Thursday, January 31, 2008

Artists, Poets, and Crusade #16 (again)



I believe I told you that I joined the ZNE Artists and Poetry group last month (the month before? Yesterday? I can't keep track these days.). This month's project was to participate in a group poem called a Renga. There are many ways to organize a Renga, for example each person writes a stanza in the form of a haiku (you know I love that haiku!). What we chose to do was just two groups of 5 with each person writing just one line. The first person in the group would choose the topic and write the first line.

I was first in our group so I wrote the line, "I dream of dancing on the crumbled fragments of my youth." From that, I decided that the topic would be "future plans." I decided I didn't want to go with something from nature, a traditional haiku or renga subject.

This is our result:


I dream of dancing on the crumbled fragments of my youth,

a new melody leading my moonlight waltz,my heart fills with hope.

As the sun rises, I shall be born beside the day, anew.

Swaying to music written by my life, I sigh...


Written by: Laurie Blau-Marshall, June Sanders, Erin Leeper, Jodi Barone, Cathy Minerva

After everyone contributed their lines we were to then create a piece of art relating to the renga from our group. What you see above is my piece. On the shards of stone underneath her feet are words that describe things that can be lost as one gets older. They are: edge, independence, kind, cry, grow, joy, desire, endeavor, friend, light, sparkling, studious, true, discover, commence, think, bright, extravagant, stronger, affectionate, romance, courage. The dancer in the bottom, right corner symbolizes rebirth with her white dress, butterfly wings, and flower; as does the rising sun.

Addendum:


Considering this month's Art Crusade, I thought I would journal about this entry and then put the journal entry about the blog entry onto the blog entry. How's that for convoluted?



It was so convenient, I had a blank page across from some sketches and a practice painting that I did for the piece. That page was just waiting for for a journal entry about a blog entry!

This makes me realize how easy it could be. I guess it always seems like a big undertaking, but this only took me about 10-15 minutes. It could be better looking, but it's okay. I wrote what I was doing re Crusade #16 and what I felt about the Renga experience. Then, when I ran out of room, since I had made my lines so large, I flipped the book over and started writing in the other direction!

9 comments:

michelle ward said...

Laurie - terrific pages! Love that you chose to show evidence of your artistic process with the sketches. Thanks for sharing with the team.

forcryeye said...

Wow! This one really speaks to me, because of the ballerina! Great job. It was enhanced by the Sade playing when I looked at it!

reagan said...

Hey Laurie,
Looove the ballerina piece, it's beautiful! When is your piece being published? I want to be sure to get the right issue!
hugs,
Pam

eb said...

Love this - such a cool idea and result - hey - my word verification is siren...

how cool is that!

xox - eb.

Penny Rabbit said...

Omigosh, what a gorgeous page! How I wish she were dancing in one of my books! This is gorgeous! Hypnotic, even!

Anonymous said...

Hi Laurie! Great post... love the dancer's dress and the poem... that really turned out well! So glad you chose to share this with us, all my best! K.

Jodi Peary said...

Laurie,
I love seeing your journal on our renga project. I could read your list of shards again and again and again and each time gain more courage to grow softer rather than harder, to be more open rather then closed and to dance lightly upon the moments rather then the things I have lost. It was an honor to work with you on this project; your first line was a perfect
jodi

Jodi Peary said...

a perfect invitation to the experience....

jodi

John Dyhouse said...

What a fantastic idea and so well executed. Love the idea of reflecting one in the other and back again - John