Two Painterly Forms
Inspiration can come from all sorts of places; nature, life, love, art. For two new poetic forms, art is the primary inspiration.
First, we consider the Rothko. Mark Rothko is a painter whose work consists of overlaid, solid-color rectangles. So it's no surprise that poetry based off his work would have the same elements of color and shape. The rules for a Rothko are these:
1. A Rothko must be written while standing in front of a Rothko painting.
2. The poem consists of three lines, three words each (similiar to haiku, no?)
3. The poem must include three color words, arranged so that their positions in the poem will make a "tic-tac-toe".
An example I wrote (while sitting in front of an image of a Rothko painting on my computer screen):
In dreams red
poppies white clouds
green grass float
The simplicity is what makes this work so well for me. It's a lot of fun to try and say volumes in nine short words.
The second form we'll look at is the Pollock. No, this has nothing to do with Poland. Instead, as you may have guessed, it is named after the painter Jackson Pollock. The first line of such a poem is a quotation, and the rest of the poem consists only of the words and punctuation found in the quotation. Not a terribly difficult premise, but the results can be quite deep. For example:
830 Fireplace Road (2)
by John Yau
"When I am in my painting, I'm not aware of what I'm doing."
When aware of what I am in my painting, I'm not aware
When I am my painting, I'm not aware of what I am
When what, what when, what of, when in, I'm not painting my I
When painting, I am in what I'm doing, not doing what I am
When doing what I am, I'm not in my painting
When I am of my painting, I'm not aware of when, of what
Of what I'm doing, I am not aware, I'm painting
Of what, when, my, I, painting, in painting
When of, of what, in when, in what, painting
Not aware, not in, not of, not doing, I'm in my I
In my am, not am in my, not of when I am, of what
Painting "what" when I am, of when I am, doing, painting.
When painting, I'm not doing. I am in my doing. I am painting.
(taken from here.)
More information on both of these forms can be found at About.com.
First, we consider the Rothko. Mark Rothko is a painter whose work consists of overlaid, solid-color rectangles. So it's no surprise that poetry based off his work would have the same elements of color and shape. The rules for a Rothko are these:
1. A Rothko must be written while standing in front of a Rothko painting.
2. The poem consists of three lines, three words each (similiar to haiku, no?)
3. The poem must include three color words, arranged so that their positions in the poem will make a "tic-tac-toe".
An example I wrote (while sitting in front of an image of a Rothko painting on my computer screen):
In dreams red
poppies white clouds
green grass float
The simplicity is what makes this work so well for me. It's a lot of fun to try and say volumes in nine short words.
The second form we'll look at is the Pollock. No, this has nothing to do with Poland. Instead, as you may have guessed, it is named after the painter Jackson Pollock. The first line of such a poem is a quotation, and the rest of the poem consists only of the words and punctuation found in the quotation. Not a terribly difficult premise, but the results can be quite deep. For example:
830 Fireplace Road (2)
by John Yau
"When I am in my painting, I'm not aware of what I'm doing."
When aware of what I am in my painting, I'm not aware
When I am my painting, I'm not aware of what I am
When what, what when, what of, when in, I'm not painting my I
When painting, I am in what I'm doing, not doing what I am
When doing what I am, I'm not in my painting
When I am of my painting, I'm not aware of when, of what
Of what I'm doing, I am not aware, I'm painting
Of what, when, my, I, painting, in painting
When of, of what, in when, in what, painting
Not aware, not in, not of, not doing, I'm in my I
In my am, not am in my, not of when I am, of what
Painting "what" when I am, of when I am, doing, painting.
When painting, I'm not doing. I am in my doing. I am painting.
(taken from here.)
More information on both of these forms can be found at About.com.
posted by Angel at 9:31 PM
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