Free Verse Collection
Viewing comments for Chapter 16 "The Artist"A collection of free verse poems
32 total reviews
Comment from l.raven
HI Tony, I do remember when it can out about lead based paint...so many of the toys were painted with it...your poem describes the danger of the lead...so very well written...and a perfect picture...luff Linda xoxo
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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HI Tony, I do remember when it can out about lead based paint...so many of the toys were painted with it...your poem describes the danger of the lead...so very well written...and a perfect picture...luff Linda xoxo
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Thanks, Linda. The lead paint and the ice-cream were both metaphors to highlight the fact that many of the combatants in the Spanish Civil War were young men with high ideals. Toy soldiers perhaps contain more danger than lead! LOL
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you are so welcome Tony...God bless..luff xxoo
Comment from krys123
Tony; this is a masterfully written piece of poetry that truly is very beautiful and very prolific and poignant. The imagery enhances the poems writing by being very descriptive and exquisitely expressive: "Each brushstroke licks around memories of leaden soldiers, and if they were ice cream melting on a hot summer's day; A foretaste of that dripping on the nursery floor." A very descriptive a wind that is foreboding to children who would eat the lead from the soldiers and if ingested can be very damaging to their health. It is written very innocently but the words are very powerful. Thank you for sharing and posting and may the good Lord be with you always Tony. And again you never cease to amaze me at your exceptional writing.
Alex
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Tony; this is a masterfully written piece of poetry that truly is very beautiful and very prolific and poignant. The imagery enhances the poems writing by being very descriptive and exquisitely expressive: "Each brushstroke licks around memories of leaden soldiers, and if they were ice cream melting on a hot summer's day; A foretaste of that dripping on the nursery floor." A very descriptive a wind that is foreboding to children who would eat the lead from the soldiers and if ingested can be very damaging to their health. It is written very innocently but the words are very powerful. Thank you for sharing and posting and may the good Lord be with you always Tony. And again you never cease to amaze me at your exceptional writing.
Alex
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Thank you very much, Alex, for your deep response to this poem and for the six stars. Not many people understood its intention. The artwork is much clearer in the original. It is a picture built up from layers of bandage overlaid by thick white paint. A strange idea, but the effect is compelling, as is much of the art arising from the Spanish Civil War.
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You are so sincerely welcome Tony and it's my pleasure
Comment from MSJVClarke
Excellent poem. The words flowed smoothly. The content was good. The story you told certainly fit the artwork, as well as the title. Good response to abstract. I remember toy soldiers; Probably at a time when they had lead.
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Excellent poem. The words flowed smoothly. The content was good. The story you told certainly fit the artwork, as well as the title. Good response to abstract. I remember toy soldiers; Probably at a time when they had lead.
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Many thanks for your review, MSJVC. The artwork was certainly thought-provoking, as is much of the art arising from the Spanish Civil War.
Comment from kiwijenny
Your poem is like an abstract painting..
I like .....his puppet a Pierrot I like that he paints the spaces between
Artists see like that...the U shapes
Thanks for this
God bless
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Your poem is like an abstract painting..
I like .....his puppet a Pierrot I like that he paints the spaces between
Artists see like that...the U shapes
Thanks for this
God bless
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Thanks, Jenny! A little too abstract for some on FS! I spent several days looking at abstract art arising from the Spanish Civil War, some of which seemed to say far more than what was on the surface.
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Did you see any by Miro? I'd love to see them in the flesh.
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Yes, a few. His brush strokes are so delicate and there is a whimsical simplicity in the detail of his artistic expression. I didn't like or understand all of them, but some were absolutely compelling.
Comment from nancy_e_davis
So true Tony. Many of our toys, furniture, homes and schools were painted with lead based paint when we were growing up. Asbestos was a danger for our children. Who is there to protect society from the greed of wheeler-dealers who just want to get rich? LOL Well done. Good luck. :<) Nancy
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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So true Tony. Many of our toys, furniture, homes and schools were painted with lead based paint when we were growing up. Asbestos was a danger for our children. Who is there to protect society from the greed of wheeler-dealers who just want to get rich? LOL Well done. Good luck. :<) Nancy
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Many thanks, Nancy. You have a good point there!
Comment from harmony13
Excellent Poem! The author's words are descriptive, creative and thought provoking. The author's notes were so helpful
in understanding the poem. The artwork is perfect and compliments the theme of this poem.
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Excellent Poem! The author's words are descriptive, creative and thought provoking. The author's notes were so helpful
in understanding the poem. The artwork is perfect and compliments the theme of this poem.
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 16-Jan-2015
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Thanks, Harmony, for taking the time to read and respond.
Comment from Sandra Stoner-Mitchell
Our babies cots were coated in leaded paint too, Tony, which and thousands of other babies cut our teeth on! Lead was used for a lot of children's things. Your poem really makes us stop and think about what is still around us doing harm. Well written and a pleasure to read. xsx Sandra
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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Our babies cots were coated in leaded paint too, Tony, which and thousands of other babies cut our teeth on! Lead was used for a lot of children's things. Your poem really makes us stop and think about what is still around us doing harm. Well written and a pleasure to read. xsx Sandra
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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Thank you, Sandra. You are absolutely right.
Comment from pattipac
All out of sixes, Tony, or I would pin one on this outstanding poem about an artist filling the spaces between images with as much meaning as a poet leaves a deeper meaning between his penned lines.
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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All out of sixes, Tony, or I would pin one on this outstanding poem about an artist filling the spaces between images with as much meaning as a poet leaves a deeper meaning between his penned lines.
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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Many thanks, pattipac, both for your review and virtual six.
Comment from Dorothy Farrell
Hi Tony - this is a good free verse in response to a painting you have seen. Your stanzas 3, 4 and 5 are written with good use of metaphor. There is even something sinister in the last two lines. I know, and you tell us in your author notes about the danger of lead soldiers, but I seemed to read even more in this poem. A thoughtful read. Actually I was brought up in a house with lead pipes which fed our drinking water. I'm still alive and kicking, Ugh!!! Regards Dorothy x
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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Hi Tony - this is a good free verse in response to a painting you have seen. Your stanzas 3, 4 and 5 are written with good use of metaphor. There is even something sinister in the last two lines. I know, and you tell us in your author notes about the danger of lead soldiers, but I seemed to read even more in this poem. A thoughtful read. Actually I was brought up in a house with lead pipes which fed our drinking water. I'm still alive and kicking, Ugh!!! Regards Dorothy x
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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Thanks, Dorothy! I don't think there were many recorded deaths by lead poisoning from toy soldiers either! You are right, I was aiming for a suggestion of deeper meaning. So many of the soldiers who fought in the Spanish Civil War were scarcely more than boys.
Comment from Domino 2
Excellent expression of how the painter can change the taste/meaning of his strokes, if capable enough, as here, Tony.
Thought-provoking ending that I interpret as the first 'taste' of a near miss can change attitudes. Maybe I'm wrong.
3rd line - maybe 'behind and between the lines'
Top free verse, my friend.
Cheers, Ray
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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Excellent expression of how the painter can change the taste/meaning of his strokes, if capable enough, as here, Tony.
Thought-provoking ending that I interpret as the first 'taste' of a near miss can change attitudes. Maybe I'm wrong.
3rd line - maybe 'behind and between the lines'
Top free verse, my friend.
Cheers, Ray
Comment Written 15-Jan-2015
reply by the author on 15-Jan-2015
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Many thanks for your review, Ray. I was steeped in reminders of the Spanish Civil War during my time in Spain. Many of the soldiers were scarcely more than boys. Thanks for your suggestions. I'll think about the between/behind one. I was aiming at the ambivalence between 'behind the lines' of war and 'between the lines' of the poem. Perhaps too abstract!
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Thanks for your interesting reply, Tony.
I understood your meaning of 'behind the lines' as in war, and was therefore hesitant about offering my suggestion, and maybe it's best left as is for the point to stand out and alone more.
Cheers, Ray
