On a day a nurse unstaples my breast
On June 24th 2016 the result of the Brexit referendum in the UK was announced. That morning I had an appointment with a nurse following surgery for breast cancer.
Pia Illusione
This is one of a number of poems inspired by characters in Dante’s Commedia, particularly the women. Where Dante places these women (in Hell, or Purgatory, or Heaven) is frequently problematic for modern audiences. Pia is a woman Dante encounters briefly in Purgatory – she’s been murdered by her husband, possibly for infidelity, but maybe just because he wants to remarry.
She offers her defence
Another of Dante’s women: Thais is given very short shrift, referred to as ‘a whore’, when in fact she was a Hetaira – a type of highly educated female companion in ancient Greece who served as an artist, entertainer, and conversationalist. Their classification as prostitutes is contentious, most probably spread by (male) historians who could not conceive of women holding any kind of sway over men unless there was sex involved. Dante’s description perpetuates this idea.
The House with the Ocean View
The House with the Ocean View is an iconic performance artwork by Marina Abramovic. A woman lives on a set of a basic apartment for 12 days and nights, existing only on water. She can be viewed by the audience at any time. She can’t speak although the instructions say that she may sing if she gets the urge. A clock ticking is the only sound. I was lucky enough to visit during a performance at the Royal Academy in London, as performed by Kira O’Reilly.
Tours of Haunted London #32: Nilsson’s Flat
Singer/composer Harry Nilsson once owned a flat in Curzon Square that he bought in the 1970s. In that decade, both Mama Cass Elliot (of the Mamas and the Papas) and Keith Moon of The Who died in the flat. Nilsson then reportedly sold the ‘cursed’ flat to Pete Townsend and returned to LA.
At last, overboard
Anyone can be buried at sea in England, as long as you fulfil all the obligations. There are only three sites off the coast where burials may take place, one being the stretch between Hastings and Newhaven.
Kinfolk
An ekphrastic poem written for the Visual Verse Autumn Writing Prize 2022. This image of a Chewbacca mug (Star Wars), the head of ET and a plastic Three Eyed Alien from Toy Story reminded me of a totem pole, so I imagined how these three might be related. The artist is ETTA/Girl with Red Hat:
