a tale of tails, tenacity, and tedium, as told by me, usually barefoot and bellowing

Sunday, October 18, 2015

The Mystery That Is Pollock

Jackson Pollock for Magpie Tales

JACKSON

As a child he was the fifth
as an adult he was a half
and a whole
that became nothing
and too much

He battled his demons
with drink and paint
for almost two years
driven by drips and swirls
he simply painted

And when it was good
he could not accept it
or was self-exalted
sabotaging himself and
the paints that made him

Drips made him famous
Drink made him dead

32 comments:

Sanaa Rizvi said...

Oooh strong closing lines! One of your best :D

Sherry Blue Sky said...

Wow, a cautionary tale, and so well said. Closing lines pack a punch!

Tess Kincaid said...

Powerful ending lines...

brudberg said...

Alas a too common end for most artists...

MadSnapper said...

you have now explained his crazy paintings. he must have been drunk when he did them... maybe this was his inner demons trying to come out.

said...

I love this:

"he was a half
and a whole
that became nothing
and too much"

He's my favorite painter.

Debbie said...

excellent, powerful words, it drew me in!!!

Rosemary Nissen-Wade said...

Yes – love his work and vision, deplore his self-destruction.

Country Gal said...

Awesome !

Maude Lynn said...

Excellent, Gail!

Mary said...

I think you have really characterized Jackson Pollack well. I have seen a movie about him....and yes, his drips did make him famous and drink made him dead! I like your subject matter AND your form.

Truedessa said...

This is very good Gail, you have captured the artist and your ending lines deliver a punch that stays with the reader.

ps - So how is the dragon?

Bekkie Sanchez said...

Gail you captured him perfectly in prose and told me things I didn't know about him. Bravo!

Susan said...

That final couplet! Sad life.

Lux G. said...

Story of a lot of great artists.

Unknown said...

A concise biography. That's all we need to know.

Rosey Pinkerton's blog

Jae Rose said...

What an insightful poem - maybe this applies to many who try to express themselves in non conventional ways - there is always that sense of failure..not measuring up if we don't feel we are doing as the majority tell us we should do..on the other hand thank heavens for that

kaykuala said...

It sounds sinister and tragic. Great artists have often been saddled with such unhappiness! Very true Gail!

Hank

Linda Kay said...

Wow, what a great commentary on the artist. I love the last line. So true of many troubled folks.

Ankita said...

that was really nice, esp the last two lines can fit on the lives of many artists.

Magaly Guerrero said...

A biography in a poem. I really, really, really like it.

Natašek said...

interesting ending.. too often the truth.

Anonymous said...

powerful piece of free verse.

humbird said...

It feels his spirit was really strong in its expression so Jackson tried to balance with grounding drinks....which at particular moment was overwhelm for physical body....~ Like the way you summarize it with words you have and amazing image!

Other Mary said...

This is excellent!

Berowne said...

In a word, impressive!

Gen Giggles said...

You really caught him in this.

Grace said...

He was unique and his work really stands out ~ Good one Gail ~

Lynne said...

Complex he was . . . almost tormented . . .

21 Wits said...

Perfectly said, and so true to form was he. I'm still trying to get my head into this form, and it's time to give it a whirl, or drip or something splashed against the canvas! I just posted my magpie, and thanks to checking your blog I caught it just in time not to read before I posted mine! Close call!

The Blog of Bee said...

The last two lines say it all. Excellent write!

Theresa Milstein said...

He battled his demons
with drink and paint

Like these two lines there!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...