Embedded Files
Girl with the Pearl Earring
Previously printed in Out Loud Anthology VI, Midwest Writing Center Press, 2013
22 August 2011
What Vermeer knew—
life is a puzzle;
best to start at the dark edges
& to work toward the luminous center.
Strong light makes deep darks:
base layer of umber, sienna, & cobalt.
Chiaroscuro builds to rich transparent skin;
Filtered sunlight moves past murky corners,
glints off one pearl earring
& shining sclera.
In her direct gaze, cumulative vicissitudes
& her triumph over meanness and lack.
--Therese Guise
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