Friday, September 21, 2012

Welcome to Poetry Friday

A Japanese Pine Grove, Silk Painting by Hiroshige

Art museum visits are gold mines of poem ideas for me. This week I visited the Farnsworth in Rockland, Maine. An Andrew Wyeth painting named “Two Sisters” spoke to me, so I sketched and wrote notes for a future poem.

There’s a wonderful Frank Benson exhibit going on now. I was surprised to learn Benson also made etchings. “Crows in Rain” inspired the beginnings of a haiku. I’ve now learned that haiku evolve, at least for me. They look simple, but I must write many versions before I think I’ve arrived.

The same thing happened with the haibun I share today. Haibun is a Japanese form that combines prose with haiku. My poem began with a walk in the pine grove behind our house. By the time I had finished working with two kind editors, my visit to Japan had crept in. My first published haibun appears in this month’s issue of the online magazine A Hundred Gourds. The issue includes many Japanese forms of poetry. Here’s the link.

Sample the other poems in Renee's Poetry Friday candy dish at No Water River.

9 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your haibun publication, Joyce! I'm not very familiar with the form, but you have piqued my interest.

    I love that you get inspired by paintings and art shows, and that you sketch your impressions in your notebook, along with taking word notes. I have recently made a new start in my notebook-keeping and I'm all ears whenever anyone talks of using theirs effectively.

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    1. Joyce - congratulations on the publication! I love the way you have built the images and complimented your story with a sharp, clear haiku. Great job! I am going to have to spend more time reading A Hundred Gourds. It looks wonderful!

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    2. Thanks, Violet. In museums be sure to carry a pencil for sketching and notes. Pens are a no-no.

      Andy,thanks for the comment.For me the complementary haiku is the hardest part! I have to remind myself that it need not relate directly to the image that precedes it.

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  2. I've never really come across the haibun form before, except in a full-length story like Wabi Sabi that has a sequence of prose and haiku. I love the affinity between the beech tree and "me", "slipped in".

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  3. That's beautiful, Joyce. I could imagine someone acting/dancing it out while they read it.

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  4. Joyce, I just came across your poem this morning, and love it! I've never been to Japan, but I feel like I have now...so wonderfully descriptive in so few words.

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  5. Congratulations, Joyce, on the haibun publication in A Hundred Gourds! "Japan" is beautiful - both the prose and the haiku. I enjoyed the phrase "slipped in," too.

    [I'll have to stretch my wings a bit and tackle haibun after doing haiku by themselves these last couple of years - you've inspired me.] :0)

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  6. I love the Farnsworth! Glad to find another fan of museum inspired poetry.

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  7. Thanks for the visits and comments, Everyone. It's wonderful to be part of such a supportive community.

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Comments welcome.