she draws fat birds
in stokes tight as geography
their plump bodies
arch above bent twigs and flowers
in a splash of boneless color
remember the leaves and veins she says
Chinese painting captures the spirit
the character of space
the observer looks down
stresses only the foreground
the use of line gives substance
to the motion
these contours fall into simple patterns
like Tu Fu’s poems
easy she says watching my brush
tremble toward the paper
but it is difficult
these fats birds and simple bamboo stalks
they have no urban counterparts
I want to fill th
