Discipline: Literature – poetry

Irene McKinney

Discipline: Literature – poetry
Region: Belington, WV
MacDowell Fellowships: 1982, 1995
Irene McKinney (1939-2012) was an American poet and editor, and served as the Poet Laureate of the state of West Virginia from her appointment by Governor Gaston Caperton in January 1994. She was a protégé of and editor for Louise McNeill; a relationship which helped form her commitment to regionalism in writing—McKinney's poetry is steeped in the rural Appalachian landscape and frequently explores the connections between people and place. McKinney was proud of her West Virginia rural heritage. She shows the depth of her value for her home state in this quote: "When people say this state is backward, I simply am astounded. I had access to a farm community, a small peaceful town and school and good, dedicated teachers. I was in nature and in literature--a perfect combination for a writer."

Studios

Heyward

Irene McKinney worked in the Heyward studio.

The Lodge Annex, a wing on the west side of the men’s dormitory (The Lodge), was completed in 1926. Initially intended as an apartment for a caretaker, the space was soon repurposed as a live-in studio for writers. In recognition of a major endowment gift from the DuBose and Dorothy Heyward Foundation, Lodge Annex was…

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