Lessons in ekphrasis: writing and analysis.Abstract The literary representation of visual art, ekphrasis, is proposed as a vantage point from which to teach literature and creative writing. Brief historical and theoretical overviews are provided as well as practical exercises and activities, adaptable to multiple academic levels, exploring and practicing ekphrasis. Examples of literature inspired by art that could be included in a course or unit on ekphrasis are provided. Introduction A dynamic conversation between the visual and verbal arts has subsisted for over two-thousand-five-hundred years. While Roman poet Horace famously declared "ut pictora poesis" (as in painting, so is poetry) in his Ars Poetica Ars Poetica is a term meaning "The Art of Poetry" or "On the Nature of Poetry". Early examples of Ars Poetica by Aristotle and Horace have survived and have since spawned many other poems that bear the same name. (c. 13 BC), the first proclamation of the inter-relatedness of painting and poetry is attributed to Greek poet Simonides of Ceos Simonides of Ceos (sīmŏn`ĭdēz, sē`ŏs), c.556–468? B.C., Greek lyric poet, b. Ceos. At Athens for a time under the patronage of Hipparchus, he seems then to have gone to Thessaly, returning to Athens at the time of the (c.556-468 BC) who stated "poema picture loquens, picture poems silens" (poetry is a speaking picture, painting a silent poet) (Heffernan, 1993). In the 11th and 12th Centuries, the Chinese school In Western countries, a Chinese school is a school established explicitly for the purpose of teaching the Chinese language (of the various Chinese dialects, nowadays Mandarin Chinese or Cantonese Chinese are almost always the ones taught) to American-born Chinese (ABC), of Literati literati Scholars in China and Japan whose poetry, calligraphy, and paintings were supposed primarily to reveal their cultivation and express their personal feelings rather than demonstrate professional skill. Painting found the art and craft of poetry intertwined and inseparable from painting; in the 14th Century, the tradition of Persian miniature painting miniature painting [Ital.,=artwork, especially manuscript initial letters, done with the red lead pigment minium; the word originally had no implication as to size]. was greatly influenced by Shahnama (the epic poem Noun 1. epic poem - a long narrative poem telling of a hero's deeds epic, heroic poem, epos poem, verse form - a composition written in metrical feet forming rhythmical lines chanson de geste - Old French epic poems by Abu'l Qasim Firdausi); and in the 15th Century, Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo da Vinci (də vĭn`chē, Ital. lāōnär`dō dä vēn`chē), 1452–1519, Italian painter, sculptor, architect, musician, engineer, and scientist, b. near Vinci, a hill village in Tuscany. wrote in his journal about the similarities and differences of painting and poetry ultimately trumpeting painting as the superior art form (Chadwick, 2005). Literary scholar Richard Altick Richard Daniel Altick (born 1915) is an American literary scholar, known for his contributions to Victorian studies. He graduated from Franklin and Marshall College in 1936 and received a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1941. (1985) estimated that between the 18th and 19th Centuries 2,300 paintings were created based or/Shakespearean plays. John Keat's classic 1820 poem Ode on a Grecian Urn "Ode on a Grecian Urn" is a poem by John Keats, first published in January 1820. Its inspiration is considered to be a visit by Keats to the exhibition of Greek artifacts accompanying the display of the "Elgin Marbles" at the British Museum. is in essence a classic rumination rumination /ru·mi·na·tion/ (roo?mi-na´shun) 1. the casting up of the food to be chewed thoroughly a second time, as in cattle. 2. on an art object. Writers in the 20th Century, including poets W.H. Auden, William Carlos Williams, Robert Lowell Noun 1. Robert Lowell - United States poet (1917-1977) Lowell, Robert Traill Spence Lowell Jr. , Billy Collins and Mary Leader have found inspiration in works of fine art. Poet Wallace Stevens (1951) devoted an entire chapter of his book on poetics to "The Relations between Poetry and Painting." On the cusp of the 21st Century, Tracy Chevalier's critically acclaimed 1999 novel Girl with a Pearl Earring The Girl with a Pearl Earring (Dutch: Het meisje met de parel) is one of Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer's masterworks and as the name implies, uses a pearl earring for a focal point. was based on a Vermeer's painting of the same name. Today the literary representation of visual art is called "ekphrasis" (Hefferman, 1993) and the study of the relationship between the visual and verbal arts has appeared in major museum exhibitions [1] and scholarly publications. With this rich, historical tradition and expansive body of literature, it seems quite natural to teach literature and creative writing from this vantage point; however, it is not often done so. Exercises and activities, adaptable to multiple academic levels, exploring and practicing ekphrasis are provided here to encourage and inspire teaching from this vantage point. Theoretical Foundations A symbol system is "a unique orientation for making meaning" (Noden & Moss, 1995, p. 1). Both art and writing are symbol systems containing specific individual elements that contribute to the overall meaning of a work. For example, adding one additional brushstroke or slightly changing the hue of a color in Verb 1. color in - add color to; "The child colored the drawings"; "Fall colored the trees"; "colorize black and white film" color, colorise, colorize, colour in, colourise, colourize, colour a painting can significantly alter the overall feel or meaning of the work just as adding one additional word or punctuation to a poem can affect the overall chemistry and meaning of the work (Goodman, 1976; Koch, 1998). Educator Christopher Davis, in Saving Pictures from the Flood: Using Visual Art in Creative Writing Workshops, writes of the semblance between the imagery of writing and the imagery of painting: The interplay between objectivity and artistic expression is nearly the same in the imagery of poetry and in the imagery of painting. Whereas the painter personalizes the image by painterly brush strokes, unexpected color combinations, shadow and form, the poet uses tone, timing, syntactic surprise and diction ... (1993, p. 327) Every difference makes a difference in both poetry and painting. Furthermore, painting and creative writing are active processes involving multiple revisions before completion. Meaning is constructed in an active relationship between an art object and the viewer (Rice, 1995). This is also true for the analysis of literature which requires a student to think critically and closely examine a text. Activities in which a student responds to art using creative writing helps the student understand the object while also practicing the craft of writing. Responding to art with creative writing is an intrinsically motivated activity in which students ask: How does art pertain to pertain to verb relate to, concern, refer to, regard, be part of, belong to, apply to, bear on, befit, be relevant to, be appropriate to, appertain to me? How does my knowledge of art relate to other people, cultures, and larger concepts? Students encouraged to investigate these questions, by creating something of their own, will not soon forget the knowledge obtained through the art experience. Conversely, if a student's interaction with an artwork is not intrinsically rewarding, her attention will not remain focused on the work long enough for substantial emotional or intellectual development. Working with both the visual and language arts language arts pl.n. The subjects, including reading, spelling, and composition, aimed at developing reading and writing skills, usually taught in elementary and secondary school. can create a continuum of meaning in the classroom in which students become creative learners crossing disciplinary boundaries in pursuit of a holistic understanding of the humanities. After students have formulated their own responses to art, they may explore other people's theories about art and gauge them against their own defined beliefs and experiences. Students will thus learn not only from their own experience and creation but also from historically accepted theories. This actively integrates academia and experience learning. The Art Institute of Chicago Art Institute of Chicago, museum and art school, in Grant Park, facing Michigan Ave. It was incorporated in 1879; George Armour was the first president. Since 1893 the Institute has been housed in its present building, designed in the Italian Renaissance style by has a program were students are taught to do this. The workshops begin with students responding to art with their own perceptions and emotions expressed in creative writing. Their exploration is encouraged next with information on historical and critical interpretations of the paintings. (Tillet, 1996) This model can also be followed for the teaching of literature; students first give personal responses and then explore scholarly critical analysis. Student Learning Objectives There are many ways students can benefit from a course or unit on creative writing in response to art and by reading literature inspired by artworks. Students today live in an image saturated culture and can significantly benefit from strengthening their visual literacy Visual literacy is the ability to interpret, negotiate, and make meaning from information presented in the form of an image. Visual literacy is based on the idea that pictures can be “read” and that meaning can be communicated through a process of reading. . Taking time to study one image and carefully analyze it will help students negotiate their visually stimulated surroundings. Carefully examining an art object or a literary text based Also called "character based," it refers to handling text and not graphics. Simple charts and illustrations may be drawn, but they are limited to a set of special characters that are strung together to make up lines and shades (see OEM font). on an art object requires students pay close attention to details. Examining artwork and making interpretations or evaluating other's interpretations, teaches students how to formulate and support an argument. Students can also learn to make their own writing more specific and interesting by examining the work of others. When students are called upon to respond to recognized and celebrated art objects, they are invited to participate in a long-standing cultural discussion. This activity validates students' thoughts and works. It can encourage students to make further contributions beyond the classroom and participate in a historical literary tradition. The study of literature inspired by art and writing from art also promotes art for art's sake "Art for art's sake" is the usual English rendition of a French slogan, l'art pour l'art, which is credited to Théophile Gautier (1811–1872). Some argue Gautier was not the first to write those words. . The activities suggested here will give students a heightened awareness and appreciation of fine art as well as encourage the continued production of creative, artistic activity. Resources for Designing a Course or Unit of Study As indicated earlier, the teaching of ekphrastic literature and creative writing inspired by art can be adapted to multiple academic levels. The following sections of this article provide useful resources to design a unit or course of study adaptable to varying levels. First, examples of literature inspired by artworks are listed. The paintings or artworks that inspired the literature are listed as well. Please note, this is just a small sampling from a wide body of literature. Poem(s): * Musee des Beaux beaux n. A plural of beau. Arts Bosch by W.H. Auden inspired by Pieter Brueghel's The Fall of Icarus * Musee des Beaux Arts Revisited by Billy Collins inspired by Pieter Brueghel's The Fall of Icarus * Landscape with the Fall of Icarus Landscape with the Fall of Icarus is a famous landscape by Pieter Bruegel. It was referred to in a poem of the same name by William Carlos Williams, and in W. H. Auden's poem Musée des Beaux-Arts, named after the museum in which the painting is housed. by William Carlos Williams inspired by Pieter Brueghel's The Fall of Icarus * Pictures from Brueghel by William Carlos Williams inspired by Pieter Brueghel's The Fall of Icarus * Monet's Lilies Shuddering by Lawrence Ferlinghetti inspired by Claude Monet's Lilies * The Wounded Wilderness of Morris Graves by Lawrence Ferlinghetti inspired by Morris Graves's Bird in the Spirit * Nude Descending a Staircase by X. J. Kennedy X. J. Kennedy (born 21 August 1929, Dover, New Jersey) is a poet, translator, anthologist, editor, and bestselling writer of children's literature as well as student textbooks on English literature and poetry. inspired by Marcel Duchamp's Nude Descending a Staircase * The Starry Night by Anne Sexton inspired by Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Night * Man with Blue Guitar by Wallace Stevens inspired by Pablo Picasso's Old Guitarist * The Bachelor by William Meredith inspired by Goya's The Duchess of Alba Duchess of Alba Goya’s lover and model, immortalized on canvas. [Span. Art: Wallechinsky, 192] See : Beauty, Feminine * Girl Powdering Her Neck by Cathy Song inspired by Kitagawa Utamaro's Girl Powdering Her Neck * The Lady of Shallot shallot: see onion. shallot Mildly aromatic herbaceous plant (Allium ascalonicum) of the lily family, probably of Asiatic origin, used to flavour foods. by Alfred Tennyson inspired by John Waterhouse's The Lady of Shallot * Mona Lisa by Edith Wharton inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa Short Stories: * The Smile by Ray Bradbury inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa * Christ in the House of Martha and Mary by A. S. Byatt inspired by Diego Valazquez's Christ in the House of Martha and Mary * The Matisse Stories by A.S. Byatt inspired by various Henri Matisse paintings * Death of an Advocate by Rose Tremain inspired by James Tissot's Holyday * The Silence by Adam Thorpe inspired by Carel Weight's The Silence Novels: * Girl with a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevlier inspired by Johannes Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring * Lydia Cassatt Reading the Morning Paper by Harriet Chessman inspired by Mary Cassatt paintings of Cassatt's older sister Lydia * Girl in Hyacinth Hyacinth, in Greek mythology Hyacinth (hī`əsĭnth) or Hyacinthus (hīəsĭn`thəs), in Greek mythology, beautiful youth loved by Apollo. Blue by Susan Vreeland inspired by Johannes Vermeer's Girl in Hyacinth Blue Upon reading and studying the literature, students should consider the following questions: Does the piece of literature visually describe the artwork? Do you find the description accurate? Does the literature draw conclusions or make interpretations of the artwork? Could you reconstruct the artwork from the literature without ever seeing it? Does the author focus on some aspects of the artwork but ignore other parts? The questions can be used in class discussions, journal entries, group presentations or other traditional classroom activities as an introductory analysis. Assignments requiring more in-depth research and analysis are listed below: * Read a poem based on an artwork and agree or disagree with the interpretation of the speaker of the poem. Is the poet misreading MISREADING, contracts. When a deed is read falsely to an illiterate or blind man, who is a party to it, such false reading amounts to a fraud, because the contract never had the assent of both parties. 5 Co. 19; 6 East, R. 309; Dane's Ab. c. 86, a, 3, Sec. 7; 2 John. R. 404; 12 John. R. the painting? * Have students research an art historian's analysis of a painting then compare it to a poem based on the same painting. Discuss how the two are similar and how are they different? * Compare and contrast two different poems inspired by the same painting (for example the poems Musee des Beaux Arts Bosch by W.H. Auden and Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by William Carlos Williams inspired by Pieter Brueghel's painting The Fall of Icarus). * Before reading the novel Girl with a Pear Earring earring, a personal adornment, sometimes an amulet, worn attached to the ear lobe. Since prehistoric times the ear has been pierced for the insertion of the earring; certain primitive tribes distort the lobe with plugs several inches in diameter or with heavy stones. by Tracy Chevlier, examine Johannes Vermeer's painting and predict what the story will be about. * Read one of A.S. Byatt's Matisse Stories then look through a book of Henri Matisse's paintings. Try to match up the short story with the painting. Describe why you think the author would write the story based on the painting you chose. * Read the poem The Starry Night by Anne Sexton inspired by Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Night and listen to the song Vincent (Starry, Starry Night) by Don McLean. In an essay, discuss the tone of the poem and of the song. Do you think the poet or the songwriter better captures the feeling and mood of the painting? * Research Leonardo da Vinci's journal writing comparing poetry to painting. Do you agree with da Vinci da Vinci Surgery A surgical robot for performing certain surgeries–eg, mitral valve repair and laparoscopic procedures–eg, cholecystectomy and gastric ulcer repair. See Laparoscopic surgery, Robotics, Surgical robot. that painting is the superior art form? Why or why not? * Examine an artwork for which you can find multiple sketches. For example, Picasso's Guernica. Write a story in which each paragraph is based on one of the sketches or write a poem in which each stanza represents a sketch. * Compare museum signage next to a painting to a poem based on the same painting. What information is contained in both and what information is excluded in either the poem or signage? * Turn a classroom or studio space into a museum where poems or short stories are placed on placards next to artwork instead of museum signage. While many writers simply find looking at an artwork inspirational enough to start a piece of writing, many student writers will need writing prompts or exercises to begin. The following list provides a wide range of prompts and activities for student writers of varying levels and abilities: * Write a dialogue between characters in a painting. * Make up a story about the history of a painting. Who was the painting made for and why? * Use a painting or sculpture featuring multiple people. Ask students to imagine that someone is missing from the painting. Have students write about who is missing in the painting and why. * Descriptive writing exercise: describe the situation/colors/images in the art object. * Synesthesia synesthesia /syn·es·the·sia/ (sin?es-the´zhah) 1. a secondary sensation accompanying an actual perception. 2. exercises: describe how a painting would taste or what is would sound like, etc. * Ask: How was the artist feeling on the day he made this? What was he doing before he started this painting? * Listing: list everything you see in the painting * What would happen if the artwork was left in the rain? What would it look like? Would it get ruined? Would someone be sad or angry or regretful re·gret·ful adj. Full of regret; sorrowful or sorry. re·gret  ful·ly adv.re·gret ? * How would you describe the artwork to someone who cannot see? * Imagine the artwork is a girl. Who is it for? Who is it from? What is the occasion? How is it received? * Find a painting that represents you and explain why you think it embodies your personality, thoughts or emotions. * Find a painting in which you would like to live or the painting in which I would never want to live. Explain why you choose this painting. * Find a painting you would give to someone else. What would the painting say to that person about your relationship. * Have students describe the smallest object in a painting. * Students must begin a flee writing exercise by completing the line: "If I were the artist, I would change ..." * In groups, have students look at an artwork for a couple of minutes then take it away. Students must then write down as many details as they can remember. This list can then be turned in a piece of creative writing. Conclusion Literate students today are expected to negotiate a complex world of visual and verbal images. The language arts classroom must adapt to meet the needs of students. Teaching students text inspired by visual images and encouraging writing from images, will help meet this need as well as encourage participation in the long cultural tradition of ekphrasis. References Altick, R.D. (1985). Paintings from Books: Art and Literature in Britain, 1760-1900. Columbus: Ohio State University Press The Ohio State University Press, founded in 1957, is a university press and a part of The Ohio State University. External links
The Ohio State University . Chadwick, G. (2005). The Long Conversation Between Painting and Poetry. Retrieved November 18, 2005 from Ars Poetica website: http://home.mindspring.com/ ~chadwick15/_wsn/Conversation.html Davis, C. (1993). Saving pictures from the flood: Using visual art in creative writing workshops. Visible Language, 27, 322-333 Goodman, N. (1976). Languages of Art. Indianapolis/Cambridge: Hackett Publishing Company Hackett Publishing Company, Inc. is an academic publishing house based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Since beginning operations in 1972, Hackett has concentrated mainly on humanities, especially classical and philosophical texts. , Inc. Heffeman, James A. W. Museum of Words: The Poetics of Ekphrasis from Homer to Ashbery. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press The University of Chicago Press is the largest university press in the United States. It is operated by the University of Chicago and publishes a wide variety of academic titles, including The Chicago Manual of Style, dozens of academic journals, including , 1993.191. Koch, K. (1998). Making Your Own Days: The Pleasures of Reading and Writing poetry. New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of : Scribner. McClatchy, J.D., editor. Poets on Painters: Essays on the Art of Painting by Twentieth-Century Poets. Berkeley: University of California Press "UC Press" redirects here, but this is also an abbreviation for University of Chicago Press University of California Press, also known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. , 1988. Noden, H., & Moss, B. (1995). Nurturing Artistic Images in Student Reading and Writing. The Reading Teacher, 48, 532-537. Rice, D. (1995). Museum Education Embracing Uncertainty. The Art Bulletin, 77, 1525. Tillet, S. (1996). Evaluation Report: Looking to Write, Writing to See. Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago. Wallace, S. (1951). The Necessary Angel: Essays on Reality and the Imagination. New York: Vintage. Cynthia Demetriou, Adelphi University, NY Endnotes [1] Dreams, Literature and Art, Goethe-Institut, London, United Kingdom 2005 The Poetry of Truth: Alfred William Hunt Alfred William Hunt, (November 15 1830 – May 3 1896), was an English painter. He was son of Andrew Hunt, a landscape painter. He was born in Liverpool. He began to paint while at the Liverpool Collegiati School; but as the idea of adopting the artist's profession was and the Art of Landscape, The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, United Kingdom 2005 A Throw of the Dice: Artists Inspired By a Visual Text, University of California The University of California has a combined student body of more than 191,000 students, over 1,340,000 living alumni, and a combined systemwide and campus endowment of just over $7.3 billion (8th largest in the United States). , Irving, California 2005 Visual Poetry: Contemporary Art from Italy, The Haggerty Museum of Art, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 2005 Matisse. The Images of Mallarme, The State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg, Russia 2004 Poetry in Painting, Mingei International Museum, San Diego, California “San Diego” redirects here. For other uses, see San Diego (disambiguation). San Diego is a coastal Southern California city located in the southwestern corner of the continental United States. As of 2006, the city has a population of 1,256,951. 2004 CutBank 60: A Celebration of Art in Literature, Missoula Art Museum, Missoula, Montana 2003 Love By the Book: Painting and Poetry in India, Philadelphi Museum of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 2003 The Theme of Poetry and Literature in Chinese Art, National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan 2001 Frank O'Hara: Poetry and Painting, The Panfish n. 1. Any of numerous small food fishes; especially those not available on the market. 2. Any of numerous small food fishes taken with hook and line. Noun 1. Art Museum, Southhampton, New York 2000 Painting in Poetry/Poetry in Painting: Wallace Stevens and Modern Art, Baruch College, New York, New York 1995 Cynthia Demetriou is Coordinator of Academic Services at Adelphi University |
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