Peter Philpott

Are We Not Drawn ... Peter Philpott

"Are We Not Drawn..." takes off from a palindrome quoted in Anne Michael's novel, "Fugitive Pieces": 'Are we not drawn onward, we few, drawn onward to new era?' Drawn onward; but trapped in repetition and mirroring. The mirrors are now fractured: each line breaks under the strain, as voices and images pour in. Verbal repetitions, starting with the words of the palindrome, give some sorts of paths through, continually evolving and shifting. It is a work of naive realism, then, capable of recording how gardenias, Inca mummies and the iron mines of West Somerset determine our days. Just listen to what you are being told...