For Roland Barthes and Crockett Johnson, by Allison Moore

Photograph by Allison Moore (USA). Contemporary.

For Roland Barthes and Crockett Johnson

The punctum is his red toe
Not August in Maine
Not his blond hair turning wheatish in the back
Or the frowsy sweep of the home haircut
Not the jump
Or the big weird rocks
Ok maybe the rocks play a role
But not the one we thought
Not his age, 5
Or time passing, now seven months
Here in Perkins Cove the garbage cans sport aspirational messages
Here are ice cream cones blueberry infused
Wearing his sister’s old sweater
Maybe the punctum is his ear
Maybe his tiny, delicate profile
Not the cowlick cut by his father
Chickening up
But the gentle closing of thumb and forefinger on his right hand
Unconscious signifier of balance and grace
Picking up the ocean like a curtain or a blanket
Drawing to its fold

Allison Moore

Allison Moore teaches contemporary art and photo history at the University of South Florida. Her criticism has been published in Artforum, among other places, and her scholarly book on Malian photography is forthcoming with Duke University Press.