Rogier van der Weyden, Descent from the Cross
“It is a Psalm of David,” said a friend,
of Christ forsaken calling to the Lord.
We lit the candles, said the Shabbos prayer –
come through the fire, I saw things upside-down.
The clock stopped. There was time enough to bend
the world to God, to go out on the town.
But you will find no comfort there.
Forsaken: that word cut me like a sword.
The hand that wrote in dirt and did so twice
hangs limp. The head inclines; the Crown of Thorns
has flecked the face with blood. At the left arm –
some angel. And the Virgin swoons away.
Into the gold that is the sky, the mourners
crowd up, but this has been a lonely death.
A man might lift his gaze to where that angel
atop the ladder at the Cross could stand
for consolation. For some hope of glory.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Desce ... er_Weyden)
Rogier van der Weyden, Descent from the Cross
Pleasing weave of rhyme in S1 John. The forsaken and lonely death...well at least the mother has turned up! What struck me was the richness of clothing, no doubt the artist seduced by the richness of colour. There is an irony there!
Hi Phil,
Thanks for stopping by! I am very glad you enjoyed the "weave of rhyme," lovely phrase. I did enjoy allowing hte rhyme pattern to be complex like that, I think it has its own music though I don't know a word for it. i do it a couple of times in this MS.
Yup, mum has shown up, as you rightly note - but I've always pictured Jesus on his own at the moment of death ,except for the two thieves hanging alongside him. Then everyone shows up after the event, rather as in High Noon the whole town pours into the street once Frank Miller has been shot. It is rather a crowded painting! And yes, all that fabric is very interesting! I imagine people grubbier and more simply dressed in 33 CE or thereabouts, but the van der Weyden is beautiful work.
Cheers,
John
Thanks for stopping by! I am very glad you enjoyed the "weave of rhyme," lovely phrase. I did enjoy allowing hte rhyme pattern to be complex like that, I think it has its own music though I don't know a word for it. i do it a couple of times in this MS.
Yup, mum has shown up, as you rightly note - but I've always pictured Jesus on his own at the moment of death ,except for the two thieves hanging alongside him. Then everyone shows up after the event, rather as in High Noon the whole town pours into the street once Frank Miller has been shot. It is rather a crowded painting! And yes, all that fabric is very interesting! I imagine people grubbier and more simply dressed in 33 CE or thereabouts, but the van der Weyden is beautiful work.
Cheers,
John
Fair point John, and of course there is the 'forsaken' moment, though this picture is after the 'event'. I don't mind who turns up at my funeral. I'll be dead
I do prefer the old technicolour versions of history rather than the drab reality.
I do prefer the old technicolour versions of history rather than the drab reality.Hi Phil,
I liked this a good deal "I don't mind who turns up at my funeral. I'll be dead." In Tibet, they chopped up the cadavers and threw them to the vultures. The spirit had left. I plan on being cremated myself. I would though like anyone at my funeral to have a good time.
I also liked your technicolor history idea. Lively!
Cheers,
John
I liked this a good deal "I don't mind who turns up at my funeral. I'll be dead." In Tibet, they chopped up the cadavers and threw them to the vultures. The spirit had left. I plan on being cremated myself. I would though like anyone at my funeral to have a good time.
I also liked your technicolor history idea. Lively!
Cheers,
John