“An Artist At Their Best” is a poem taken from Mark’s 2025 poetry collection ‘The Storyteller‘ – now available to purchase in hardback and as an ebook from Amazon.
artists
A Poem A Day #517: Artistic Heroes
A Poem A Day #93: Maestro
My Poem “The Way of the Artist”
Everything changes... everything evolves... everybody doing every thing has their own process... new things have naturally arisen over time to replace other things and other ways of doing things; however, some things never change - and one of the things that will never change is the way that artists are inspired, the way that artists seek out new sources of stimulation, the way that artists wake up every morning and want to create art, the way that artists cannot settle down to sleep without first either thinking about or doing something about the nugget of an idea within them. There is something inherently human about art and about attempting to capture the sometimes incomparable, about the need to express our inner most thoughts, feelings, emotions, dreams, hopes, fears, and our natural insecurities... there is something primal about the experience of having this overriding instinct that we feel compelled to act upon... there is something almost genetic about how people young and old seem to have the same unconscious ability to be able to go to the same places that other people are unable to, because there exists this continuity of connection that crosses generations like some kind of universal melody. All my life I have created art, I have witnessed art being created, and I have come to recognize the look in a fellow artist's eyes when they are deep within that moment when the inspiration and the art within them are in full-flow, as if it were a sixth sense of mine that I have slowly but surely developed over time... all my life I have looked at the natural beauty of the world rise like waves upon an ocean and literally change the geography of a well known place or monument... all my life I have witnessed something come from something - and I have come to believe that "nothing" is in fact a type of "something" that we have not yet given a name to, because certain things are like energy and no matter what they will always exist. Looking for an answer to a question that may have been asked for centuries and expecting to find what has not occurred to anyone else before, at least to me, is not in any way a sign of madness - in fact, I believe the art of being inquisitive and never asking the question "why create art in the first place?" and just feeling this need to create some kind of art is the most powerful gift and the most fulfilling way of every artist.
My Poem “Eternally Illusive”
Some of the most influential artists
are the most illusive…
some of the most prolific artists
are the those who most people
will never be lucky enough to meet…
some of the most powerful artists
have worn masks all of their careers…
some of the most emotional artists
are those who never publicly shed a tear…
some of the most acclaimed artists
are those who want to be judged
upon the quality of their art
and not by how they look…
some of the most accomplished artists
are those who draw people to them
because they speak a language
that is universally understood…
some of the most loved artists
are those who respect their audience
and layer their work with insights about
them that reflect who they are within…
some of the most iconic artists,
who are worshipped as if they were a deities,
live on after they have ascended this world
and leave words, sounds, messages,
music, and sustenance for the mind,
the heart, the soul, and everything in between…
some of the most poetic artists
infuse their masterpieces with
so much of themselves that they illicit
memories, feelings, and emotions in others
capable of being retroactively reciprocated…
some of the most intriguing artists
will always be considered as such because of the way that they can cause somekind of surge of energy in the imagination
of people near and far, old and young –
while continuing their enduring legacy of remaining eternally illusive.
Dedicated to Daft Punk
My Poem “The Eyes of a Poet”
As the rain lashed down
on a cloudy day
I looked out the window
of the Diplomat café,
as a bright blue tram car
glided passed upon the rails
of the tram railway –
and as I did I immediately
found myself experiencing
a wave of inspiration grow within me,
which I knew almost instantly
that I wanted to savour,
to save, and to capture
so that it may endure
in some profound way.
Writers and artists are always looking
for a place where they can create
unimpeded by the distractions
of the outside world –
especially when they are first
starting out upon their artistic journey;
personally, I try not to box myself
into the corner of a particular room
and declare that there is only
one place and one way,
where, when, and how,
I can express what I want to say.
Writers and artists are constantly
finding themselves creating art
at every time of the day
and wherever they find themselves
caught in the shower of
shooting stars of inspiration,
because what artists become inspired by
is ultimately in the hands of fate,
and over the years I have
randomly found myself –
while staring at a sunset,
while sitting in a movie theatre,
while staring at a masterpiece of art
by Vincent van Gogh or Leonardo da Vinci –
absolutely and unfathomably
in a state of complete mesmerism
in which I felt like I could access
deeper layers of connection, life,
and an understanding about the art
that I saw and the artist
responsible for creating
what ultimately turned out to be
that something that would inspire me.
Artists and writers
are always chasing that once
in a lifetime spark
of artistic creativity
that will excite and unify
every one of their senses
and their instincts
and that will perfectly combine
to make something special
that people will never forget –
and being an artist is sometimes
like walking a line,
like crossing borders,
and like discovering
and delivering a message…
being an artist and a writer
is sometimes like being some kind
of an envoy, a peacemaker, a diplomat,
and someone who can occasionally see –
when they can look at all
the multiple possibilities
of something simultaneously –
that things become increasingly
more clearer when you
take a step back from something,
while still looking at it
and while still internalizing it,
however while secretly interpreting it
by using the eyes of a poet.
Happy World Poetry Day!
Happy World Poetry Day, everybody! I have been writing poetry for over 11 years now, I have been publishing poetry books with my amazing publisher Zeloo Media for 7 years now, and in all that time I have written hundreds and hundreds of poems about absolutely everything – from Love to Life, from Birth to Death, about people still alive and well, and about those who we have sadly lost – and for me it has been a rollercoaster ride of inspiration and discovery during which I have learned a lot about life, the world, people, and myself. Writing is one of the most amazing expressions that an artist can commit to, and over time – like a musician – what you write changes and evolves, as does the writer in the process. I have changed, what I write about has changed – but what has never changed, and never will, is my passion for poetry. I was introduced to poetry by reading William Shakespeare’s sonnets – and after I read them all I was inspired to try my hand at writing my own poetry, and the rest (as they say) is history! I am a writer, and I will always be a poet… and over the years I have been fortunate to meet other poets and writers who are amazing in their own right. I write almost every day, everywhere I can… and I know for sure that when you are blessed with any kind of a gift I believe that you have to use your gift and practice your art every day to keep the instrument of your creativity sharp – even if you only write within your mind, in your dreams, on your phone, or in a notebook. I love writing! I love being a writer! I love writing poetry! And for me every day is World Poetry Day! But today is officially World Poetry Day – so, to everybody reading this, I would just like to say Happy World Poetry Day! 😊✏✒🖋🖊📝🗒📖
-Mark
Mark The Poet 