Skip to main content

Black books

black books by Suzanne Coley (part of 365 series)
black books
for black times
egg shell nightmares

a somber sun hides behind
glass and steel monsters
ready to aim potent weapons

cable blues for artists
waiting for the fix
begging for paper not
worthy of monopoly

black books for black times
cursive zinc white words
psychotic stripes swell
broken spines

red welts
bandaged oozing passions
leaving masters in pieces
emergency rooms storage units

black books for black times
earth is square king on each
corner gulping electrical wines
brewed with Aeschylus's reed

emperors push bull through
snow Elpis forgot to melt
Benjamin dreams smuggled in crystal
snow cones, favors at private parties

welcome to the city of green apples
take a bite

up the pressure, the party goes on 
till the break of blue. . .

220/140


art and poetry ©2014 Suzanne Coley

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Born of Love, Shakespeare's Sonnet 151

Over the summer I worked on new artwork, Born of Love , inspired by Shakespeare's Sonnet 151. The book offers a translation of the sonnet to the language of textiles and embroidery.  Working on this book allowed me to explore the beauty of textiles from four continents.  Its construction is inspired by the poetic structure within the sonnet.  This book, along with two other of my art pieces, will be on exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library from 16 Sept 2024 - 9 Feb 2025.
Post a Comment
Read more

Flowers For Mistress Overdone, 2024

 Coded Threads: Translating Shakespeare Through Art The following is a page from Flowers For Mistress Overdone , the first of two books that I presented at the Folger Shakespeare Library on Nov 16. The pages for the books are created with textiles from 5 continents (Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and North America).  The textiles were collaged and sewn into various designs. The fabric on the left is a collage of American and Tanzanian fabrics that I combined with one of my linocuts.  The fabric on the right was an original mid century modern English quilt top I purchased at London's Antique Quilt Company during my summer in the UK researching Shakespeare's texts.  The owner, Christopher, sources the highest quality textiles and it was truly a joy to transform this quilt into pages of my books inspired by Shakespeare's Measure For Measure. It was wonderful to present a few of my original artworks and embroidered books during my talk at the Folger Shakespeare Library....
Post a Comment
Read more

Flower Power, 2024

2024 was a productive year.  I created several different book series of embroidered and embellished books during my 1.5 years as a Folger Institute Fellow.   These three flower books are in response to Shakespeare's Sonnet 54.  During my artist talk at the Folger on 16 November 2024, I mentioned the power of flowers.   "The act of giving flowers is a timeless gesture of deep appreciation, love, or praise. Beyond their symbolic value, flowers serve as visually striking design elements, drawing the eye and creating inviting focal points. Even after a fresh bouquet fades, the memory of the gesture endures, lending a poignant resonance to these artistic choices." /Suzanne Coley, 'Coded Threads,' November 2024  
Post a Comment
Read more