On The Dream Canvas Poem by Lidia Chiarelli

Sulla tela del sogno
to Pierre-August Renoir

'Life is a red flower bouquet'
Pierre-Auguste Renoir

At the dawn
of a sleepless night
your brush
held by numb fingers
touches the canvas with small strokes

out of nowhere
vibrant colors
take shape:

baigneuses en plein air
softly lying on the sand
and gazing afar

gladioli like flames
tinge the sky red

a woman with soft hair
dreamily wanders
among the twisted olive trees
and the southern wind seems to caress
the petals of white irises
memory of ivory and precious porcelain

Then you pause
(we pause)
to listen to
the echo of the distant sea
while strong rises the song of cicadas
in the Mediterranean light
more and more dazzling

Les Collettes, Cros de Cagnes, August 19,2015