Tartarus

How fragile is this hand
as it gentles the ferocious coils
which abide below the halfway mark
of belly, making discords of dogma,
and soothes the grinning sibilance
as the ravenous maw bites through
this tenuous grip on new realities.

Oh Mercy! The poison is luscious as lotus!
Desire welcomes the monstrous tongue
in the throat beyond question
of what will become of these bones
once the leviathan has picked them clean.



Inspired by the artwork, Thieves Blend by the artist, Eli Evangelidis a.k.a. @eliedwardart

Utopia

How beatific the ghostly face
as it turns from grim reality
of painful flesh beneath taut skin
unaware that heart is caged
and lungs are slaves
while bones remain as shackles
to the absurdity of decomposition.

Oh God! Time strikes like a meteor!
Life always ends too soon
to disregard the searing blaze
and ascend beyond the embers
of immolation until consciousness
becomes one with oblivion.



Written in collaboration with the artist, Cemal Eker a.k.a. @abreathinutopia, inspired by the illustration entitled Ayesha.

Untitled (Eulogy)

@jasonlimberg
Used with Permission
"The raven claw is a wick of an eternal flame, forever holding the gift of life, a flower."

A solitary lily cannot take root
upon the grave of one
who snapped her
from the growing stem
for an instant of bliss
brief as a candle flame
guttering away the gloom -
nor the raven of nightfall
canary a eulogy for one
who could not strive
beyond the barriers
of his self-composed cage.



A poem inspired by the art of Jason Limberg which includes words from my Skylover Wordlist.

Prayer to the All-Father

In Mid-Winter

Odin ~ Quincy Washington
@albanusdesign
Used With Permission

God of my shadow self, you see
the implacable nature
of my intransigence:
My raven-beaked memory
pecking at old scars
and black thoughts on the wing
through the thunderstorms
of my own self-conception,
my wolf-panting anger
and teeth that tear flesh
from bone of my own demons.
Your gaze is a reckoning:
Knowledge demands sacrifice,
an eye, a befriending
of the severed head,
the subconscious voice
confirming my worst fears
that shadows have more substance
and weigh heavier than the light.


A poem for the last solstice of the decade, in honour of the Old Gods and Yuletide, inspired by the art of Quincy Washington.

Graphite on Paper

@jasonlimberg
Autumn Breath
Used With Permission

What does it mean that we move through seasons
untouched by everything that changes?
You are implacable, a mirror of self in my eyes.
Your voice is the fragrance of woodsmoke.
When the fabric of love was made to crumble
how do we find our way in the dark of each other?
The trees surrounding us on all sides may be bare
but the touch of mist, your touch, is indelible upon my soul.
Why is it that in the sky-brain of our existence,
we follow the path of the moon like graphite on paper?
I don’t know. I don’t know.
But yours is the mind I reach for,
mine the breast where you keep your heart.


Art FLASH! in The Imaginary Garden features the work of Jason Limberg.

Fortress of Dreams

Untitled Original Ink
@mc__monster
Used with Permission

Imprisoned in this Fortress of Dreams
I am the embodiment of smoke
on an inky skyline –
I am the thoughts the owl
speaks to itself –
I am a wolf’s cold stare
reflecting the glimmer of stars
a billion light-years away
a glint upon a frozen lake
a fractal heartbeat of midnight’s prey –
Wake me up!


Art FLASH! in October  introduces the work of McMonster, a wizard of ink illustration.
An Ekphrasis poem in 55 words.

Beekeeping

The Beekeeper
Cat Schappach
@catschappach

The bees have all left this country.
But the equinoctial garden does not know.
Its buds beckon with cupped hands.
The maladroit keeper is scrubbing the hive.
He picks at old wax like an eczema scab.

This country has lost all its queens.
But the hegemons do not seem to notice.
The flowers shrivel, suspecting their infertility.
And its women are arranged in agricultural order.
Womb first, and head last, the last honey spilled.



This amazing work of art was a gift from the amazingly talented Cat Schappach.

Leo Rising

Emperor of the Dawn
Quincy Washington
@albanusdesign

I am the conqueror
who set fire to the eastern gate
of this temple mount at my birth.

Reincarnation of the huntress,
I clawed my way from the furnace
of heaven’s dark cauldron to freedom.

I am the carnivore,
noble and savage, who wields both
tooth of logic and sword of integrity.

Embodiment of feline temptress,
I have composed my dangerous heart
to forge a golden mask of wild seduction.

I am the captivator,
charismatic and brave, ever-seeking
to discover the quest Divinity insists of me.


Art FLASH! features the surreal, dark art of Quincy Washington: Leo / Emperor of the Dawn from his Zodiac series.