Artists of St Ives

It was something in the light
that brought them here, apparently
the way the evening’s nacreous tones
reveal themselves like cream
rinsed from a spoon by scalding water
rippling clouds around the falling sun;
how the beaches moved
by sea spray in the air
pin the artist's eye on the horizon
piercing it, like yellow gorse buds literally exploding on the headland
gaping mouths, soaking rocks, dark
erotic fantasies.

I’m looking at that beach right now.
Deck chairs line the tide’s penumbra. An adult dad
is flossing for his kids.
I’m thinking that my soul is like a crumpled piece of metal unkinked until it’s smooth by a life of gentle hammering.

Fergal O'Dwyer is a writer and musician based in South London. Their work has appeared in numerous publications including Ink, Sweat and Tears and Iconoclast and they were shortlisted for the Jane Martin Poetry Prize.