A is for Artwork

What to do there: Pick a painting to work with. Go for something figurative. Tell its story in detail as if you’re describing a scene. Stay within the frame. Focus on describing what you see before moving into “story”. When you’ve written for 20 minutes, allow yourself only one reference to what’s going on beyond the frame. Come back to describing what’s in frame. 

 

Auspicious Cranes. 1112

Auspicious Cranes – Emperor Huizong of Song (Zhao Ji)

 

The cranes were nervous. They flew up into the sky like a storm, circling and circling but never soaring up too high. They were usually so peaceful, almost never leaving their territory but also never entering ours. And they were being so incredibly loud. They screamed and cawed to try and get our attention, making the usual busy sounds of the marketplace seem quiet in comparison. The strong shouts of the hundreds of vendors and endless chatter of the ladies had completely disappeared. It was like they were trying to tell us something, warn us of some sort of danger. What could it be?

The sky was still clear and bright, the only thing that marred its beauty was the fierce, never-ending rush of the birds. There wasn’t a cloud in sight, nothing to hint at any sort of misfortune.

They were moving so fast, beginning to change from nervousness to fear. I could feel it radiating off of them, giving them the energy to keep on going. Each flap of their powerful wings sent a harsh breeze down towards us, slapping our confused faces to make sure we kept on watching.

They even reached the dirt on the ground, pushing it upwards to create a dusty whirlwind that stung our eyes and coloured our faces. Everything and everyone was being swayed by their wind, nothing could move against it.

I could even begin to hear shouts of panic break through the birdcalls. Their fear had been transferred to us, but we were more afraid of them than whatever it was they were trying to warn us of. I was scared too. I desperately wanted to know what was happening. I even wished to be able to grow a pair of wings so I could fly on up there with them, see whatever it was they were seeing. So I would be able to fly away if needed.

I could picture it. My body shrinking, my skin thinning into hundreds of feathers, and my arms growing into beautiful, strong wings. I could feel myself lifting off, shooting off straight into the centre of the mayhem. Their distress would be the most concentrated in the middle, it would give me courage. I would circle and circle, scream and caw just like them.

They suddenly looked so beautiful, flowing in the wind like tiny fish in a great, big pond. It was mesmerizing. Why exactly were we so afraid? I wanted them to take me away, surround me in their layers of warm feathers and protect me from the madness. I walked forward and stretched my arm out as far as I could. My hand was wide open, hoping for one of them to grab hold and welcome me in.

I could feel hands on my back, the others were holding on to me trying to keep me from leaving. They probably just wanted it for themselves. I shoved them away, didn’t even look back. The only thing on my mind was the beautiful cloud of the singing cranes above me. Was someone crying behind me? I didn’t care.

I just stood there with my arm up, waiting ever so patiently. Finally, one of them came forward. It gently picked me up with its feet and flew me away. I was held and cradled in their massive wings, given all of their love and comfort. I had already begun to forget about the fear I had felt just moments before. I was one of them now. I was safe.

They flew and flew, taking turns letting me ride on their sturdy backs. I was too busy daydreaming about all of the adventures we would go on together. I didn’t even realize that the wind was no longer pushing me back instead, I was being forced down. I was dropped from the clouds straight down to the jagged ground. When I looked up, those beautiful, majestic cranes weren’t cranes anymore. My fear was quickly brought back, but it was too late. I was gone. In my mind, I still held the picture of the cranes swarming above me, sending down warnings with their cries. I guess it was themselves that they were so afraid of.

 

 

 

 

https://theartstack.com/artist/emperor-huizong-of-song/auspicious-cranes-1112
https://giphy.com/gifs/art-black-and-white-painting-GcVXlAj3ZgIaQ

 

 

 

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