Light (An Ars Poetica) (Michael Cirelli)

The more I read this poem by Michael Cirelli (who bizarrely does not seem to have his own website - the link is to a blog posting of his), the more I like it. The title bugs me with its parenthetical. I don't want the explanation. The poem is incredibly strong. It's streaming and yet so obviously skilled, perfectly plotted.

I don't get the many proper nouns - "Basquiat", "SAMO", "Nonna", "Wylie Dufresne", "Viscusi", but I find that in poetry I often don't get every word, so I'm okay with that and I won't be turning to Google.

I love what it says about poetry - that it's different each similar act, that it's a comfort and that it's a portal into relationships and families and God and that art has the conflicts between artistry and commercialism and sentimentality and the mundane near its center.

I think this poem is a fantastic ars poetica. It contains essays worth of thought. So glad I found this.

Favorite line: "We all do the same ol’ same ol’ same. / (Some don’t.)"

Basquiat