First she was named U.S. Poet Laureate. Now, Lexington woman earns ‘genius’ award

Ada Limón, the current U.S. Poet Laureate who set much of her lyrical work in her adopted home of Lexington, has a new award: “MacArthur Genius.”

Limón was named one of 20 MacArthur Foundation Fellows named Wednesday. Often called “Genius Grants,” the prize comes with an $800,000 award for artists, writers, scientists, urban planners and other standouts to continue their work.

The foundation release said Limón was a poet “heightening our attention to the wonders of the natural world and our connections with one another. Across six books of poetry, she melds close observations with a direct tone that resonates powerfully with a wide readership. She constructs rhythmically intricate lines with pared-down, conversational language and approaches each new work as an opportunity to forge a confiding intimacy with her reader.”

As Poet Laureate, Limón has traveled across the U.S. and formulated a project on the national parks. “You Are Here” features an anthology of commissioned nature poems and poetry installed as public art in seven national parks.

Her poetry collection, “The Carrying,” in 2018 won the National Book Critics Circle Award. The book before that, “Bright Dead Things,” was a finalist for the National Book Award. She’s won a Guggenheim among many other awards and speaks to hundreds of thousands in hosting American Public Media’s weekday poetry podcast “The Slowdown.”

Limón moved to Lexington 12 years ago to be with her now-husband, Lucas Marquardt, a racing journalist who owns a video marketing business. Horses have been an important them in her work; “How To Triumph Like a Girl,” won the 2015 Pushcart Prize.

“I like the lady horses best,

how they make it all look easy,

like running 40 miles per hour

is as fun as taking a nap, or grass.

I like their lady horse swagger,

after winning. Ears up, girls, ears up!

But mainly, let’s be honest, I like

that they’re ladies. As if this big

dangerous animal is also a part of me,

that somewhere inside the

delicate skin of my body, there pumps

an 8-pound female horse heart,

giant with power, heavy with blood.”

This story was originally published October 4, 2023 at 1:25 PM.