KQED ARTS (SAN FRANCISCO) -- Shuck, 51, is the seventh poet to be selected for the position, and the first person of Cherokee descent to hold the spot. She succeeds Alejandro Murguía, who began his tenure in 2012.
“Kim Shuck is passionate about our city’s diversity and its multiplicity of voices,” said City Librarian Luis Herrera in a statement. “As San Francisco Poet Laureate she will celebrate our strength of language and culture. Kim loves our city and values our libraries. We’re excited to work with her to further our city’s literary and poetic tradition by engaging our communities and bringing us together through poetry.”
A former American Indian Studies instructor and alumnus at San Francisco State University, Shuck is also an artist who works primarily with textiles, baskets and beads. She previously held a residency at the DeYoung Museum in 2010. Her works have been displayed across the United States and in Taiwan.
Photo by Gregory Sykes