As my friends and followers will be aware, I have recently began a journey of research to use the art and literature of the Pre-Raphaelite era as an inspiration to create pieces of fine art via the medium of photography, in that distinctive painters style. I needed to produce a 'test piece' to explore a very different lighting scheme and colour palette from my Renaissance inspired pieces. My first reference was to look at certain stanzas in the Keats ballad, written in 1819, “La Belle Dame sans Merci” that in itself is a reworking of the 15th century piece by that name by Alain Chartier. The stanza chosen was:

“I met a lady in the meads,

Full beautiful, a fairy’s child;

Her hair was long, her foot was light,

And her eyes were wild.”

John Keats 1819

So, my Lady and I revisited a location we love, fully laden with a costume (although not in the colours I would have chosen) and props including beautifully crafted armour, and a head garland of white roses, that I had sat and made up the previous evening. The day itself was the third anniversary of us being together and what better way to mark the occasion than by doing something together we both love. Art & Poetry. Waiting for the ’sweet light’ of the day I took sufficient images, only using 'natural light' observed and manipulated by presenting my beautiful subject to that light, to create the first test piece for my new collection.

Later that evening having completed the art piece, my Lady, unbeknown to me wrote a beautiful piece of what she has dubbed, ‘Micropoetry’ and Tweeted it to the world. It’s actually a perfect fit for the image and together I believe we have achieved what every artist and his muse desires, a harmony of vision and execution. Why use the words of one whom I have never met when my daily source of inspiration is before my eyes?  

“I lavish in desire

for decay around me

in face or flower

cliff rock or body

or the sun setting on

another dying day”

© Katypoetess 2016

With great thanks to the lady and poetess in my life - Katypoetess. Please follow her on Twitter to enjoy more of her ‘Micropoetry’ @Katypoetess. Her first published poetry collection, “Of Lilith and Anthony” is available on Amazon.

© Martin Grahame-Dunn FBIPP 2016