Have you ever wandered through an art gallery, found a painting, and thought, “That looks like it should be a poem!” Or have you ever read a poem and thought that it sounded a lot like a painting you’ve seen? If so, then you know the idea behind ekphrastic poetry.
An ekphrastic poem is based on a work of art. Usually, ekphrastic poems are written about a painting, but they can also be based on a sculpture, an object, or even architecture. One of the earliest examples is in the Iliad, when Homer describes Achilles’ shield. Another famous example is John Keats’ poem “Ode on a Grecian Urn.”
In an ekphrastic poem, the poet usually describes some part of the work of art and may extend their own thoughts on the work’s underlying story or significance. Ekphrastic poems are wonderful ways to stretch your powers of observation and find stories hidden in the world of art!
Examples
Landscape with the Fall of Icarus
William Carlos Williams
According to Brueghel
when Icarus fell
it was spring
a farmer was ploughing
his field
the whole pageantry
of the year was
awake tingling
with itself
sweating in the sun
that melted
the wings' wax
unsignificantly
off the coast
there was
a splash quite unnoticed
this was
Icarus drowning
Staring at the Night
Honor Moorman
Perhaps
he too
once stood
just here
head tilted
eyes licking
the orangey
crescent moon
exploding stars
flaming cypress
swirling silver sky
his imagination
suspended
in the silent city
beneath quaking
black mountains
secret recesses
of a tender
growing night
Van Gogh
whispering
to his soul
with furious
brushstrokes
as I cannot
with this
trickle
of words
he will
never
read
Books of Ekphrastic Poetry
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Paint Me a Poem: Poems Inspired by Masterpieces of Art by Justine Rowden
Side by Side: New Poems Inspired by Art from Around the World by Jan Greenberg
Heart to Heart: New Poems Inspired by Twentieth-Century American Art by Jan Greenberg
Create an Ekphrastic Poem
Look at a painting closely
How would you describe the color palette: is it cool or warm, bright or dull? What about the composition: is it realistic or fantastical or a combination of both? What is the subject? Where is the subject located? What is happening in the image? What do you think the artist is trying to say?
Freewrite
Set a timer for 5-10 minutes and jot down your observations. Don't worry about punctuation or grammar. Just write.
Shape your thoughts into a poem
Use a simple poetic form such as
More Resources
Wonderful blog post on ekphrastic poetry by The Miss Rumphius Effect.
Article from the English Journal about teaching ekphrastic poetry.
List of famous ekphrastic poems collected by Emory University.
Insightful interview with Joseph Stanton, poet, professor at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, and art historian who writes ekphrastic poetry.
