Bonescape

Written by Emma LiverseedPhotography by Tori Tiso after Ram’s Head, White HollyhockDrought turns desertsinto bone fields,scattering the earthwith sun-bleacheddebris. The ram skullhovers like a god,sweeping over blood washed hills,sterile and sharp.Its twisted hornsand darkened socketscast a new authority,permeating the skywith power, churningthe clouds to the kindof blue you could bite.The hollyhock driftsbeyond its sightlessorbs, a promise of life,if we could just remembernot to destroy ourselvesagain and again.Can’t you imagine it,collecting bouquetsof only bone, our gardensturning to graves?Long after the ramhas licked its last dropand knelt to the sand,a woman will carrythe skull home and placea flower by its head,painting life after the dying is done. Poet’s note: This piece is an ekphrastic poem modeled after Georgia O'Keeffe's painting, Ram’s Head, White Hollyhock. In the deserts of New Mexico, O’Keeffe often had an easier time finding animal bones than flowers. I was also inspired by her quote, “sun-bleached bones were most wonderful against the blue— that blue that will always be there as it is now after all man's destruction is finished.” The striking contrast of the ram’s skull next to the flower creates a jarring juxtaposition, representing the natural cycle of life and death. The flower is both a symbol of femininity and fertility, which, when placed next to the ram’s skull, I see as the power that women have to overcome death. In my poem, despite the barren surroundings, a woman sees the opportunity to bring life into the world and chooses life over destruction.