Ekphrastic Challenge, September 2019: Editor’s Choice
Image: “Loss for Words” by Asher ReTech. “Budget Cuts” was written by Danny Eisenberg for Rattle’s Ekphrastic Challenge, September 2019, and selected as the Editor’s Choice.
Comment from the editor, Timothy Green: “Asher’s photograph invites us to wonder what happened to the owner, how it all went down, and Danny Eisenberg’s response seems to toy with that expectation, forever hinting at the backstory it never actually tells. There’s a delightful sense of suspense to that anti-narrative, and a delightful energy in the voice as it barrels down the page. It’s amazing that such a haunting image can lead to a feeling of delight, but here it does. I also learned a new word in the process—bonus!”
“Artifacts from the Buffalo Trunk Mfg. Co. (Defunct)” by Rachel WeltonPosted by Rattle
Ekphrastic Challenge, September 2019: Artist’s Choice
Image: “Loss for Words” by Asher ReTech. “Artifacts from the Buffalo Trunk Mfg. Co. (Defunct)” was written by Rachel Welton for Rattle’s Ekphrastic Challenge, September 2019, and selected as the Artist’s Choice.
Comment from the artist, Asher ReTech: “I think endings are as important as the beginnings. How a thing closes, how an event is finalised, how we say goodbye, is just as critical as how it all began. I like to explore abandoned places because they are full of stories, the last bastion of final notes. The image of carrying grief with you to a new place, for me, was melancholy without being maudlin. If anything this is admitting the truth of what we all do. We carry bits of bad memories attached to things we should have long since discarded. I was struck by how many poems used the suitcase as metaphor for immigration, while poignant and well written, they did not strike the same chord for me as “Artifacts”. They were emotionally strong but my personal bias certainly kept me closer to this one. Very few poems had the actual context of the suitcase, not that I expected them to. But it was interesting to see how others saw this moment versus the actual location and what I found. One poem spoke of a house fire and the collapse of the building, which was eerily accurate. In the end, however, after reading them all several times, I kept coming back to the final lines of ‘Artifacts’ and I loved them. There is a real sense of connection with the past. It’s an honest embrace of the good and bad. I look to the old places and things seeking that connection too. There’s a grace in holding onto your personal context and a dignity in not hiding from sadness that sometimes comes from that.”