Giorgio de Chirico, “The Enigma of a Day,” oil on canvas, 6′ 1 1/4 x 55,” MoMA

* an ongoing series of quotations – mostly from artists, to artists – that offers wisdom, inspiration, and advice for the sometimes lonely road we are on.

THE DISQUIETING MUSES

From Two de Chiricos

[On Giorgio de Chirico]

Boredom sets in first, and then despair.

One tries to brush it off.  It only grows.

Something about the silence of the square.

Something is wrong; something about the air,

It’s color; about the light, the way it goes.

Something about the silence of the square.

The muses in their fluted evening wear,

Their faces blank, might lead one to suppose

Something about the silence of the square.

Something about the buildings standing there.

But no, they have no purpose but to pose.

Boredom sets in first, and then despair.  

What happens after that, one doesn’t care.

What brought one here – the desire to compose

Something about the silence of the square.

Or something else, of which one’s not aware,

Life itself, perhaps – who really knows?

Boredom sets in first and then despair…

Something about the silence of the square.

Mark Strand in Art and Artists:  Poems, edited by Emily Fragos

Comments are welcome!