(For fans of great art and Tony Dawson, we have something for you!-The Eds,)
This canvas of an old lady in profile
was painted in London in about 1871
and became one of the most famous
American portraits of modern times.
The artist, described as larger than life,
pursued the poetry of sight while his
contemporaries, Manet and Monet,
devoted their energies to capturing light.
The portrait of Anna only came into being
because the young girl who had been posing
for a lucrative society portrait ran away.
The austere nature of the canvas, depicting
an old woman in Puritan bonnet and dress,
the minimalist background of a Chelsea
studio with no colours other than black,
white, and grey did not impress the critics.
Probably because Victorian taste preferred
riots of colour, one went so far as to say
it wasn’t a picture. I doubt Whistler’s Mother,
as the panting is generally known, would have
agreed as she rested her feet on her stool.
Tony Dawson, 19 May 2026
(Header images is of the poet)
Saragun Springs 
Tony
This is the first literal information poem I have ever read. Truly enjoyable. Your lines are airy yet tell!
Leila
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Very intriguing and informative–Now I have to track down that painting with a click. Excellent Piece!
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Tony
The world is so full of it (full of manipulative trash and junk and b.s.) these days that the ability to choose, decide, and understand what’s truly worthy of our attention is the most crucial and important skill there is, by far, other than simple kindness.
Your work shows a consistent ability to know and understand what’s worthy of our attention!
The painting your poem is based on creates a great character and is so objective that, paradoxically, it also reveals the character of the person behind the painting, i.e. the painter. And no one ever did so much with the color gray, except Walt Whitman in another medium.
The so-called critics are always behind the times (except for very few exceptions)!
Dale
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A good ekphrastic poem with a well-imagine insight into the mind of the model. “Riots of color” is a fine turn of phrase.
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