Banff Centre for the Arts Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, formerly known as The Banff Centre (and previously The Banff Centre for Continuing Education), located in Banff, Alberta, was established in 1933 as the Banff School of Drama. It was granted full autonomy as ...

Writing Studio. He has mentored many fellow poets, including Ken Babstock, Marlene Cookshaw, Barbara Colebrook Peace,

Michael Redhill Michael Redhill (born 12 June 1966) is an American-born Canadian poet, playwright and novelist.birdwatcher Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, by ...

; and bird themes and flight are dominant topics in his poetry. In ''Birding, or Desire'' (1983), the quirky protagonist is never far from his ''Birds of Canada'' hobbyist's field guide. McKay's passion for birds and nature percolates throughout all of his work, and some consider 'McKay's preferred environment is located in the natural world'. McKay himself sees his writing as "nature poetry in a time of environmental crisis."McKay, Don. ''Vis-à-Vis: Field Notes on Poetry & Wilderness''. Wolfville: Gaspereau Press, 2001, p.9. McKay's poems are ecologically centred, inspired by the conflict between inspiration and spirit, instinct and knowledge. In his book of poetic philosophy ''Vis à Vis: Field Notes on Poetry & Wilderness'', McKay details many of his beliefs on metaphor, wildness, and the homing instinct. In that book, his definitive 1993 essay 'Baler Twine' describes those moments 'before wrestling with words and music ', a 'state of mind ' ,a preparedness, which he labels as 'poetic attention'; and further describes as a 'sort of readiness ', a 'form of knowing'. McKay also touches on his other main poetic themes of 'Wilderness', 'Home', and 'Matériel' (material existence).

Works

Poetry

* ''Air Occupies Space'' (1973) * ''Long Sault'' (1975) * ''Lependu'' (1978) * ''Lightning Ball Bait'' (1980) * ''Birding, or Desire'' (1983) (nominated for a

)
Web page titled "Don McKay" at the "writing canada into the millennium" Web site. Retrieved 6 October 2007 * ''Sanding Down this Rocking Chair on a Windy Night'' (1987) * ''Night Field'' (1991) (winner of the 1991 Governor General's Awards, 1991 Governor General's Award for poetry) * ''Apparatus'' (1997) (nominated for a

) * ''Another Gravity'' (2000) (shortlisted for the 2001 Canadian

) Web page titled "Griffin Poetry Prize 2007" at the Griffin Poetry Prize Web site. Retrieved 6 October 2007 * ''Varves'' (2003; chapbook) * ''Camber'' (2004) (shortlisted for the 2005 Canadian

) * ''Strike/Slip'' (2006) (winner of the 2007 Canadian

and the

Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize The Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize, established in 1986, is awarded annually to the best collection of poetry by a resident of British Columbia, Canada. One of the BC and Yukon Book Prizes, the award was originally known as the B.C. Prize for Poetry. ...

) * ''Field Marks: The Poetry of Don McKay'' edited by Méira Cook (2006) * ''Songs for the Songs of Birds'', audiobook (2008) * ''Leaf to leaf-Foglio a foglia'' (Italian translation by Sara Fruner and Filippo Mariano), edited by Angelo Longo (2010) * ''Paradoxides'' (2012) * ''Angular Unconformity: Collected Poems 1970–2014'' (2014) * ''Lurch'' (2021)

Other

* ''Vis à Vis: Field Notes on Poetry & Wilderness'' (2002) (nominated for a Governor General's Award for Nonfiction) * ''Deactivated West 100'' (2005) * ''The Muskwa Assemblage'' (2009) * ''The Shell of the Tortoise: Four Essays and an Assemblage'' (2012) * ''All New Animal Acts: Essays, Stretchers, Poems'' (2020)

References

Sources

* Brian Bartlett, ed. ''Don McKay: Essays on His Works.'' Guernica Editions, Toronto (2006). .

External links

Griffin Poetry Prize biography

Griffin Poetry Prize Poems and readings thereof, including video clips

Don McKay Papers, Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library

Don McKay fonds
at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; french: Bibliothèque et Archives Canada) is the federal institution, tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is th ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:McKay, Don 1942 births 21st-century Canadian poets 20th-century Canadian poets Canadian male poets Alumni of the University of Wales Living people Governor General's Award-winning poets Members of the Order of Canada University of Western Ontario alumni University of Western Ontario faculty University of New Brunswick faculty 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers People from Owen Sound