John Barr

Over the past 30 years my poems have been published in five books, four fine press editions, and many magazines. My newest book, The Boxer of Quirinal, will be published by Red Hen Press in June, 2023. Previous publications include:

Dante in China (2018)

The Adventures of Ibn Opcit (2013)

The Hundred Fathom Curve: New & Collected Poems (2011)

Grace (1999)

Centennial Suite (1998)

The Hundred Fathom Curve (1997)

The Dial Painters (1994)

Natural Wonders (1991)

The War Zone (1989)

I also served for many years on the boards of arts organizations, including Poetry Society of America and Yaddo, and of Bennington College. In 2013 I retired after ten years as inaugural President of the Poetry Foundation in Chicago. The Foundation publishes Poetry magazine and is the recipient of a major financial gift from Ruth Lilly.

Concurrent to my literary activities, I had a long parallel career from which I am retired. After graduating from Harvard Business School as a Baker Scholar, I had a Wall Street career that spanned 30 years. I was a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley, founded three start-ups including the country's first natural gas marketing company, and was active in restructuring the electric and gas utility industries. Prior to that, I attended Harvard College on a Navy scholarship and graduated with honors in 1965. For the next five years I served as a Naval officer on destroyers and went to Vietnam three times.