Eric Braman's Five Influences

• Dead Dad Jokes by Ollie Schminkey is a killer collection of poetry that explores hardship with radical honesty, humility, and humor. As a queer writer it is a source of inspiration I return to when considering how to put my truth on the page with a balance of empowerment and kindness.

• The Wildnerness That Bears Your Name by James A. Pearson captures the wonders of nature in ways that widen the human experience; it's a collection I return to regularly for my own processing of the seasons and life. The fact the author is from the PNW and the imagery reflects this doens't hurt.

• I Hope This Finds You Well by Kate Baer is a collection of black out poems that reclaim hateful messages, exchanges, and screenshots from her personal device, reclaiming the language toward empowerment, joy, liberation, and so much more.

• Things You Know But Cannot Explain by Rick Bartow was a exhibition representing 40 years of the artist's work, which I caught while it was at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art. I regularly return to Bartow's work in all its raw, radical, uninhibited beauty—never shying away from life's beautiful and difficult parts. As an Oregon artist I saw parts of our local ecology translated in beautiful ways that moved a deep place in me.

• "Nieko Nebijau" by Daddy Was a Milkman is a Lithuanian song that I fell in love with through my husband. The song roughly translates to "I'm Not Afraid of Anything" or "I Fear Nothing", and is a song about loving without hindrance - accepting whatever may come.

I suppose some themes that are emerging is art that is radically open, connected to our local ecology, and centered in love, empowerment, and courage. That feels true to what I strive to create as an artist myself. 

Photo is of Rick Bartow's painting. More may be viewed online at https://jsma.uoregon.edu/art/exhibition/rick-bartow , and https://www.rickbartow.org/about

Eric Braman is a contributing member of the Tethered Literary community. Tethered Literary invites past contributors to share other literary and art offerings they have in the form of a book review, author interviews, or any kind of neat-o-keens.

You can find more lists from our Winter 2026 Issue contributors on our Instagram @tethered_literary.