B: Xxxi: 'I Would Have Loved...' Poem by Douglas Scotney

I would have loved living
When you'd come across a painted nude
In your rambles.
Sculptors would compete for MOST LIFE-LIKE
And win,
according to the Surprise-O-meter
Or measurements of how close you could get
Before realising.

Living people would feel comfortable in repose,
If not in motion,
And would compete for MOST STATUESQUE.

Before the time when artists thought,
'We can't do better than that',
Started covering,
Selectively uncovering,
Telling us,
'You can do better than that'.