The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Exhibit, by Tricia Knoll

Paintbox of Georgia O'Keeffe. Photographer unknown.

The Georgia O’Keeffe Museum Exhibit

Everything nestled in her tool box,
tubes of cobalt blue, orange de Mars,
Indian blood, vine black, Venetian
red, Mars red, simple white.
The brushes cut to fine points.
Her simple three line sketches
in a black book that captured
erosion and cliff in soaring.
The thin blade knives
that smeared mist into river,
vulvas into petals,
antlers into sky.  

I with my Oxford English Dictionary.
All the raw words settle
in with their histories
and antique usages
as I try over and over
to make the sound
of fall rain on gold leaves.

Tricia Knoll

Tricia Knoll is an Oregon poet more vibrantly familiar with the shades of green and brown that make up the northwest forests than the adobe reds and Mars rock colors of New Mexico. Her two poetry collections focus on this landscape she knows the best. Ocean's Laughter (Aldrich Press 2016) focuses on change over time in a small town on Oregon's north coast. Urban Wild (Finishing Line Press, 2014) looks at interactions between wildlife and humans in urban habitat. Website: triciaknoll.com