A Poem Courtesy of Georgia O'Keeffe

Happy Poetry Friday everyone! And, thanks to Kathryn Apel for hosting us over on your blog. Folks, head on over for some fantastic pet poetry fun!

This week I've been noodling with a poem inspired by last week's visit to the Georgia O'Keeffe and Henry Moore exhibit at the MFA in Boston. I'm a long-time fan of O'Keeffe, and I was delighted to discover so many new works and incredible quotes, facts, and perspectives on her artistry. The exhibit was a rich experience of wonders. And, what prompted me to write after the fact was both a total surprise and unexpectedly solemn, given the joy I felt in my time at the exhibit. Art begets art in the most unexpected ways, and isn't that delightful?

BANANA FLOWER NO. 11

First, two facts:

Artist charcoal is part ash.

Georgia O’Keeffe has no descendants.

~

In the traveling exhibit

amid sculptures and paintings and movies

hangs a charcoal banana flower

drawn on fragile paper

ninety-one years ago.

The shading and linework and careful devotion to form

all speak of your artistry Georgia,

but it is not just you I am in awe of here.

Given the yellowing of the paper,

the dusty nature of charcoal ash,

I doubt you designed this drawing to last.

But someone saw it.

Someone loved it.

Someone and many someones after them

tended this ephemeral piece of yours—

saw it preserved and stored and hung,

cradled it on the journey from art lover to lover…

and now I love it.

~

This drawing could easily have smudged or ripped or faded away,

but they loved you enough

to save it, Georgia.

They loved you enough

to see the value in this dark, austere thing

among your vibrant colors.

They loved you enough

to tenderly, tenderly,

care for your ashes.

~Sarah Grace Tuttle

To see Banana Flower No. 11 yourself, visit the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum's website here.