The Academy of American Poets has unveiled this year’s National Poetry Month poster, 200,000 copies of which will be given away to libraries, schools, and indie bookstores as part of the annual April festivities. It might be hard to tell from our tiny reproduction (so by all means download the full PDF file), but the Christoph Niemann-designed image is a portrait of Walt Whitman composed solely of the characters in the phrase “2007 National Poetry Month April,” repeated in various point sizes as needed. The gig came after a recommendation by fellow designer Chip Kidd; according to Academy president Tree Swenson, “It was obvious from looking at Christoph’s work that he would have a fresh and vital take on how to convey an appreciation of poetry.” A look at previous posters confirms Niemann’s contribution is about the most striking they’ve had since, well, Kidd’s own effort two years ago.
The accompanying caption? Whitman’s line: “And our visions, the visions of poets, the most solid announcements of any.”