Obsidian Foundation

We’re thrilled to announce the 53 poets selected for the third edition of Obsidian Foundation’s Virtual Retreat! From hundreds of submissions across the Black diaspora, these poets stood out with work full of fire, clarity, and vision. We can’t wait to write, think, learn, and grow with you during this one week long retreat. . A huge thank you to every poet who applied. The quality and ambition of your work were extraordinary. If you weren’t selected this year, we encourage you to stay connected and apply again. Your voice belongs here! . . . . . .⠀ #ObsidianRetreat2025 #BlackPoets #PoetryRetreat #WritingCommunity #AfricanDiaspora #ObsidianFoundation #PoetryPractice #Blackpoetry #Poetlife #Blackpoets #Art #Poetry #Literature #Retreat #Community #Blackcommunity #Africa #Diaspora#Africandiaspora #Workshop #World #OpenCall @black_metics

We believe in the Black poets in all your variance. . Your otherness fuels us and makes our community. . Our purpose is simple: to unite these misfits. . We are a safe space you can always return to. . Our focus is to develop your writing excellence. . We are you, Black poet. Language is our technology. . Our wisdom comes from your learning. . Our strength comes from your humility. . We are the beginning of the journey. Join us! . . . . .⠀ #ObsidianRetreat2025 #BlackPoets #PoetryRetreat #WritingCommunity #AfricanDiaspora #ObsidianFoundation #PoetryPractice #Blackpoetry #Poetlife #Blackpoets #Art #Poetry #Literature #Retreat #Community #Blackcommunity #Africa #Diaspora#Africandiaspora #Workshop #World #OpenCall @black_metics

We are beyond thrilled to welcome back Malika Booker (@malika.booker ), Raymond Antrobus (@raymond_antrobus ), Dante Micheaux (@amorousshepherd ), and Nick Makoha (@NickMakoha ) — four incredible voices who have guided our past retreats — and to introduce you to Koleka Putuma (@kolekaputuma ), a new poet joining our faculty this year. . Together, they will lead this year online poetry retreat with workshops, craft talks, peer feedback sessions, and readings. . Apply now for the chance to learn from these remarkable poets. Link in the bio! . . . .⠀ #ObsidianRetreat2025 #BlackPoets #PoetryRetreat #WritingCommunity #AfricanDiaspora #ObsidianFoundation #PoetryPractice #Blackpoetry #Poetlife #Blackpoets #Art #Poetry #Literature #Retreat #Community #Blackcommunity #Africa #Diaspora#Africandiaspora #Workshop #World #OpenCall @black_metics

Next month, poet Roger Robinson (@rogerrobinsononline ) will deliver an online lecture on American poetry — the first in our Black Poetry Lectures series, co-hosted with Arvon (@arvon__ ). Registration is now open, you can visit the link in our bio to reserve your place. . . . . . #blackpoet #blackpoetry #art #literature #poetry @black_metics

Dear community, we are excited to announce The Black Poetry Lectures 2026, a series of conversations with the Black canon across four regions, delivered by contemporary Black poets. . After a successful pilot in 2023, we are excited to be partnering with Arvon (@arvon__ ) once again to co-host these upcoming series of lectures led by four award-winning poets: Roger Robinson (@rogerrobinsononline ), Victoria Adukwei Bulley (@victoriaadukweibulley ), Lorna Goodison and Ama Asantewa Diaka (@poetra_asantewa ). . From June until October, they will explore four distinct areas of the Black poetry canon, looking at Black writers past and present from Africa, the US, the Caribbean and the UK. . For more information and to reserve your place, visit the link in our bio. . In partnership with @arvon__ and the @aceagrams . . . . . #blackpoet #blackpoetry #art #literature #poetry @black_metics

Celebrating Raina J. León (@rainaleon )– Philadelphia’s 2026 Poet Laureate On behalf of the Obsidian Foundation, I want to offer our deepest congratulations to Raina J. León on her appointment as Philadelphia’s 2026 Poet Laureate. This is not simply a title it is a recognition of devotion, brilliance, and a life committed to language as liberation. Raina’s work has always moved with courage, tenderness, and intellectual fire. She builds spaces where poetry is not ornamental, but essential. Not distant, but embodied. Not exclusive, but communal. Those of us who have witnessed her teaching, her scholarship, her performance, and her radical generosity know that this honour is both deserved and inevitable. She carries poetry into rooms with reverence and into communities with purpose. Raina reminds us that poetry is a living force a bridge between grief and celebration, between history and possibility. As Poet Laureate, she will not only represent Philadelphia; she will expand what it means for a city to be held by a poet. We are proud. We are grateful. We are inspired. Congratulations, Raina. May this light multiply.

“Congratulations to Fahad Al-Amoudi, writer, editor, and Obsidian Foundation alumnus, who was recently awarded the Arts Foundation Futures Award (@the_arts_foundation ). A raw talent in the truest sense, we cannot wait to see what he will produce as the Literature Arts Foundation Fellow.” — Dr Nick Makoha (@nick.makoha ), Obsidian Foundation founder . Fahad Al-Amoudi is a writer and editor. His work is published in POETRY, The Poetry Review, Wasafiri, The London Magazine, and Mizna. He is the winner of the White Review Poet’s Prize 2022 and has been shortlisted for the Brunel International African Poets Prize 2022. Fahad is an alumnus of the Obsidian Foundation and a graduate of the Writing Squad. His debut pamphlet, when the flies come (ignitionpress, 2023), was selected as a Poetry Book Society Winter Choice 2023 and was shortlisted for the Michael Marks Award. . #BlackPoets #Poetry #WritingCommunity #Literature #UK @black_metics

Endless thanks to the Obsidian alumni for bringing so much grace, generosity, and brilliance to this year’s poetry showcase. It was truly an honour to witness your craft! . . . . . . #PoetryShowcase #BlackPoets #PoetryRetreat #WritingCommunity #BlackDiaspora @black_metics

We are excited to announce the ten poets selected to read at our online poetry showcase, presented in partnership with the Poetry Society (@thepoetrysociety ). These poets took part in our week-long writing retreat held in December 2025 and will be sharing their latest work. They will read alongside our founder, Dr. Nick Makoha (@nick.makoha ). . The Poetry Society has hosted a showcase reading following each of the previous Obsidian retreats in 2020 and 2023. These events have been memorable, introducing writers who have since gone on to publish award-winning debut collections. . Don’t miss this opportunity to hear the very latest new voices—visit the link in our bio to reserve your place. . . . . . . #PoetryShowcase #BlackPoets #PoetryRetreat #WritingCommunity #BlackDiaspora @black_metics

Debunking Literary Magazines: A Masterclass with Sana Goyal . Sana Goyal (@sansyg04 ), Editor and Publishing Director of Wasafiri magazine (@wasafirimag ), takes the 2025 Obsidian Foundation alumni through a masterclass on debunking myths around the world of literary magazines –– offering advice on submitting and publishing your work to the magazine and its annual prize for new writing. Participants will be given exclusive discounted subscription options after attending the masterclass. . Please note: this event is only available for poets who participated in Obsidian Foundation’s 2025 retreat and is offered as part of their aftercare package. To learn more about Obsidian Foundation head to . This event is in partnership with Wasafiri (). . Sana Goyal is the Editor and Publishing Director of Wasafiri. She has an MA in Postcolonial Studies and a PhD in literary prizes from SOAS, University of London. She has experience chairing book events and working with small arts organisations. Her reviews have appeared in The Guardian, Financial Times, Times Literary Supplement, and elsewhere. She was a judge for the 2025 International Booker Prize. . . . . . . . #Masterclass #literarymagazine

This month, the Poetry Society (@thepoetrysociety ) presents a showcase reading introducing some of the most exciting up-and-coming Black poets in partnership with us. This Poetry Society showcase event introduces ten of the outstanding poets who participated in the week-long writing and networking retreat we held in December 2025, inviting them to present their latest work. They will read alongside our founder Dr. Nick Makoha (@nick.makoha ). . The Poetry Society has held a showcase reading after each of the previous Obsidian retreats in 2020 and 2023. These have been memorable readings, introducing many of the writers who’ve since gone on to publish award-winning first collections. Don’t miss this chance to hear the very latest new voices, visit the link in the bio to reserve your place. . The full list of readers will be announced soon ! . . . . #PoetryShowcase #BlackPoets #PoetryRetreat #WritingCommunity #BlackDiaspora @black_metics

Thank you to our partners for once again making Obsidian Poetry Retreat possible: @aceagrams @thepoetrysociety @poetry_london @cavecanempoets @magma__poetry @nationalgallery @splscotland @nationalpoetrylibrary @thepoetryarchive @thepoetryschool @arvon__ @wasafirimag .