Takedown Portraits

Takedown Portraits
wrestling takedown

Monday, December 28, 2020

Francis Boushay 4 February 2021


                  (Francis Boushay 1983)

Stared straight ahead in
Optometric pose,
Asked to, 'Pick 
A wall spot,'
     -Headshot examined,
     -Inspiration pulled
     -From the eyes
     -Toward viewer;
'My preferred name is 
Francis, "i, s," at
The end, not 
"Frank," "Frances,"'
     -Fancied having his 
     -Portrait painted by
     -Me, asked for
     -A 'good one;'
'I am "the love of
His life," he told me, 
Over the
Telephone,'
     -Conflicts telegraphed,
     -Stripes regulated
     -The strands of
     -Tangled hair;
'Do you believe in
Love at first sight?' mint
Unwrapped from
Cellophane,
     -Candy freshened breath
     -Pushed across room, his
     -Fingers scratched
     -At collar;
Dollars flattened out
In pocket, 'Has this-
Love- happened
To you, too?'
     -He'd have known the whole
     -Story from the guys
     -Who'd referred
     -Him to me;
'It's a long distance
Relationship right
Now, his work's
On West Coast,'
     -As was mine once, him-
     -California- me-
     -New York- now
     -We're both here;
'Going to sort the
Details over time
To find what
Works out best,'
     -Back and forth, with two
     -Apartments, boys on
     -The side, needs
     -Understood;
'Lots of men hanging
On the walls. Are they
Personal
Friends of yours?'
     -He smirked, as his eyes
     -Pivoted from walls
     -Back to me,
     -His heels bounced;
'I'm curious how 
This works, brushing wet
Paint against
A canvas,'
     -Eyes riveted on
     -Alex's, and Ken's,
     -Larger than
     -Life faces;
'Always comes down to
Size, doesn't it, and
I went with
A small one,'
     -What size allowed, less
     -Enlargement, than an
     -Entering 
     -Into whole;
'You do this every
Day, painting, drawing,
Looking at
Boys' faces?'
     -What look like one-offs
     -Built over tries to
     -Get it right,
     -Find likeness;
'It seems like you have
Regulars stopping
By, and some
Coming once,'
     -Beats staring into
     -A mirror doing
     -Self-portraits
     -Of myself;
'Can I take a glance
At it while you are
Still painting,
On a break?'
     -Strokes continued, it's
     -Done, overplaying 
     -Risks losing
     -All of it;
'It looks like me, but
Too serious? Stiff?
Although there's
Something else,'
     -Representation,
     -Which takes from within,
     -Bringing it
     -To surface;
'You have to keep your
Eyes on it to catch
What I think
I can see,
     -Light tones focused eyes,
     -Suggested features
     -Contradict
     -With motion.

4 February 2021




     

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