William Harnett, American
Original Cast Photo For “Fahrenheit 451,” 1878
Oil on canvas
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THROWBACK THURSDAY: MASTERPIECE #2486 (7/7/20)
Info, or perhaps links that point to more info (especially BIOGRAPHY at the last here link), about this artist can be found here, here (archived if necessary), here, here, here, here (can be read in full for free on Fridays), and here, perhaps in addition to what’s in his Wikipedia page.
/// Harnett titled this oil, “Job Lot Cheap.”
Random books sold in bulk in a heap.
Ignore dog-ears and stains;
check out what each contains.
You may find some that you’d want to keep.
/// Information is now read online,
and, for some, scrolling screens may be fine.
But for folks of my age
who like turning a page,
we want content that comes with a spine.
/// I’m an addict, since six hooked on books.
Love their textures, their rustling, their looks.
A unique hefty tome, a
pleasant inky aroma,
in a home with well-lit, comfy nooks.
/// I am curious, what was the source
of this job lot. Estate sale? Of course.
Part of someone’s collection,
grown for years with affection.
Or, perhaps divvied up by divorce.
/// Books are clues to the soul of their owner.
(Once loved Rowling, but now has outgrown her.)
Was the reader a loner?
Brilliant mind, or a stoner?
Hoarder of unread books, or a donor?
/// A book owner who daily smokes weed
may trade texts for a far simpler read.
Comic books may well be
what he’d much rather see,
if his intellect’s now “gone to seed.”
/// It may be the books’ owner had feared
that outsiders would find his tastes weird.
Now on view to the world,
what he read is unfurled,
and a history of browsing uncleared.