Throwback Thursday with Nina Nazir

I love ekphrastic writing and find art (and music) to be an endless source of inspiration for me.  The Ekphrastic Review's challenges keep me writing, and is a joyful community of creatives to be part of.  I spent the last few days reading through the archives to select a few of my favourite pieces, and though there were so many I adored, these in particular evoked an emotional reaction from me.  I found myself marvelling at their imagery, their unique interpretation, some haunting quality, or simply for how well-crafted they were.  May you enjoy them as much I did.

Nina Nazir

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Kerfe Roig: It's 4am and I'm Wearing a Blue Raincoat (after Leonard Cohen)

Such a moving piece, as if the stormy night perfectly mirrors the turbulent feelings of the visitor and grieves with her.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-review/william-edouard-scott-ekphrastic-writing-challenge-responses

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Kim M. Russell: Figures in a Landscape

A well-chiselled poem that captures the meditative state and dramatic lines in the painting.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-review/ekphrastic-writing-responses-bertram-brooker


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Nina Nazir: Incognito

I chose my own work for this piece as I had fun embodying the voice for Queen Bee and I really enjoyed the journey it took me on.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/noah-jayne-andrews-ekphrastic-writing-responses


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Lorette C. Luzajic: Ragged Psalms

I love the wild streak that runs throughout this piece - it's like a scene from a road movie with a satisfying, heartwarming end.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/alexis-rhone-fancher-ekphrastic-writing-responses-curated-by-alexis-rhone-fancher


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Dihya Ammar: Perfect Measurements

A deeply considered reading of the artwork with dark undertones that speak of the animal side of human nature, which made it all the more compelling.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/harue-koga-ekphrastic-writing-responses

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Allison Connolly: An Offering

I was enchanted by this haunting tale that connects two strangers and crosses time and planes - eerie and beautiful.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/arch-hades-ekphrastic-writing-responses-curated-by-kate-copeland

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Stevie B: Eros at the End: a Meditation on Last Things

The psalmic nature of this epic poem perfectly expanded on the immensity of feeling captured within the painting and read like a heartfelt prayer, or a gospel song.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/kitty-north-ekphrastic-writing-responses-curated-by-kate-copeland

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Tracy Royce: Five Things I've Learned about Witches

The wry humour of this piece is delightful, inviting us into the world of witches, familiar in all the ways we’ve come to love.

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/luis-ricardo-falero-ekphrastic-writing-responses


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Karen Gettert Shoemaker: Life or Something Like it

Such a mystical interpretation of the painting, alluding to the cycles of birth, change, and death, while hinting at so much more.  

https://www.ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/michael-schoenholtz-ekphrastic-writing-responses

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Nina Nazir (she/her) is a neurodivergent British Pakistani poet, writer and fine artist based in Birmingham, UK.  She has been widely published online and in print, most recently with Under the Radar Magazine and Scumbag Press.  She is also a Room 204 writing cohort with Writing West Midlands.  You can usually find her surrounded by books, writing in her favourite café, or making art, which she sometimes shares on Instagram: @nina.s.nazir or on her blog: www.sunrarainz.wordpress.com

This is Nina at 23 in the Louvre, visiting Paris for the first time, with the incomparable Mona Lisa.