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Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Woman of Clay

Inspired by In Bed The Kiss - Henri Toulouse-Lautrec, 1892


He closes his eyes to reality,
Lost in his private passion,
Paying no mind to
The feigned ecstasy
Of yet another trivial connection.
She plays her role well,
Always the consummate actress,
The well-disguised deviant.
She is moldable and compliant,
Anything he needs her to be
With miniscule consequences,
As long as the price is right.

10 comments:

Mark Windham said...

Excellent; the use of the words (unnoticeably infused) and description of the painting.

Sheilagh Lee said...

this goes very well with the picture.

Old Egg said...

Toulouse-Lautrec was a great observer of life and had the knack of painting life truthfully. I loved the poem but probably cannot agree with the minuscule consequences.

Ellecee said...

I really liked this piece. You have painted the picture with your words. Well done.

Rinkly Rimes said...

You wove the words into your poem so effortlessly.

Andy Sewina said...

Yeah, well written piece.

Just for the record:

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec’s 1892 painting, In Bed: The Kiss, captures two prostitutes from a brothel in a lip-locked moment of lesbian love. After painting several female couples getting cozy in bed, Toulouse-Lautrec supposedly said, “This is better than anything else. It is the very epitome of sensual delight.”

Mary B. Mansfield said...

Wow, I did not know the background on this painting, quite interesting! Making the woman in my poem a prostitute was a case of me trying to turn the expected interpretation of the painting on it's head just a bit. (Or maybe it's just my evil side deciding to pick up the pen today, I have not decided for sure yet!)

And as for the "minuscule consequences" I decided since the man in the poem had already chosen this path, I honestly didn't think he'd have much regard for what happened to her afterward.

Thanks for all the comments!!

Mariya Koleva said...

Mary, you did wonder with those words and the picture. Your interpretation of the picture has taken a surprising and very nice direction. I myself discarded this picture prompt, as too trivial. And here you go - and prove me wrong with this wonderful poem!
Best, M.

Berowne said...

An excellent, well-written take on the art...

Lady In Read said...

love the painting, the use of the words, as well as reading the comments !