1. a conversation between poetry and art
Ekphrastic Poetry
a conversation between poetry and art
Sources:
Corn, Alfred. “Notes on Ekphrasis.” The American Academy of Poetry.
“Ekphrasis.” Poetry Foundation.
Morrison, Valerie. “Ekphrastic Poetry.” University of Georgia English Department.
Norcross, Christina M. “Ekphrastic Poetry.”
“Perspectives in Writing Ekphrastic Poetry.” ReadWriteThink.
Smithsonian American Art Museum

2. Starry Night 
Vincent van Gogh (1889)
“Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)”
Don McLean (1976)

3. Ekphrastic Poetry Definitions
Ekphrasis (Etymology)
ek: “out of”
phrasis: “speech or expression”
Ekphrastic Poetry (Definition)
A poem inspired by a work of art
Ekphrastic Poetry (Explanation)
It is a vivid description of a work of art.
The poet interprets the art and then creates a narrative that represents his or her reaction to it.
Simply put, it is a conversation between poetry and art.

4. Examples of Ekphrastic Poetry

5. Starry Night "The Starry Night" Vincent van Gogh (1889)
Anne Sexton (1961)
The town does not exist 
except where one black-haired tree slips 
up like a drowned woman into the hot sky. 
The town is silent. The night boils with eleven stars. 
Oh starry starry night! This is how 
I want to die.
It moves. They are all alive. 
Even the moon bulges in its orange irons 
to push children, like a god, from its eye. 
The old unseen serpent swallows up the stars. 
I want to die:
into that rushing beast of the night, 
sucked up by that great dragon, to split 
from my life with no flag, 
no belly, 
no cry.

6. “Edgar Degas: The Millinery Shop” (excerpt)
Adam Zagajewski (1994)
Hats are innocent, bathed in the soft light
which smoothes the contours of objects.
A girl is working.
But where are brooks?  Groves?
Where is the sensual laughter of nymphs?
The world is hungry and one day
will invade this tranquil room.

7. “Edward Hopper and the House by the Railroad" (excerpt)
Edward Hirsch (1995)
Out here in the exact middle of the day, 
This strange, gawky house has the expression 
Of someone being stared at, someone holding 
His breath underwater, hushed and expectant;
This house is ashamed of itself, ashamed 
Of its fantastic mansard rooftop 
And its pseudo-Gothic porch, ashamed 
of its shoulders and large, awkward hands. 
But the man behind the easel is relentless. 
He is as brutal as sunlight, and believes 
The house must have done something horrible 
To the people who once lived here 
Because now it is so desperately empty, 
It must have done something to the sky 
Because the sky, too, is utterly vacant 
And devoid of meaning.

8. “American Gothic" (excerpt)
Grant Wood (1930)
“American Gothic" (excerpt)
John Stone (1998)
Just outside the frame 
there has to be a dog 
chickens, cows and hay 
and a smokehouse 
where a ham in hickory 
is also being preserved 
Here for all time 
the borders of the Gothic window 
anticipate the ribs 
of the house 
the tines of the pitchfork 
repeat the triumph 
of his overalls 
and front and center 
the long faces, the sober lips

9. Homework: Write an Ekphrastic Poem
Image: Choose a well-known work of art
Art photography is also acceptable
Think museum quality artwork
Caption required: Title of piece (italics). Name of artist. Year.
Poem: 10 line minimum
No requirements regarding rhyme, meter, or form
Title your poem
Format: Include both image and typed poem on same page
Option 1: Image at top of page, poem below
Option 2: Image on left of page, poem on the right
Print in color
DUE: Wed. 4/9

10. Ekphrastic Poetry: Approaches
Consider the following suggestions when writing your poem:
Write about the scene being depicted in the artwork
Write about your experience of looking at the art
Write in the voice of a person or object shown
Write in the voice of the artist
Speculate about why the artist created this work
Write a dialogue among characters in a work of art
Speak directly to the artist or the subject(s) of the piece
Imagine a story behind what you see
Relate the art to something else it reminds you of
Imagine what was happening while the artist was creating the piece