This article came from the Winter 2026 issue of Lilac City Local magazine
Literature may guide us through the most pivotal moments in our lives— love, joy, family, friendship, grief, uncertainty, growth—you name it. Stories make their mark on us.
While a picture is worth a thousand words, local artist Tracy Poindexter-Canton turns thousands of words into art to preserve the legacy of the works she loves. The goal: inspire others to read the books her art is born from.
On the walls of Liberty Park Library, nestled in a corner by the nonfiction stacks and a quiet study room, you will find two works by local artist Tracy Poindexter- Canton, made from many materials – beads, acrylic, golden bones, parchment, wax. Each item intentionally chosen to express the themes Tracy took from Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon and Beloved.
A Toni Morrison scholar, Tracy knows her works backwards and forwards. She occasionally guest lectures at Gonzaga University, where students will read Morrison’s work, discuss their themes, and be presented with Tracy’s artwork to seek out the different symbols in them they recall from their readings.
“Toni Morrison has always been my person for everything. I read her books over and over at various ages, and find new meaning in them,” said Tracy.
Through mixed media art, Tracy tells the story of her personal connections with literature in hidden meanings throughout the work. In her piece To Shalimar, golden bones represent a symbol of ancestry and knowing where you come from. Above the character named Milkman, a figure flies on wings shaped in the outline of Africa, sketched and formed with glue, to symbolize his roots in the world and his heritage. In another piece, she hid keys in the art to symbolize home, accessibility, and sense of ownership for something of your own. When inspiration strikes, art becomes a spiritual experience for her. She becomes the creative vessel for her passion for literature.
“I am trying to go beyond illustrating the novel, trying to take it to a new level of emotional experience from what I’ve read,” said Tracy. “This is the theme that touched me, the characters, and I am trying to hone in on that.”
While Tracy has permanent works on display at the library, To Shalimar and Carrying, she has also shown month-long displays at a variety of library locations featuring some of her newer work. Her first show at Indian Trail Library in 2017 centered around five of Toni Morrison’s works: Song of Solomon, Beloved, Sula, The Bluest Eye, and Home, which started her relationship with the library. Tracy frequently works with bookstores and libraries to connect the viewer with the literature its inspired by.
And Morrison isn’t the only inspiration she pulls from. Tracy is drawn to literature where she can sense the characters based on their intricate description. This includes Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Charmaine Wilkerson’s Black Cake, anything from the playwright August Wilson, children’s books from Eric Carle, among many others. She has displayed art at Shadle Park Library, the former East Side Library, and South Hill Library. Tracy’s next library art display will be at Indian Trail Library in January 2026 with a collection of daily collages made on pieces of cardboard and scrap paper within just one hour. The collages are created intuitively as visual vignettes that suggest their own narratives.
“I want to encourage people to get excited about the books that the art is based off and build a stronger connection with it. My goal is for people to see the artwork, read the books they’re inspired by, and come back to the artwork once they’ve made a connection with the texts,” she said.
Tracy’s love of Morrison’s works acts as a catalyst for creation. This love goes beyond words as she becomes the vehicle for her creation to take shape. For those who don’t have the words to express the love they have for a piece of literature, Tracy’s advice is to go deeper. “Do what speaks to you, what brings you joy. Don’t worry about what other people think. When it comes purely from my soul, it works out.”
