Pied Beauty
by Gerard Manley Hopkins
GLORY be to God for dappled things—
For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;
For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;
Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings;
Landscape plotted and pieced—fold, fallow, and plough;
And áll trádes, their gear and tackle and trim.
All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)
With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;
He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:
Praise him.
Beautiful! I hope it remained for a few days before it was dappled by rain...
ReplyDeletep.s. Great canvas. I've always admired this bench - it's the perfect place to position something poetic to promote a public poetry project.
ReplyDeleteI am really impressed with this project! The artistry really highlights the incredibly visceral and colorful nature of these poems without overwhelming them. Will you guys have more artwork up soon?
ReplyDelete-alexx e
This poem- and so many of gerard manley hopkins' poems- are like a breath of fresh golden air. Without knowing it, the reader seems enlightened and excited. He is definitely gifted with imagery and alliteration.
ReplyDeleteThis bench, as Ms. Majerus said, is definitely the perfect location for this lofty, swift beauty. The only thing - I wish you guys had chalked on dapples, flashes of imagery instead of the opening line. Or - small bits of "rose-moles," "finches’ wings," scattered around. Here around the column, there by my feet.
ReplyDeleteRegardless, this is beautiful. You all have such an eye for such things.