eun122-class-blog

[eun122-class-blog]

Give a Dog More Bones

By Kirsty Boddington

There exists a world of absolute innocence,

An innocence sparking pure happiness in which we lose ourselves.

I never knew something so peacefully simple,

Like the act of kindness to throw a chewed tennis ball.

With a burst of excitement, they race to attain,

A slobbery toy which they ‘woof’ at you to throw again and again.

In their spirited minds this game never gets old,

They fetch and catch these objects relentlessly as if they were gold.

The true treasure which lights up their day,

Is a juicy bone – a humble offering that is not much to convey.

These wonderful creatures deserve so much more I pray,

A little furry paw resting on your leg can really change your feelings of dismay I say!

Bounding over to me in delight – eyes bright, smile wide and tail wagging upright,

I feel tiny tugs on my heart and rushes of oxytocin ignite.

To them you are their whole world, a joy from which they thrive,

To us they are best friends yet still only one aspect of our lives.

17/09/22 9:53pm

Explanation:

My poem “Give a Dog More Bones” is inspired by my two Border Collies Molly and Archie who are 12 and 13 years old. The actions and events that take place in the poem are reminiscent of my dogs when they were puppies and reflect on how much they and I have grown to understand each other. The poem describes how my dogs make me happy by doing simple things, reminding me that happiness comes from humble moments. The sense of innocence captured in the poem is inspired by my dogs’ pure joy to see me when I come home, to receive their dinner, to be cuddled, and other easy acts of service/kindness. I conceived the poem from the notion that time passes quickly, dogs grow up fast and pets don’t stay in our lives forever. Therefore, the message is a small reminder to realise the good things before they are gone, and to understand life from different perspectives to improve our wellbeing.

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Artwork details

Title: Fantastical Feasts

Date: 2020

Medium: Acrylic on canvas

Dimensions: 92 x 122cm

Fantastical Feast

By Kirsty Boddington

I had a marvellous dream so intense,

About a fantastical feast which I eyed with suspense.

I pondered how to recreate such a scene through this lens,

This fantasy was so bizarre I wondered if it would make sense.

A cornucopia spilling with fruit and vegetables so colourful,

A tiny paintbrush endeavoured to paint details so abundantly cultural.

A fresh lobster bedded with succulent lemons and generous oysters,

And a golden roast chicken plump with much moisture.

The buffet was placed on a grass bed beneath tropical trees,

In oblivion, my wildest adventures await me.

Desperately trying to capture the theatrics that played on my unconscious mind,

Silver tableware, delicate teacups and embellished platters I consciously desired to find.

Anything and everything were sought to match what I experienced from memory,

I dined, drank and drowned in paint until a blank canvas became visionary.

The mouth of the abyss was fed both day and night,

Until the void was full and the illusion appeared right.

Brightly sitting in contrast to a vast white room that mattered,

The strange portal to my world certainly aroused audience chatter.

17/09/22 9:52pm

Explanation:

My poem ‘Fantastical Feast’ is inspired by a dream I had which gave me a surrealist painting idea. I record my dreams in a diary and use still life practices using found objects to re-create my dreams for painting. The poem embodies this process and aims to express the thrill and labour of getting my ideas from my mind to canvas. The poem describes an Arcadian landscape where bountiful nature generously provides for one’s needs and comforts with extreme luxury. The poem also touches on the concept of Surrealism as my work depicts the meeting of bizarre scenes; an opulent banquet isolated in rampant paradise jungle. The painting acts as a portal for the viewer to momentarily escape reality and enter a hallucinatory charged space, therefore the poem describes the painting as ‘the abyss.’ The poem conveys my interest in Sigmund Freud’s theory that untapped experience, emotion, desire and knowledge are hidden in the unconscious mind; the key to improving the quality of life. Therefore, the poem conveys that this untapped data should be explored and shared creatively.

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The author of my own heartbreak

I had a dream I broke my heart.

Fallen from its home its cavity

Surrendered it to gravity,

It was me who let it fall apart.

Like ash, my skin crumbled away.

Blazing, burning, breaking,

A pile of coal in need of raking,

I slowly smouldered to grey.

This dream remained reality so vivid.

I wished it hard into nonexistence.

I fought against it with fierce resistance

And yet it remains the truth. I’m livid.

I had a dream I broke my heart

How I wish we could just restart

The author of my own heartbreak is influenced by my feelings of despair after a friendship disintegrated as a result of my actions. This was the first time I felt solely responsible for my heart breaking. I felt like without that friendship I was empty and only half alive, and so my mental and emotional health deteriorated greatly as a result. I was so angry at myself because I had hurt her, but also angry that she didn’t love me enough to forgive me. I spent many months wishing I could change things and being angry before I eventually forgave myself.

By Jarrah Leslie-Baker

14/09/2022 6:45pm

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Valentines

Should the world stop dead tomorrow

With no time left to borrow

I have thIs feeling deep within my heart

That with you I must impart

For alL the time we’ve had to share

We have been my favourite pair

YOu’re the rosemary to my meat

Good warm socks on my feet

It’s not that I can’t liVe without you

I’m a capable woman, this much is truE

But the world alwaYs seems to be better

When it’s you and me who face it together

SO should my chest lie still

With no ability to arouse its thrill

Know that forever within it lingers

Like warmth on my skin left by your fingers

The burning love that I have for yoU

And the knowledge that you feel it too

This poem is influenced by the love that I have for my partner. It draws from a feeling that no one else in the world has ever elicited from me except him. This feeling is that when I am with him, the world seems to stop and be at peace, and that my heart is so full it could crack open. One morning I woke up from a nightmare that one of us had died, and I had this distinct panic arise that if I died that day with all of that feeling unsaid, I would never forgive myself.

By Jarrah Leslie-Baker

14/09/2022 6:40pm