Francesca Woodman

                                     i
At the heart there is a hollow sun
by which we are constructed and undone
 

                                     ii
Behind the mirror. Favourite place to hide.
I didn't breathe. They looked so long I died.
 

                                     iii  
What's shown when we unveil, disclose, undress,
is first the promise, then its emptiness
 

                                     iv             
Ghost-face. Not because I turned my head,
but because what looked at me was dead.
 

                                      v
We don't existWe only dream we're here
This means we never dieWe disappear
 

                                      vi 
We'd met 'in previous lives', he was convinced.
Yeah, I thought. And haven't spoken since.
 

                                     vii
All rooms will hide you, if you stand just so.
All ghosts know this. That's really all they know.                                                                                                                   

Bibliographical info

Paterson, Don, "Francesca Woodman" from 40 Sonnets 2015, Faber & Faber. Griffin Poetry Prize 2016 Finalist. Used with permission from The Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry.

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