Gabriela Denise Frank‘s “( yubəč / chinook )” are paired concrete poems in the shape of salmon, one heading downstream to the ocean, the other heading upstream to spawn. They were published in the I Sing the Salmon Home anthology (Empty Bowl Press) edited by former Washington state poet laureate Rena Priest. They were written to honor the cultural and biological significance of salmon, a keystone species upon whose wellbeing numerous plant and animal species—including humans!—depend. Yubəč is the Lushootseed word for chinook salmon.

Gabriela produced this recording through the Jack Straw Artist Support Program. Applications for 2024’s Artist Support Program and our other artist residencies are open now!