Word and image for February

[wongkk.livejournal.com]

This is the last remaining month from my 1901 Japanese woodblock calendar. Although the original picture relates to the festival of inari (god of rice and sake), I’ve chosen a love poem (well, a possibly unrequited love poem!) in honour of Valentine’s Day. Click on the image for the full-size.

 

The image of Gackt is courtesy of one of the nemuri kyoshiro photobooks with my thanks to LJ’s tenshin26100 and GA member ryuik for the choice of scans.

Comments

[excused-early.livejournal.com]

Beautiful colors!
And such a romantic poem, very fit for the upcoming Valentine's Day. =3
I wonder if Kyoshiro would really do that! @_@

[wongkk.livejournal.com]

I'm pleased you like it. The poem is very gallant, isn't it? I'm always surprised at how early these poems are; yet their sentiments seem very modern. I wasn't sure how to write this author's name for an English-language audience but it seemed best to put the family name last, in the same style as Western surnames. Clever Gackt to use a single name!

Hmm. I think kyoshiro would indeed express this poem but probably his rather cold, twisted personality might prefer for the lady never to call for him - then he can enjoy feeling noble and neglected whilst having lots of time to get on with his own stuff! Or am I being too cynical?

[excused-early.livejournal.com]

Yes, perhaps too gallant for Kyoshiro? XD

Ah, I think your analysis of Kyoshiro may be spot on.
Ah, man, man, man.... *shakes head*
(sorry, hee hee hee~ XD)

[bastete1992.livejournal.com]

Oh thats so lovely, Iw ish to read more poems like that, don't know where, i tried to find, but fail.
very Beautiful combination with Gackt and woodblock art, it's amazing.

[wongkk.livejournal.com]

Hello! I'm glad you enjoyed this piece.

If you go to "!Gackt tags" and click on "word and image" (or click on the "word and image" tag at the bottom of my calendar post) you will find quite a few other Japanese poems and pictures, including the other 11 months from my 1901 calendar AND the old Japanese postcard and poem posted by the General which started off the idea for my calendar sequence:
http://community.livejournal.com/gackt_army/963477.html

I don't read Japanese so I find it quite hard to source poems, although I have quite a large collection of poetry in translation (perhaps 10 or 15 books). You can find some nice examples of the main Japanese poetic forms - haiku, tanka, waka - on the internet if you search for japanese + poetry

Hopefully, if you use the "word and image" tag in this comm, you'll find some poems from other people to enjoy. Please don't be shy about posting a Word and image of your own if you can combine a Gackt image with a poem that you like! You don't need to make a digital art work; you can just post the straight picture and type in the poem yourself. Simple ;=)

[bastete1992.livejournal.com]

Thanks, of you interested in japanese poems like me, if I found something I could sent you some links, long time ago I did found something
Thank you I will use that information ^^

o tell me the truth about love

[eclatc4t.livejournal.com]

impassioned, wistful, lost in that delicate fog.
i think love extends perception,sometimes to very edges of our blurry boundaries.

this is one of the most beautiful and poignant in your series, which is saying something.
thank you. <3

Re: o tell me the truth about love

[wongkk.livejournal.com]

I'm pleased that you enjoyed the end of this series. The front cover and the end paper of the calendar book are also quite nice prints so I might use them too if inspiration strikes.

Ah yes - cold mountain mist and nemuri kyoshiro seem natural companions! There is something about Gackt in traditional dress which is spring for Romantic ideas. For a while I was searching for poems about rice but then I realized that yoking Gackt and rice might be a terrible waste ;=)

I guess you know the Britten sertting of that poem? There can't be many "love" (almost counter-love in Auden's case!) poems with a line as funny as, "is it usually sick on a swing"!

Do you have any favourite poems that might make a good Word and Image here, by the way? Now that I've run out of months, I shall have to search for other prompts. I'm happy to take requests if you don't feel like making your own post.

Thanks for leaving your notes. You've hit it exactly with impassioned and wistful - Gackt does Moved But Not Happy very well! And in so many different ways.