Poetry and art

Ian Hill / 209Vibe editorPosted April 24 at 09:11 AM

It's interesting how a poem can sum up your feelings on an issue. Case in point: California poet laureate Al Young's "Blues My Naughty Poetry Taught Me," which I heard this morning on the radio.

It reflects some of my frustration with the Stockton Arts Commission. (Believe it or not, there is a Stockton Arts Commission - click here for more.) As some of you know, I've been encouraging the commission more involved in the arts in Stockton.

Here's the section of Young's poem that struck me; he wrote it on a train rolling through California.

"Sea-fences, industrial wash-ups, slushy tracks and rickety light: skies so soulfully watercolored you'd have to be an arts commissioner not to see it."