he wrote
not in words
sea-sick on a page
but painted with damp brush
on warm canvas
sent a postcard portrait
from the poplars in his garden
and the shores of the lake
Kim M. Russell, 2017
Postcard of Gustav Klimt Im Garten seines Ateliers by Moritz Nähr 1910, produced by EDITION SKYE Wien
My response to dVerse Poets Pub Tuesday Poetics: Wish you were here.
De is hosting Poetics this Tuesday and is asking whether we’re tired yet? She says that many of us are rocking at least one poem a day, all month long. Which is why today she is keeping it short, simple and, hopefully, inspiring. She wants us to write a postcard poem.
This can be as simple as penning a poem that is short enough to fit on a postcard (or cocktail napkin, or Post-it note). Think micropoetry. We can add the challenge of writing a poem that is to, or from, someone, as if it were a note on an actual postcard. We can also choose a postcard image (one we own, or one we find online – just be sure to give credit where due), and use it as a visual prompt. Our poems can be serious, funny, fun, tongue-in-cheek, gleeful or melancholy. We just have to make sure they’ll fit on a postcard (think 12 lines or less), take us somewhere fabulous and make every word count.
I took an old poem and rewrote it.
How gorgeous. I love the image that “sea-sick on a page” evokes.
Wonderful piece, Kim. And there is such a peace to the garden in your postcard photo.
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That is the garden where Klimt had his studio. It was full of plants and cats.
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Nice postcard poem about Klimt. I didn’t know this form existed until De’s prompt.
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It’s great, isn’t it! I used to do this with students when I was a teacher, using the poem ‘A Martian Sends a Postcard Home’ by Craig Raine as inspiration: http://www.poetrybyheart.org.uk/poems/a-martian-sends-a-postcard-home/
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I love Klimt’s landscapes. I used to have a birch wood in my office, but we had a water issue at work and I lost it. This reminded me so much of that.
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I never tire of his work. Every time we go to Vienna, I have to visit the Belvedere to get up close to his paintings. One of the best exhibitions they had was following a trail of the postcards he sent to Emilie Flöge, from which I have a catalogue. There’s an interesting article in the Telegraph from 2012 (the year we visited): http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/austria/vienna/articles/Vienna-celebrates-Gustav-Klimts-150th-anniversary/
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Sorry, Sarah, it wasn’t the Belvedere but the Leopold Museum. The Kiss is at the Belvedere!
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I enjoy Klimt’s work and love your imagery of ‘postcard portrait from the poplars in his garden and the shores of the lake’ :o) xxx
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🙂
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Klimt painted like a berserk cosmonaut, all starlight, pixie dust, & golden dragon scales–eons ahead of his time. Your card is dope, cool, boss & bitchin’
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I’m glad you like it, Glenn! Klimt is one of the painters I would have loved to have met. Vienna at that time was colourful and exciting! However, war was just around the corner, followed by Fascism.
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Well, Glenn has used all the adjectives. I’m speechless!
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Me too! 🙂
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Oh! Bravo – just fabulous!
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Thank you, Jilly!
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no words but a painting on a small card, how thoughtful and imaginative!
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Thanks Gina!
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I love this postcard. I too love Klimt and wish I could have met him. This is a beautiful message I would love to receive.
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I would have loved to have been Emilie Floege. She was a talented fashion designer and wore the most unusual gorgeous clothes. As much as I like beautiful things, I can’t pull them off and always look scruffy!
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‘…damp brush on warm canvas…’ love this! 🙂
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Thank you!
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Reblogged this on When Angels Fly.
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Thank you!
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Welcome!
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A beautiful poem worthy of the artist.
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Thank you, Charley!
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sea sick on the page – yes, I think that is very descriptive..
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Thank you!
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Cool postcard both visual and wordical 😉
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Wordical – that has to go into the dictionary! 😉
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I love this, Kim! It’s a postcard from your travels to Europe, which you send everyone back home…at least it appears to be a friend’s message to another art aficionado you want to share it with, real or not. 😉
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🙂
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This is beautiful! Love the image you shared along with it too
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Thank you, Bryan. It’s a postcard I bought from the exhibition at the Leopold Museum in Vienna.
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I love his work and I can see his influence on your art, Kim. This is delicious:
words
sea-sick on a page
but painted with damp brush
on warm canvas
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Thank you, Victoria.
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‘Sea-sick words’ that’s brilliant
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I love ‘painted with damp brush on warm canvas’. That garden looks so peaceful.
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That garden inspired Klimt and can be glimpsed in some of his paintings.
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I’d never heard of him. Checking out his work now.
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I loved the images it brought ….a canvas is always warm!
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Thank you, Sreeja!
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Aw, I believe a lot of us here were drawn to that sea-sick on a page..
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I got that phrase from something Klimt wrote to Emilie Floege – he didn’t like writing, hence the postcards.
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Lovely 🙂
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One of my favourite artists!
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Marvelous!
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Oh.. So beautiful:)
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Thank you, Kae!
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🙂
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