Douglas Kearney


Douglas Kearney is an American poet, performer and librettist. Kearney grew up in Altadena, California. His work has appeared in Nocturnes, Jubilat, Beloit Poetry Journal, Gulf Coast, Poetry, Pleiades, Iowa Review, Callaloo, Boston Review, Hyperallergic, Scapegoat, Obsidian, Boundary 2, Jacket2, Lana Turner, Brooklyn Rail, and Indiana Review.'' In 2012, his and Anne LeBaron's opera, Crescent City,'' premiered and received widespread praise. He is currently an associate professor at the University of Minnesota.

Education

Kearney attended Howard University as an undergraduate. He graduated from California Institute of the Arts, with an MFA.

Awards and honors

Kearney has received multiple notable fellowships, including the Cave Canem Fellowship, Bread Loaf Writer's Conference Fellowship, Callaloo Creative Writer's Workshop Fellowship, and Returning Fellowship at the Idyllwild Summer Arts Poetry Workshop.
In 2007, the Poetry [Society of America] named Kearney a Notable New American Poet. The following year, he was part of the National Poetry Series. Kearney wrote the libretto for George Lewis's opera The Comet, which was named as one of two finalists for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in Music.
YearTitleAwardResult
2006Swimchant for Nigger Mer-folkCoat Hanger AwardWinner
2008SelfWhiting AwardWinner
2014PatterCalifornia Book Awards Poetry FinalistWinner
2017Buck StudiesCalifornia Book Award for PoetrySilver
2017Buck StudiesCLMP Firecracker Award for PoetryWinner
2017Buck StudiesRoethke Memorial Poetry PrizeWinner
2021-Campbell Opera Librettist PrizeWinner
2021ShoNational [Book Award for Poetry]Finalist
2022ShoGriffin Poetry Prize Winner
2022ShoHurston/Wright Legacy AwardNominee
2023Optic SubwoofCLMP Firecracker Award for Creative NonfictionWinner
2023Optic SubwoofPoetry Foundation Pegasus Award for Poetry CriticismWinner

Works

Anthologies