Is it beauty or a vanity? To paint the bare face everyday Almost on wakening. It feels self-serving in a way, Yet right and satisfying. Color, colors, shaping forms, Mild creations, self-corrections With no thought of operations.
Would one die without it? Not a bit! Months have gone, The physiognomy anonymous, No thought to how it looks. Then one awakes one day Takes out the brushes, pencils, gloss Stencils in a brow too thin, Highlighting skin. It’s just plain fun - and trains one.
One knows or feels how Rembrandt felt When melting shadows into forms For sheer effect, The end result: The kind of beauty, drama, potency To give a clout not caught Apart from that. An act of mastery.
So, to proclaim without an ego being blamed: It’s beauty that one aims at - Neither praise nor adoration. Like the icing on the cake, Beauty’s pleasure for the sake Of living, loving exploration.
I Like Beauty 4.21.2021 Circling Round Vanities II; Arlene Nover Corwin