View from the Ochre Room

In his studio in the asylum at Saint Remy,
the artist sets up his easel, takes a sheet
of paper the size of a street poster (maybe
it was once a poster), and attaches it,
smooths it flat, arranges chalks, oils,
watercolours and brushes.
He chooses carefully, black chalk
to sketch the window, a little off-centre.
Light passes through the glass of jars,
bottles and panes, illuminates the ochre
of the small room. He likes to mix his media
to bring his vision to life, just a little paper
showing between bars and blue of sky,
a technique to draw the viewer’s eye.

Kim M. Russell, 14th March 2024

‘Window in the Studio’ by Vincent van Gogh, 1889

It’s Thursday and at the dVerse Poets Pub Lillian is hosting Open Link Night, as well as dVerse LIVE on Saturday, when we can read poems of our choice – or just listen. For today, we are invited to post one poem of our choosing or write   to the optional prompt, which is to write a poem motivated by van Gogh’s painting ‘Window in the Studio’, painted in 1889.

33 thoughts on “View from the Ochre Room”

    1. Thank you! Apparently he produced a painting a day. That’s collection of Vincent’s paintings was huge when he died, and six months later Theo died and his widow inherited them.

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    1. Thank you, Jim! I love art and artists’ stories, and I really enjoyed the film about van Gogh, Recently I listened to a great podcast about him on BBC Sounds.

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