Illustration by Boris Zvorykin, 1800s / Untitled by Jo Brocklehurst, 1982 / Owls' Road House by Carmel Bechler, 2023 / Earth - JPL Travel Poster by Joby Harris, 2000
ekphrasis: what is it?
note: this post and challenge are drawing primarily on the poetic meaning, but there's lots of interesting stuff in the general wikipedia article on ekphrasis if you're interested!
from the poetry foundation's glossary:
“Description” in Greek. An ekphrastic poem is a vivid description of a scene or, more commonly, a work of art. Through the imaginative act of narrating and reflecting on the “action” of a painting or sculpture, the poet may amplify and expand its meaning.
Keats's 'Ode on a Grecian Urn', included in the link above, is one of the most well-known examples. others to check out include: Landscape with the Fall of Icarus by William Carlos Williams, a couple of more modern takes inspired by other media types in Aubade with Burning City by Ocean Vuong and Lavender Town by Sally Wen Mao, and loads more in the online journal the light ekphrastic. contemporary ekphrastic poetry ranges from focused descriptions of a specific piece to works that use a piece as a jumping-off point, but a through-line remains of using one medium to try and represent (or re-present) the details and features originally expressed in another.
the challenge
make your own ekphrastic work! you might:
- choose one of the above images and describe or otherwise translate it into a different medium of your choosing
or
- find another image (or song or video or sculpture or game or any other work of art) and do the same
- if you live somewhere with access to galleries or public art, a music scene, etc, and can get out, why not go hunting for some local inspiration?
and/or
- share this post with an image of your own for others to describe artistically