Chetta Achara Poet Ekphrasis

Notes About The Poem

For: Dora Maar with Green Nails Poetry Contest

Sponsor: Robert James Liguori

March 31, 2026

Thoughts Upon Seeing Dora Maar with Green Nails

She sits in judgement of the unseen otherness 
of a moment passed yet frozen
for us purveyors of skin deep beauty,
perhaps we seek a measure of our own trauma. 

All his portraits of me are lies. They're all Picassos. Not one is Dora Maar.*

Sixty portraits of me
and each is a projection of you,
what you need, what you see~
and not one of me is real.

Sight
bright, clear 
seeing, knowing, becoming
love, beauty, ugly, hate
knowing, raging, fading, dying
blind!


* Dora Maar quoted by Amy Crawford. "A Look Back at the Artist Dora Maar". Smithsonian Magazine.

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Robert James Liguori May 4, 2026 at 10:31 PM You captured Dora’s essence. Well done. Chetta Achara May 5, 2026 at 11:21 AM Thank you. It was interesting reading about her and about her relationship with Picasso.

Andrea Dietrich April 30, 2026 at 10:52 AM Very creatively expressed! Congrats on your win Chetta Achara April 30, 2026 at 11:50 AM Thank you.

I Am Anaya March 31, 2026 at 12:48 PM Fabulous, you've captured what anyone would ask Pablo, I can't even begin to imagine a portrait of me by Pablo Picasso, a third nose! Great entry, I'm impressed, Chetta~ Easter Blessings xX Chetta Achara March 31, 2026 at 2:03 PM Thank you.