The Mind Creative APRIL 2014 | Page 33

The Mind Creative March 2014 Ekphrasis Wikipedia describes Ekphrasis as “a rhetorical device in which one medium of art tries to relate to another medium by defining and describing its essence and form, and in doing so, relate more directly to the audience, through its illuminative liveliness. A descriptive work of prose or poetry, a film, or even a photograph may thus highlight through its rhetorical vividness what is happening, or what is shown in, say, any of the visual arts, and in doing so, may enhance the original art and so take on a life of its own through its brilliant description.” For example, one can create or shoot a film based on a poem or vice versa. The technique of Ekphrasis is an ancient technique that was originally created and used in Greece and in fact traces of this technique can be seen in Homer’s Iliad In this section, Lopa Banerjee uses photographic art as an inspiration for her poem “Rowing: A Vision in Collaboration”. In her own words: “The inspiration for this poem in five segments or fragments came from a mesmerizing image captured by my friend Souvik Chakraborty. Based in Pittsburg, USA, Souvik is a researcher and an avid photographer who has already won accolades for his photos nationwide. This particular photo, titled ‘Contemplation’ has already been published in the prestigious Stark Magazine issue. 22.” 33