But Is It Art? by Alarie Tennille

Bird in Space, by Constantin Brancusi (b. Romania). Variations of this sculpture were created throughout the '20s and '30s.

But Is It Art?

In 1928, Brancusi’s Bird in Space
stood trial.

U.S. Customs refused to call it art,
taxed it as kitchenware. They looked
too hard for feathers and claws.

Gone are the wings,
but not the flight.
It swoops ­–
sharp beak, flared tail –
part missile, part dolphin –
yet still so very bird,
bronzed in sunlight.

Brancusi captured what mattered –
even your reflection.
​
Alarie Tennille

This poem was written as part of the 20 Poem Challenge.
​
Alarie Tennille was born and raised in Portsmouth, Virginia, and graduated from the University of Virginia in the first class admitting women. She became fascinated by fine art at an early age, even though she had to go to the World Book Encyclopedia to find it. Today she visits museums everywhere she travels and spends time at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri, where her husband is a volunteer guide. Alarie’s poetry book, Running Counterclockwise, contains many ekphrastic poems. Please visit her at alariepoet.com.