Sea-Gift

Sea-Gift

The first box struck the shore

Whisky! It sat in the foam and spray

A Hebridean rhapsody from Fortune
From sea’s lamentable brine,

A given luxury.

Meanwhile, Neptune stretched out on a reef

Scratching his scaly thigh.

‘They are due a smidgeon of pleasure,

What with the rain that never ceases

Pounding their chilly acres.’

Crofters came hurtling through the tide

Wizened or young, with the great thirst on them

Even the scrunts of bushes, the sodden sheep

Looked up from their pious immersion in the hum-drum

Saying, ‘ochone, there will come a day of reckoning

Mark well, there is no pleasure without pain

Tè mhòr le beagan uisge

A large measure of whisky  with a little water

There will be the Devil to pay e’er this day’s done.’

Sheena Blackhall

Cutty Sarks

Cutty Sarks

Cutty sarks are aa the go

Cutty sarks an skirties skimpit

Cutty sarks wi aa on show

Lassies on the randan, primpit

Cutty sarks an jeely wymes

Wummlin ower a belt that’s nippit

Quines stravaig doon city streets

Far the win can teir peint strippit

Cutty sarks an hurdies creash

Hunkit inno jeans an g-string

Tattooed like a swyty tar

Ilkie finger thrang wi gowd bling

Cutty sarks an boozer’s drooth

Sinkin cocktails till they’re steamin

Niver heed yer witch’s breem

Doonin drams till they are fleein!

Cutty sarks are aa the go

Cutty sarks in ony weather

Snaa may faa an snaa may thaw

Cutty sarks are worn fitiver!

Sheena Blackhall

Hear ye, hear ye...

Hear ye, hear ye…

I am the spokesperson for sinners that sit in darkness

I am acquainted with the discourse of whores and publicans

I have foreseen the coming to power of the world of the Antichrist

I have known the trials & tribulations of the true artist

Hear ye, hear ye,

I speak of the sighs from hell of madness unchained

And the groans of damned souls, a City’s poor

Doom and Downfall are my themes

The Unresurrected Dead

What it is, and what is it is not

The Unspeakableness of  Loss

I am the great conductor

Of the Dance of Dissolution

Unthanked, I’m a true prophet

Unthawed, I will never yield

My brush or pen to a softer,cuter vision

Hear ye, hear ye,

I speak of the sighs from hell of madness unchained

And the groans of damned souls, a City’s poor

Sheena Blackhall

More Impossible Gifties?

At the end of November, Book Week Scotland sent booklovers on a week of frantic treasure hunting across Scotland to seek out new Book Sculptures... Five beautiful new sculptures, gorgeous tributes to five of Scotland's best-loved books and writers, so naturally Sheena had to celebrate them, just as she'd done for the original ten. (We'd have liked to see these ones 'in the flesh', of course, to get our own pictures but, up here in the frozen north, it's ower skitey ivnoo for rakin aboot, so we'll hae tae content oorsels wi anes they used in The Guardian).

Then, on Twitter, the Scottish Poetry Library announced a new arrival.

They're a very well-behaved bunch at SPL and showed admirable patience and restraint, so the last sculpture was unveiled precisely according to the anonymous sculptor's instructions, on Friday 7 December. You can read about it (and see it!) on the SPL blog.

Can this really be the final sculpture? Say it's not true!

*cough* A Scots Quair please! *cough*

You can read the five new poems for the treasure hunt sculptures here later today, and Sheena's poem for the 'last' one will be posted here tomorrow.

 

'Impossible Gifties': Limited availability

‘Impossible Gifties’, Sheena Blackhall’s new collection of poems, celebrating the Edinburgh Book Sculptures on the GiftEd tour, is out now!

The print-run was extremely limited and almost all copies are spoken for, however, a few are available from Severin Books at a cost of £3.50 plus postage.

In addition to the poems, ‘Impossible Gifties’ also features colour photographs from the exhibition at Aberdeen’s Central Library.




 

Sheena Blackhall: Impossible Gifties

COMING SOON!

New collection of ten poems

by Sheena Blackhall 

celebrating

Edinburgh's Book Sculptures

exhibited as part of the GIFTED Tour

at Aberdeen's Central Library until September 6th 2012

(Gifted Tour organised by the Scottish Poetry Library in partnership with
Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature).

Impossible Gifties will be available from Severin Books early in September.