The Other Side of the Picture

The museum is guarded
framed through shades of green
once palettes
part oil, part canvas
priceless - exact

exhibits are
labeled, titled, displayed
found treasures named
form a body narrative

vagrant air chisels my face
throat tightens before
captured savages
depicted in exile
wear blood like threads
subject and object of discipline

private collections
void of fingerprints
identity or dirt

blush strokes
blur hills, pilgrimages
melt tongues stripped of agency
entry rights, desire
where landscapes
resist histories
as yearning foothills
embrace remote mountain culture
on the other side of the picture.