DOMINICAN ARTISANSHIP

Here are two chairs put out by Artesania D'Carela of the Dominican Republic.  They are sitting, ahem, on an armchair (nothing like mixing styles!).  I don't remember now where I got these -- whether in DR or elsewhere.  But I liked them then and like them now; they're painted wood with rush seats.  I'm glad I bought two.  One is just an empty chair; two chairs is a potential for engagement:

I am posting a second photo of them below, even if the image is slightly blurry, because I noticed that the empty (thus, lonely?) chairs were hanging out with one of Jean Vengua's tiny canvases which I so loved when I first saw it on the internet that I did the necessary to acquire it:

Jean is both poet and visual artist -- I'm so happy she's painting.  "Brink City" is magnificent and one of my favorite images yet from what I've seen on her blog.

**

Two chairs offers a possibility for engagement.  Entonces, while a single empty chair might bespeak loneliness, what's even lonelier are two empty chairs.

The Empty Chairs


have been offering
new

significance since Mom
died

You can admire
pain

-staking craft in
woven

cattail leaves firming
seat

for conversation (with
tea)

You can marvel
at

bougainvillea, the only
name

for "tropical flowers"
known

to me.  I
can

feel the labor
by

Senor Anonymous who
took

his time sanding
then

staining the wood
into

a pleasing gloss
But

suddenly, context becomes
negative:

suddenly, air turns
acrid

Why should this
chair

be considered "pretty"
when

it is empty
of

my Mother who
died

before we could
complete

all desired conversations
seated

on rush seats
held

together by strong
wood

festooned with flowers
painted

so realistically their
beauty

only highlights the
lack

of company--say,
Mom

who so loved
sitting

down to chat
until

the moon replaced
sun

or sun replaced
moon

or until (despite
reservations)

I would agree,
"Mom--

what a wonderful
story!"

[Prov.: Artesania D'Carela, Dominican Republic; Scale: 12"x5"x5"]