On July 10, community members and artists gathered at the Eno Arts Mill Gallery in Hillsborough, sitting before a performance space set with a microphone and music stand. As the sun set, the room was cast with a dim, warm glow and the ambient noise hushed as someone stepped into the light. Weave & Spin had begun.
The Weave & Spin series is an open-mic event held every second Wednesday of the month from 7-9 p.m. Weave & Spin features a different artist every month who gets to share their work before opening the floor to others.
July’s featured artist was Ashley Lumpkin, a Georgia-raised writer, editor, actor and educator. Lumpkin is also a Bull City Slam coach and has been a competing member in the slam poetry group since 2015.
After a brief introduction from Morrow Dowdle, the series organizer, Lumpkin took her place at the front of the art gallery. She shared poems about experiences with her family, being an educator, growing up in the church and being from the South.
Lumpkin said she is always truthful in her poetry; she often writes about her identity and where she hopes to see herself in the near future.
“I came out in writing about being queer in my poems before I was ever out to anyone in my family,” Lumpkin said. “I wrestled with my own mental health in my poems before I ever saw a therapist.”
She said that writing helped her during those times of coping with her identity and mental health, but that it helped only because it was the only outlet she knew.
“I wish I had been more open to being out and seeking actual medical, professional help, seeking actual help a lot earlier than I did,” she said.
Lumpkin was able to mix old and new works during her set. She said her next project — a memoir called "The Saddest Days" — will be out in September, with hopes to have a book tour attached to its release.
