Lillian here – tending the bar for Poetics. Did you know I love to go to fine arts museums and art galleries? While I enjoy looking at paintings, I am most amazed by sculptures. How can someone turn marble into a woman with exquisite fingers, even detailing small lines on the knuckle joints? How do you sculpt with bronze? How can metal be formed into a perfectly shaped bird? Sculptures that depict people stop me in my tracks. My imagination starts its questioning: What was the person thinking while posing for the artist? Or was this stone person simply birthed from the artist’s imagination? What personality did the artist imagine, chiseling life into stone? What did the sculpted person talk about before, during, or after the posing session(s)? What would this statue say to me if it suddenly came to life?

So – for today’s poetics – pick a sculpture, preferably a human form, and do one of the following:

• Take on the persona you imagine this being to have and write as if you were the person, telling us your “back story,” or what you’re thinking during the posing,  or tell us what’s happening to you in the time after the sitting — whatever you share, do it in the voice of that sculpture.
• Or, be the artist having a conversation with the subject, either before, during or after the sculpting.
• Or, be the sculpture and suddenly come to life now – talk to us!

In other words, in some way, breathe life into the sculptor’s subject!

I’ve included a few sculpted images you might choose from. Or find one from the public domain (IE pixabay.com – search for sculptures). Or visit an art gallery or museum or park near you. Or maybe you’ve taken pictures of a sculpture on a vacation.

** Post the picture of the sculpture and your poem. Give credit if that is appropriate.

** Do not tell us about the sculpture. Be the sculpture!

Have fun with this one! Let your imagination play with the sculpture you behold!

First three photos are from pixabay.com — in the public domain. Last two are my photos: Pensativa (white marble girl) by Felipe Castaneda, in the Bermuda Art Museum; and an angel in St. George’s Cemetery in Bermuda.

(Look beyond bullets below about this prompt and learn about a free online course offered by The University of Iowa International Writing Program!) 

Whatever you decide to share for today’s Poetics, here is how it works and what we ask you to please do:

• Post your poem and photo to your blog
• Add the dVerse link at the end of your poem – perhaps with a statement like “Posted for today’s prompt at dVerse“
• Add your link/poem to Mr. Linky below
• And, so very important, please read and comment on other poets’ poetry at dVerse — all of us enjoy visits — “Likes” are nice too but a word or two really makes us smile!
• Tell your friends about dVerse and let the party grow!

Our thanks to Petru Vijoen who alerted us to this exciting opportunity:
The University of Iowa’s renowned International Writing Program is offering a free online course entitled Whitmans’ Civil War: Writing and Imagine Loss, Death and Disaster. It will include video conferencing. Lead sessions will be taught be two excellent professors. For more information and/or to sign up go to https://novoed.com/whitman-2016/