Earlier this week, award-winning poet Chimwemwe Undi charmed a UWinnipeg audience with her earnest reading from her work Scientific Marvel. Scientific Marvel is a collection of poems that earned her the 2024 Governor General’s Literary Award in Poetry.
Besides being a poet, Undi is a prolific writer, editor, activist, and lawyer based on Treaty 1 territory in Winnipeg. She was recently appointed as the 11th Parliamentary Poet Laureate for a two-year term that began on January 1, 2025.
Her poetry has profound imagery that not only enchants but excites.
Dr. Ifeoluwa Adeniyi
“Chimwemwe is a gifted poet whose treasured poems are powerful, captivating and thought-provoking,” shared Dr. Ifeoluwa Adeniyi, assistant professor, UWinnipeg’s Department of English. “Her poetry has profound imagery that not only enchants but excites.”
Following the reading from Scientific Marvel, a title inspired by a century-old beauty school in Winnipeg that closed in 2017, Undi answered questions from the engaged audience with honesty and humour.
Undi’s poetry speaks to her lived experience in Winnipeg that resonates with the reader.
Dr. Kerry Sinanan, assistant professor of English and organizer of the event, said, “Undi’s poetry is located in Winnipeg’s geographies and localities, and offers new insights and questions on history, settler colonialism, race, gender, and (un)belonging ‘in a recent nation where no one looks me in the eye’.”
She also notes, “Her poetry examines the relationship between power and language that stems from her experience as a lawyer. Undi’s poems offer meditations that have a much broader relevance for Canada.”
Dr. Sinanan ended the reading with a conversation with Undi, and managed questions from the audience that included many international students.
No stranger to UWinnipeg, her work has been featured at Gallery 1C03 as part of the Sanctuaries Exhibit in 2021, as well being featured at the Winnipeg Art Gallery.
Undi has previously served as the Winnipeg Poet Laureate for 2023 and 2024, she is also the recipient of a CBC Manitoba Future 40 award, a Winnipeg 150 Medal. Undi co-founded Voices, Ink Youth Poetry Slam, and in 2022 she won the John Hirsch Award at the Manitoba Book Awards.
“Undi’s writing sparkles with imagination, humour, and poignant reflection,” said Dr. Jenny Heijun Wills, director of UWinnipeg’s Critical Race Network. “It is of no surprise that she has earned so many recognitions here in Manitoba and across the country. Hosting such a decorated, but also brilliant, poet at The University of Winnipeg is an absolute honor.”
This event was hosted by UWinnipeg’s Department of English Special Programs (ESP).
