Studio Vitiligo
Poem #288 • Finding beauty in the patchy and the pieced-together
Studio Vitiligo
inspired in name by the patchwork materials with which it was built
a barren space of decades-worn wood
faded beige
finish stripped in blotches from innumerable artists spending innumerable time dedicated to their craft
now ready to close
Curled up
is the last artist to know the timeline
touched by light through cloudy pane
reflecting off bone white walls
Her skin is fading as well through a disease of the same name
holding herself in a child’s pose
packing it in
as an era comes to an end
she embraces knowing so
is to fill the next chapter with patchwork of her own
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For more of Grant Hope, you can find books, audio visual poetry, and his “Poetry Respite” newsletter at his website: granthopestudios.com
Some things become more beautiful after life leaves its mark on them. This poem captured that perfectly.
What struck me most is that the poem never tried to “fix” what was fading. The studio, the skin, the era, all of it was allowed to exist in transition without losing dignity. That’s rare. Most people only recognize beauty once it looks polished and complete, but this poem finds it in the unfinished edges, where life has actually been lived.