Dylan, creator/editor of
the brilliant tinywords,
has chosen one of my poempictures as the
cover of
the latest issue of this international daily
magazine of
haiku and micropoetry. I am lost for words to say
how
delighted I am, so a simple thank you will have to
do.
Another reason to celebrate is
that
I've finally reached what seems to me to be a happy
ending
for a portrait I've been working on lately of Jehane
Markham, a neighbour and
fine poet/playwright. As The Jehane Markham
Trio she
reads her work with a backing of two musicians - a
subtle,
original and hugely enjoyable blend of jazz and
poetry. Rough
Winds Productions was
created with her partner, the actor Roger Lloyd
Pack, "to support the search for pleasure and
understanding
in the poetic realm". You may remember I did a
sketch
of Roger reading The
Wasteland four years ago (scroll to April
13, 2006 ). He's performing it
again on June 3rd at the Free
Word Centre and Jehane will be presentingThe London
Series with
her trio. I'll be there for sure.
Jehane sat for me for two
hours
and I made a good start then proceeded
to wreck the painting slowly and surely in the next
few weeks.
There's no explanation for BUAPGSS
(Buggering-Up-A-Perfectly-Good-Start
Syndrome) but I'm sure you know what I'm
talking about. Anyway, I gradually dragged the
portrait out
of the limbo it was threatening to remain in and
did something
I haven't done before: I painted words as a
background to
the face: her words, a poem that I like so much: Fear of Falling.
Somehow it all came together then. What do you
think?
The poem is in her collection
THIRTY
POEMS published
by Rough
Winds. The last five lines, hard to read in this
photo, are:
if I'm not careful,
I'll fall right through,
knocked out by emerald
knuckledusters,
the weight of water,
electric blue.
Portrait of Jehane
Markham with
her poem 'Fear of Falling'. Acrylic
on canvas. 50 cm x 40.5 cm. NdA May 2010
