Poem by Maw Shein Win
The Prisoners I
(on Un Chant d’Amour, a film by Jean Genet, 1950)
skins made of salt
bright lights in the eye
fainted, panted
close up, scar, shape of scallop
two faces, a vase
bit earlobe
goldfleckedspacebetween
two heads that cannot
separated by wall
curled bars
prison guard’s hand on
roses, eyes, leather belt
lightbulb on wire
smokethroughrain
dirt on the heels
birdcage, flute, snapdragon
tattoo dance
popped corks on floor
heft of flesh
terror
suchdelicatenerves
two cells
two bodies
two breaths
Art Information
- "Kick the Can (Dancing Nowhere)" © Mark Dutcher; used by permission.
Maw Shein Win's writing has appeared in many journals and several anthologies, including Mary: A Journal of New Writing, Cimarron Review, Poetry International, and Fanzine. Along with composer Amanda Chaudhary, she is part of the musical duo Pitta of the Mind, which combines poetry with abstract electronic music. Win's most recent poetry chapbook Score and Bone is out from Nomadic Press. Her full-length collection, Invisible Gifts: Poems, was published by Manic D Press this past spring. She is the first poet laureate of El Cerrito, California.
For more information, visit Maw Shein Win at Nomadic Press and follow her on Twitter @mawsheinwin.
