2025 WINNING POEMS (MORE WINTER TO SPRING) AND BIOS
BY CLAUDIA DOHERTY
Claudia Doherty is a visual artist with work held in private collections around the world. Specializing in oils and acrylics, she is drawn to moody, earthy tones and subject matter that is both beautiful and bleak. She seeks to capture the poetry of a figure, an object, or a place — bringing depth and character to her work through texture, often scraping and layering paint to create a hard-scrabble look of imperfection. Born in Boston and raised in New England, Claudia earned her BA in Economics from the University of New Hampshire before beginning a career in financial services. After the births of her three children, she began seriously pursuing art, studying under established local artists such as Eli Cedrone.
BY CLAUDIA HEMMENT
Andrea Hemment is a lifelong Newton resident. She is a wife, mother, custom dessert maker, former Italian teacher, and a lover of nature, music and literature. Poetry has always fascinated her, and she credits her Lincoln-Eliot school fifth grade teacher, Mrs. Emily Sullivan, for introducing her to the haiku. Her poem was written on a cold and windy night as she dreamed of spring.
BY LISA KING
Lisa has called Newton home for the past 17 years. During the day she is an Account Executive for a technical software company and in her spare time she dances tap and jazz, plays golf and travels as much as possible. She saw the Haiku contest and thought it would be fun to exercise her creative side...most likely due to a dad who appreciated a good limerick.