Saturday, February 1, 2020

What can art do?

What can art do? 

What can art do? 
Horror at the gates of hell
Now all the light is gone 

Paint paper brush
art-mother beckoning
what  can art do? 

Inner window wide
Peter Pans on the sill
up, up,  lift and fly 

Paint paper brush 
butterflies in fields of flowers 
blooming  on the page

What can art do? 
Beauty at the gates of hell 
When all the light is gone 

January 31st 2020 Hounoux, commemorating Friedl Dicker-Brandens who took a case full of art materials with her when sent to Theresienstadt concentration camp. She set up an art room for all the children of the camp. 

3 comments:

  1. Very moving Sally, It is also a lovely poem to read out loud, So many other examples came to mind after the long pause and reflection this poem evoked. Art for children set up in Syria (For Sama), Palestine, the Tsunami goodness, the final verse, so true, so powerful.

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  2. Thank you Jude. I was struggling to write my response to this anniversary when I started rereading the beautiful Haiku Book you bought me and the form was just right I think for all the weight of emotion.

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  3. Yes, interesting, I definitely felt the power and appropriateness of fewer words.

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