Ekphrasis: Poetry Meets Art at the Frick
“Poetry lifts the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar.” — Percy Bysshe Shelley
As a writer—often of poetry—I know what it is to be moved by art, love, nature, and be compelled to write it down. It gets in my cells and moves like a current of energy, insisting that it be let out. And my creativity is almost always ignited by the creativity of others, which can be found around every corner. And so, I write.
The writing down of it, the stringing together of words to evoke feelings or images, is something I am able to do. That doesn’t mean it’s always good; it doesn’t mean that it has to be shared or published, or that anyone else has to see which words I’ve ascribed to my moments of inspiration. And on top of that, when I write, I almost never know the literary terms to describe a poem’s meter, if I’ve written a trochaic line, or if my enjambment reads like a run-on sentence.
But I know how writing poetry feels—for words to pour out of my pen or dance around my head excitedly before I can jot them down. I know the feeling of being struck by the muse. And I suspect that you do too. Oh, you’re not a writer, you say? Says who?
Ekphrasis is a literary technique in which a written or spoken work describes or comments on a work within another medium of art. Created by the Greeks, but popularized by the Romans, the goal of ekphrastic writing is to make the reader or listener envision a work of art as if it were physically present. The most contemporary use of the term relates to poetry as a response to a visual work of art.
Though poetry is often seen as mystifying or unclear, as a personal response to the world around us, it has an inherent confessional and emotional quality making it more relatable to each of us, even those who have said, “Who me? I could never write a poem.” But, you can.
Ekphrasis is writing inspired by art.
At the Frick, we are surrounded by beautiful, inspiring works of art—paintings, sculptures, textiles, jewelry, books, and on and on. We want to celebrate the beauty and meaning of these objects by encouraging reflection, evoking emotion and personal narrative, and offering opportunities to write and experience the writing of others.
In an upcoming poetry program on the evening of Tuesday, April 7, Ekphrasis: Poetry Meets Art, we aim to connect and strengthen the artistic and literary communities of Pittsburgh, and to amplify the voice of the poet. Celebrated local poets have been invited to create new works in response to our current exhibition, Maker & Muse: Women and Early Twentieth Century Art Jewelry, which will be presented in a public reading at The Frick Art Museum.
Along with readings of commissioned work by invited local poets, we will feature the winners of the Frick Ekphrastic Poetry Challenge! The ekphrastic response poems will be verbal and written representations of objects found in Maker & Muse. Entries will be divided into three groups—students in Grades 6–8, students in Grades 9–12, and adults. Click here for guidelines and deadlines.
I hope you’ll consider joining us at the Frick to experience our free, public reading of works inspired by the Maker & Muse exhibition—as an observer and appreciator, as a listening ear, or as a poet. I’m truly looking forward to reading the submissions and experiencing the objects in our galleries through your eyes.
Ekphrasis: Poetry Meets Art will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 7 at The Frick Art Museum and is free to the public. Reserve your ticket here.
Ekphrasis Resources:
https://interestingliterature.com/2019/11/ekphrasis-poems-paintings-examples/
https://daily.jstor.org/10-modern-ekphrastic-poems/
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/nov/14/ten-best-ekphrasis-john-mullan
Photo: Joë Descomps, Three Graces Pendant, c. 1900. Gold, plique-à-jour enamel, diamond, pearl. Collection of Richard H. Driehaus. Photograph by John Faier, © 2014 The Richard H. Driehaus Museum.
