$20
Item#: 2011SYR05
11x17-inches, printed on heavy weight (100-pound) Hammermill cover paper. We package each print with a piece of chipboard in a clear plastic sleeve.
You also receive…
An information page with photos of the artist and poet, and hand-written comments from each.
Medium- and large-format posters are available by custom order. Contact us for details.
Faceted shadows
across the shimmering pond
a still life of swans
As a psychologist and former elementary school teacher, recently retired from Liverpool School District, I have had the opportunity to study, write, and teach haiku over the years. This chosen haiku was written on a beautiful day while visiting the Swan Pond in Manlius.
As a member of the Haiku Society of America, and CNY Art Guild, whether writing poetry or painting a landscape, both mediums represent capturing a moment in time, with the hope that others share in the experience. I hope to compile previously written haiku into a children's publication. Until then, I will continue to enjoy writing this wonderful form of poetry.
I remember sitting in class reading through a few dozen of the haiku and I noticed how most of them were about the downtown, SU campus, and suburban areas. Then I picked this one up and it immediately stood out to me because it was about a more natural location in Central New York. I had a pretty clear image right away, which incorporated the pond and trees on one layer and a translucent, ghostly swan going over the whole thing.
Before I started painting, however, I felt that that particular idea didn't match the haiku's character and that it was a bit too complex for this haiku, which focuses more on simplicity. I ended up digging through a couple of photographs of swans I took and put one in. I think that the end result is more natural and simplistic.