My copy of the latest edition of Metverse Muse (Triple issue: #51-53, ed. Dr. H. Tulsi) arrived from India yesterday. The contents reveal that my poem on The Allegory of Painting (Artist in his Studio) (1665-67) by Vermeer was awarded First Prize by the jury in the Fixed Form (Category A) class of the journal's competition for an Ottava Rima poem.
I saw the painting in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna some years ago, and was intrigued by its composition and iconography. It was a work that posed questions in my mind about the nature of what we try to attempt in our creative endeavours.
The painting also intrigued and inspired Salvador Dalí, who proceeded to paint The Ghost of Vermeer of Delft Which Can Be Used as a Table. I find it interesting that Gentileschi's work, Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting (La Pittura), dates from c.1638-9.
