L'Odalisque(c. 1745), known as The Brunette
Odalisque, by Francois Boucher(1703-1770)
This is the Boucher you can admire with
something approaching a clean conscience,
as there is nothing beyond the painted image
known of its subject; the other odalisque
a tale of abuse, venereal disease, because
we know the subject, the victim who can't
be made into a mere object as intended
by the painter. Here there's nothing but
the paint. A lifetime of sadness could have
spread both directions in time from
the moment the painter's brush had
captured her features, yet all that is
hidden from our gaze, hidden from our
mind that suspects the cruelty of a life
that must have been, yet desires
to caress the illusion of flesh long
gone from the bones.
07.03.2024
#Poem #Poems #Poetry #Verse
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