“Her Gaze”: a poetry tribute to Caroline Herschel
Gallery view of Viewmaster and one still from “Her Gaze” (2021).
I’m delighted to share that “Her Gaze,” a poetry tribute to astronomer Caroline Herschel is now published in Tab Journal: The Journal of Poetry & Poetics from Chapman University.
Designed as a ViewMaster reel, this poem pays tribute to the life and work of Caroline Herschel (1750–1848). As a visual poem, the text is framed by Herschel's sketches of Comet C/1786 P1 (Herschel), which she observed on 1 August 1786 between the constellations Ursa Major and Coma Berenices. These diagrams, which were featured in the first paper by a woman ever read to the Royal Society, frame the story of Herschel’s accomplishments. Produced as a ViewMaster reel, the poem invites the reader to look skyward, embodying the stargazing stance and pointing the gaze towards this incredible woman’s labor.