There was something about the town in this painting that really got up my nose. Not sure why. I wrote several poems about it for the Ekphrastic challenge. This is one of them.
In our town only the dead walk
or the defiant, skimming the shadows
of the empty streets after night falls.
In our town the house fronts frown,
and windows howl in outrage,
while streetlamps point the finger
at ghosts and outcasts robed in sin.
We robe ourselves in righteousness
and join the hallelujah chorus.
In our town the streets are safe,
without fear, for behind each window
framed in lace is a finger on a trigger.
Jane Dougherty Writes 
It does look rather depressing. 💜💜
Dead doesn’t come close…
Oh! Dear!
🙂
Reblogged this on Art, Photography and Poetry.
Thank you for reblogging!
My pleasure. Great poem. Goff
I’ll post the others over the next couple of days.
I’ll watch out for them. Happy Day. Goff
You too 🙂
Cheers.
Hi, Jane. Happy Friday. Thanks for sharing such a well penned poem using stunning imagery. I really enjoyed reading. I have re-blogged. Here is the link https://goffjamesart.wordpress.com/2019/12/06/in-our-town/ . Have a wonderful day. Goff
Thank you, Goff. Describing the ideal town is hard, but some places I know I would hate.
Have a great weekend 🙂
My pleasure. It is the struggle with words and ones imagination that makes good poetry. Happy Writing. Happy Blogging. Goff
The struggle to make the words in the writer’s head make the same sense in the head of the reader. Very gratifying when it works. Best writing regards.
Cheers. Happy Day. Happy Writing. Goff
🙂
Thanks.
The dark front of the house on the right side is looking very mysterious.
They’re inside, plotting…
Oh.
all I feel when I see this is a sense of horrible foreboding. power words to go with it
Thanks Beth. I’m glad it makes your flesh creep too. Not a town I’d want to venture outside in after dark.
I hadn’t seen this challenge. Well done. You are right–it’s very disquieting, and that figure looks like a ghost. The buildings on the left look like they’re faces, and they are definitely plotting something. You can see them talking or singing to each other.
I almost didn’t do this one because I don’t much like the painting and it certainly doesn’t evoke a place I’d like to visit. I’m pleased you saw the unsavoury aspect of those houses too 🙂
The more I look at it, the creepier it gets!
By the time I’d written the third poem I really hated it 🙂
Hahahaha
I love these. A depressing town.
There are so many like that. Talk about little boxes…
I had ghosts in mine too. It definitely looks like an unpleasant place.
Mine wasn’t chosen, but I’ll get around to posting it eventually. I need to do some art. (K)
I don’t think they like my attitude 🙂 There is definitely a ghost in that street.
I thought most of the selections were too timid.
The Ekphrastic Review is not exactly a hotbed of iconoclasm or contestation.
Some weeks I like the work better than others, but I suppose that’s to be expected. I like some of the art better than others too.
The names that crop up the most often tend to be poets that don’t do much for me. Yes, some of the paintings leave me uninspired too.
I’m intrigued to see what kind of perspective they approve of for this week’s painting. I know what I think of it, and somehow I don’t think it will pass the test.
Yes that will indeed be interesting. I was wondering why she chose it at all. It’s not by far the best rendering of Salome. Way too passive.
It seems to encapsulate the male voyeur aspect of the Salomé story, in the expression, the body language and the age—she’s a mature consenting adult not a kid.