As we get closer to the end of our residency, I wanted to have have a colorful theme. For their 17th week, O-School students learned about Ekphrastic poetry. Ekphrastic poetry is poetry that is inspired by art, such as drawings, sculptures, paintings, or photographs.
Together we read my poem “Two Brothers” inspired by mural at Shoesmith Elementary located in the South Side neighborhood of Hyde Park. In my poem I included similes and rhymes to tell the story of two brothers searching the sea for treasure on their small boat. The water shimmers like a silk blue ribbon/ In its depths, a treasure is hidden/ It’s not jewels, nor silver, or gold/But something more precious to hold.
O-School students were shown murals from different neighborhoods in Chicago, such as Bronzeville, Rogers Park, Ukrainian Village, Pilsen, Lakeview, and Wicker Park. Each student chose one neighborhood mural to write a poem about. Please enjoy the artwork and poems below.
Group A (Middle School)
Music
Happy
together
we play
we dance
we sing
all through the night
and to the break of day
as the guitar plays
on and on
happy and free
together.
My Neighborhood
My neighborhood
has a bird
has a tree
has a car
has a moon
we are Midway Airport
we see a star
we see a home
we see a ice cream shop.
The Dancing Man
The blue dancing man
dances his butt off
in the middle of Hyde Park.
He is dancing in the sunshine.
But we really don’t know why.
He has passed a long time ago.
He dances to make people feel better.
He is really flexible.
And the blue dancing man will
dance forever.
Signed,
E-dubs
Lakeview
Lake View my personal neighborhood,
the home of my childhood.
My mom’s and dad’s houses are both
in Lakeview.
I wish they were together again.
But it won’t stop me from
sleeping in my bed.
I’ve crosses paths with
so many friends here
it’s nice, I’m able to see everything
that’s clear: my friends in other
neighborhoods just know.
One day you will cross paths
with your childhood.
Group B (Middle School)
Ocean Astronaut
I don’t know where I’m going
or what I’m going to do,
but I’ve got my pack,
and I’m on track,
on my bike in the ocean blue.
Midway Airport
The bird flies fast,
a sparrow or a crow,
flying high, but also slow.
Gliding past very fast,
gliding past, along the trees,
not knowing next where it
it will be.
Blossom
Trees grow pretty pink blossoms,
while I drift into a deeper sleep.
My memories fading into a deeper
void.
While I rest the seasons change,
I’m not ready, but I wake up
Winter into Spring, Summer,
into Fall.
Yet, Spring comes back again
and my sleep continues.
The Baby Brown Bears
The baby bears stay by
their mother’s side.
And if they roam far,
they’re still under her
watchful eye.
Because of all the pollution,
the water’s now turned
to tar.
So because there is
no solution,
they say goodbye
to their home,
to move to a place
that may be less
subpar.
Chicago artwork that inspired student’s poems below:
Bronzeville
Bucktown
Hyde Park
Midway/Garfield Ridge
Rogers Park
Lakeview
