Combining Muses

One of the earliest painted figurative scenes ever found appears in what is now called "The Tomb of the Diver" (illustrated below), about 480-470 BCE, discovered about a mile south of Paestum, Italy, a settlement with many extant Greek temples. Other tombs with images of human figures only appear towards the late fifth century BCE. Moreover, the scene on the tomb's lid, portraying a young man diving from a high wall or column into water, is unique. This image can probably be interpreted as a metaphor of the transition from life into the afterlife.

The arts offer opportunities for us to explore meanings from the past as well as the present. They stimulate our thinking and expansion of our perspective, a lifelong journey. In particular the visual arts have engendered poets and writers, such as John Keats, W.H. Auden, and many more, in the way that dance and musicians have inspired such artists as Matisse, Picasso, and Chagall. The former are often called "ekphrastic," meaning (from Greek) that words can expand the meaning of a work of art — we have many of these "ekphrastic poems" in this section. But there is more intertwining.

The nine Greek muses served to encourage creativity, enhance imagination, and inspire artists. In the fictions associated with the Muses, the arts were combined. For example, the Muse Terpsichore was the protector of dance; she invented dances, but also the harp and education. Her domain was not limited to dance. Similarly, the Muse Thalia was the protector of comedy; she discovered comedy, geometry, architectural science and agriculture.

The richness of combining the arts reflects a universal perspective, expanding circles of understanding how the arts illuminate one another. The poems in this section create a global and timeless tapestry of words about music, dance, art, and more. Enjoy.

[River of Stars: Poets of the Vineyard, Ed. Judy H. Cheung (Artists Embassy International, 2022), p. 144-5.]
Photo by Mary K. Lindberg.