By Lynn Fox

As someone who tried to teach English (and fails more often than not), Artice's poetry is a tough go. It’s mystical, it’s abstract and it points to somewhere beyond our experience ("Something beyond earth..."). It’s built up from the connection between ideas, not images. Understanding his poetry is like trying to run in molasses. But, finally, it’s worth the effort. Salvation is not easily won, Artice tells us. That’s the promise and value of his poetry. A.D. Upchurch has seen the dark night of the soul and offers us his hand to lift us up from the pit.