Perfectly Imperfect, poem by Lynn White (My Perfect Vacation Series)

Perfectly Imperfect
by Lynn White

It started when we stood hopefully
with our thumbs outstretched
by an English roadside,
heading towards Italy and Yugoslavia
without maps or money,
or sense of direction.

And we made it to Italy.
and swam off the rocks,
with a man we’d met in a cafe,
because he said we could.
And we swam and swam until two policemen came,
(one very stern and one very twinkly),
and said we couldn’t.
Nor could we leave the rocks without clothes on,
or with clothes clinging to our still wet bodies,
or lie on the rocks until we were dry,
in case we disconcerted the traffic or populace.
This being the main street in Trieste.

And we made it to Pec and lived
in a house ‘typique du Turque’
with a water pump in the garden
and a toilet, also ‘Typique du Turque’,
which made us very ill indeed.
But the parties were good and
the conversations interesting,
even though no one spoke English.
And we learned to speak some Albanian,
which was always handy.
And we survived to sit thirstily by a hot,
dusty roadside and fantasise
about the ice cold mountain water
streaming through the streets of Pec,
and even about the water pump in the garden.

And we made it back home.
We had got lost a lot,
but hadn’t got raped or murdered.
So far as we can remember.

What perfection.

PHOTO: The author (left) on L’Avenue des Champs-Élysées, Paris (1966) during one of her many European sojourns.

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR: This poem is an edited excerpt from a longer work. In the days when it was possible to leave one job at the beginning of summer and walk into another at the end, I made many similar trips, but this was the longest, most exotic and most exciting! Perfect in it’s ups and downs!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Lynn White lives in north Wales. Her work is influenced by issues of social justice and events, places, and people she has known or imagined. She is especially interested in exploring the boundaries of dream, fantasy, and reality. Her poem “A Rose For Gaza” was shortlisted for the Theatre Cloud “War Poetry for Today” competition in October 2014 and is published in Poetry For Change anthology by Vending Machine Press. Poems have also recently been included in Harbinger Asylum’s Literary Journal and A Moment To Live By anthology, Stacey Savage’s We Are Poetry: An Anthology of Love Poems, the Weasel Press anthology Degenerates, Voices For Peace, Tangent Literary Journal, Amomancies, Dawntreader, and various other on line and print journals and anthologies.

Venice Blues, National Geographic photograph by Jodi Cobb, quote by Truman Capote

A costumed tourist poses before a view of San Marco Basin in Venice, Italy. Photograph by Jodi Cobb, National Geographic

This and other “blue” images appear in LIFE IN COLOR, a 504-page book of 245 photographs, essays, and inspirational quotes.The book is available at Amazon.com. To see more images, visit the National Geographic Life in Color Blue Gallery.

“Venice is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs in one go.”  TRUMAN CAPOTE

Life in Color, Blue Gallery, from National Geographic

Photograph by Jodi Cobb, National Geographic

A costumed tourist poses before a view of San Marco Basin in Venice, Italy. 

This and other “blue” images appear in LIFE IN COLOR, a 504-page book of 245 photographs, essays, and inspirational quotes.The book is available at Amazon.com.

To see more images, visit the National Geographic Life in Color Blue Gallery.

“Venice is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs in one go.”  TRUMAN CAPOTE

Beauty by Franz Kafka and Adam Allegro

 “Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.” 

FRANZ KAFKA

PHOTO: “Bacoli, Italy (Naples Province)” by Adam Allegro. Congratulations to photographer Adam Allegro for the above photo’s selection as a Los Angeles Times Editor’s Choice, Summer 2012.

Andy Warhol and Cecilia Gimenez, Together Again

As mentioned in our August 31st post, the Campbell’s Tomato Soup cans with Warhol-inspired labels are available starting today at Target (yes, the “discount” store). Of those pictured in the photo above, I like the blue and green one best. Target will offer a limited edition of one million cans at 75 cents each.

Not to spoil the party (so I won’t talk about it here), but  readers may wish to check out livestrong.com for a discussion of the ingredients in Campbell’s Tomato Soup. (Anyway, if I buy a Warhol-inspired can of soup from Target, I don’t intend to open it!)

Since we’re discussing Warhol and soup, this post includes another entry in The Cecilia Prize, the contest that honors the good intentions of Cecilia Gimenez — the parishioner from Borja, Spain, who picked up a paint brush and tried (that’s the operative word) to restore “Ecce Homo,” a flaking fresco of Christ on the wall of her church. This Warhol-inspired entry, Ecce Soup, was created by Twitter @ewajoan.

Cecilia Gimenez and Andy Warhol’s Portrait of Marilyn Monroe

Today, we’re featuring another entry (at right) from The Ceclia Prize contest — this one by Twitter @srqu, who has created a triple triptych in the colors and style of Andy Warhol. (See below for Warhol’s triple triptych — is there a word for this? — of Marilyn Monroe.)

As most readers know, The Cecilia Prize honors Cecilia Gimenez, the amateur art restorer who has gained international attention by trying to repair a fresco of Christ’s face on the wall of the local Catholic church in Borja, Spain. A gallery of Cecilia Prize entries is available here. 

On our blog, we are only featuring entries inspired by the work of esteemed artists — to date, Rene Magritte, Leonardo da Vinci, and Andy Warhol.

Cecilia Gimenez and Mona Lisa

As we mentioned yesterday, Cecilia Gimenez — the octogenarian who botched a fresco restoration at a Catholic church in Borja, Spain — continues to inspire creativity across the globe. People are saying to themselves, “If she’s an artist, so am I!” To give this burgeoning talent pool an outlet for artistic expression, some people (I’m assuming they’re British because of the way they spell “honour”) have set up The Cecilia Prize — for “all the fixers out there,” as the website states.

Included in this post is another fine entry, Ecce Mona (by Twtter @psycher0s). As an art history refresher, we will remind readers that Mona Lisa was painted by Leonardo da Vinci some time between 1503 and 1506. Leonardo created what is now probably the world’s most famous painting in oil on a poplar panel. It is now on display at the Louvre Museum in Paris.

A friend once told me that when she’d visited the Louvre, she was disappointed at the Mona Lisa because “it was so small.” When my turn to see the painting in person finally arrived, I knew what to anticipate. I remember the room was crowded and no photos were allowed. Somehow, I wedged my way to the front of the onlookers. Seeing the Mona Lisa is like most other lifetime milestones — something you never forget. And, for the record, here are the painting’s dimensions: 77 cm x 53 cm, or 30 inches x 21 inches.

Cecilia Gimenez Takes Art World by Storm

Unless you’ve sworn off the news during the past few days, you’re familiar with Cecilia Gimenez, the 81-year-old attempting to shave off a few Purgatory points by doing some good works — in this case, restoring a 19th century fresco of Christ on the wall of her church in Borja, Spain.

For the record (and this is why I’m not showing how she ruined the icon), this blog assiduously avoids discussions of religion or politics — that’s not our territory. But I couldn’t resist commenting on this story — there are so many levels and layers to it.

First, it’s a fine example when your children ask, “What does it mean when someone says ‘the road to hell is paved with good intentions’?”

Second, it shows the value of getting regular eye checkups. I have to wonder if Cecelia Gimenez has cataracts. Before her cataract operation, my mother could not distinguish yellow from white or brown from purple. She had the front door of her house painted a Barney purple, thinking it was “umber” (true story, and I have the photos to prove it!).

Third, I’m wondering if the other parishioners stopped Cecilia Gimenez before she was finished with her work. (You know how messy works-in-progress can look!)

Finally, I feel this story expresses the importance of art education — and why we need to support funding for the arts (hey, that sounds political).

Cecilia Gimenez refuses to repent for her sins (mortal? venial?) and appears belligerent, arrogant, self-satisfied, defiant, and convinced her work is beautiful. Wait a minute. She sounds like most of the artists I know. Welcome to the club, Cecilia!

Articles about this art restoration debacle have swept the Internet — but my favorite is a piece at hyperallergic.com called “Octogenarian Restorer Strikes Again.” The brilliantly written article imagines what Cecilia Gimenez could accomplish if allowed to restore some of the world’s art treasures, including Andy Warhol‘s portrait of Elizabeth Taylor  (below), Munch’s “The Scream,” Van Gogh‘s self-portrait, Vermeer‘s “Girl with a Pearl Earring,” and Leonardo‘s “Mona Lisa.”