Barbershop Boi

Cal Calamia

Issue No. 22 • Spring 2021


Artist Statement

I work primarily in poetry, and I love to enhance the poetic with visual and auditory supplementation. The written and the performative dance around each other in my brain. My work is driven by the need for social change, and it is a reclamation of many narratives. I always create in pursuit of broader empathy.

Artist Bio

Cal Calamia (he/they) is a bilingual queer trans educator, activist, and poet from Chicago. His performative work has been featured at many spoken word series across The Bay, and his first book San Franshitshow was just published by Nomadic Press. Notable accomplishments include impressing a teacher in kindergarten when he correctly spelled vacation, attending two classes of an MFA program, and often being told his class is a student’s favorite. Find out more about Cal at calcalamia.com