Life Studies

"If you want to paint fruit properly," she said

"Just think of a woman's body." So I did.

I painted oranges and grapefruits with

The lustre and sheen of sweat smeared breasts

But she thought my work lacked sublety

I painted rock melons and mangoes with

The curve and patina of post-coital thighs

But she thought my work too sentimental

I painted rambutans and jackfruit with

The prickly verisimilitude of the pubis

But she thought my work too clinical

I painted peeled lychees with the wispy

transcendental aura of eyes after crying

But she thought my work bordered on kitsch

I painted peeked raspberries like nipples

Inflamed and raised in all their tumescence

She looked aghast: "What the fuck is this?"

It was then I realised that painting fruit

Was a singularly feminine experience:

Don't think of a woman's body but think of

How a woman thinks of her own body...

Being obviously of the wrong gender

I gave up painting fruit and started on skies.

"If you want to paint skies properly," she said

© shaun patrick green 2011