Art: The Edges of My Soul by André Gonçalves, @andre_goncalves_art
SEINE WATER
The ambulance siren tin-whistles
through hanging leaves, stirring
air like clipper ships darting
in grace from canal point
and matching, in true form,
carvers’ chisels on pillars on
century.
When darkness comes and on go
the hawker lights, bouncer men’s
jackets and faux-American pop,
halogen lamps as fireflies on
wave crests dance beating about
their sullen wings as wash
on mossy brick.
It is why everyone comes here:
the picture-posers on bank,
booksellers with green wood cases,
wares-men with Taiwan wires and
cheap plastic on dusting tarps,
all like the rhythm of
stopped city buses.
All came to overpay for beer,
to find their hearts and fountain pens,
in the last lapping of currents.
About the author:
Carter Vance is a student and aspiring poet originally from Cobourg, Ontario, currently studying at Carleton University in Ottawa. His work has appeared in such publications as The Vehicle, (parenthetical) and F(r)iction, amongst others. He received an Honourable Mention from Contemporary Verse 2’s Young Buck Poetry Awards in 2015. His work also appears on his personal blog Comment is Welcome.
Art: The Edges of My Soul by André Gonçalves, @andre_goncalves_art
In the artist’s words:
André Gonçalves, born in 1987, lives and works on the island of Madeira. A lover of art in its many forms, he describes himself as a photo lunatic; eccentric and bizarre. He soon applied his knowledge and love for obscure use of imagery to define his own style of dark photography. As a lover of dark atmosphere and melancholy, he portrays the inside of a twisted chaotic mind generating emotions. He has found his own way of playing with sad expressions, like some of his portraits show, as if he were silently screaming.
He says his photographs are a sort of an autobiography; he puts himself in his imagery, his contrasts, his passions and his obsessions . When he looks at an old portrait photo, he travels with his mind – he tries to imagine that person in her life, in her era. That is what he wants for his images.
His work is mainly concerned with facial expressions; he says the eyes are the shell of the soul. He is not interested in showing beauty as an outward phenomenon, he prefers to present the facial expression as a whole, expression and soul united.
His work has been showcased in several international and national magazines. He has joined a few international exhibitions in Paris and Italy. On the island of Madeira the viewer can see his work exhibited very often.