Kandinsky's Red Spot, by Dan Wilcox

Red Spot, by Wassily Kandinsky (Russia). 1921.

Kandinsky's Red Spot

A red spot fell on the floor
in the Guggenheim Museum
someone’s lost cinnamon candy
or a pill to stave off arthritis pain
a red spot on the speckled marble floor
inscribed in circles
a red spot exiled 
from one of Kandinsky’s paintings
hanging on the wall
one of Kandinsky’s larger circles
compressed & boiled down
a red pill you take once a day
the Idea of Art alchemized.

☭

Красное пятно
[Russian Translation by Inna Ehrlich, Ph.D.]

Красное пятно упало на пол
в музее Гуггенхайма,
кто-то уронил конфету с корицей
или таблетку от артрита.
Kрасное пятно на пёстром мраморном полу
вписанное в круги.
Kрасное пятно, сбежавшее 
с какой-то картины Кандинского,
что висит на стене.
Oдин из больших кругов Кандинского,
спрессованний в красную таблетку,
какую глотают раз в день.
Алхимия абстракционизма.

☭
The Red Spot
[English translation by Google from the Russian translation by Inna Ehrlich, Ph.D.]

Red spot fell to the floor
the Guggenheim Museum,
someone dropped a sweet cinnamon
or tablet from arthritis.
Krasnoe spot a multicolored marble floor
inscribed in a circle.
Krasnoe spot to escape
with some paintings by Kandinsky,
that hangs on the wall.
Shout of the great circles of Kandinsky,
compressed into the red pill
which ingest every day.
Alchemy abstractionism.

☭

[re-write based on the Google translation from the Russian]

The Red spot on the floor
of the Guggenheim Museum
is sweet cinnamon candy
or a pill for arthritis
a Krasnoe escaped 
from Kadinsky's 
paintings on the wall
“Krasnoe!” shouts 
the circle of spectators
“Krasnoe!” shouts
the great circle of Kandinsky
compressed into a red pill
we take each day --
“Krasnoe!” 
the alchemy of abstraction.

Dan Wilcox
​
“Kandinsky’s Red Spot” began as one poem. It was translated by Inna Ehrlich, Ph.D., then re-worked for a workshop with Bernadette Mayer to become the 4 parts you read here.

Dan Wilcox is the host of the Third Thursday Poetry Night at the Social Justice Center in Albany, N.Y. and is a member of the poetry performance group "3 Guys from Albany".  As a photographer, he claims to have the world's largest collection of photos of unknown poets.  He has been a featured reader at all the important poetry venues in the Capital District & throughout the Hudson Valley and is an active member of Veterans for Peace.  You can read his Blog at dwlcx.blogspot.com.