Ode to Keats

Ode to Keats

Ode to Keats, 8×10″, oil on panelI painted this at the Protestant Cemetery here in Rome. It’s a wonderful place, I can’t even begin to describe it with it’s layers of tombs in all different shapes and sizes- some with carved sculptures, shrubs, etc. and a community of ferral cats. It should be a tourist destination in Rome, but this morning it was silent with big menacing clouds floating by. Next time you come to Rome take the time to see it for yourself. You can’t miss it, as it is marked with a giant 3-story marble pyramid out front and is the burial spot of many famous and great people, including Keats, Shelley and Gramsci.This is the spot where romantic poet John Keats is buried. His tomb doesn’t actually have his name on it, but rather the inscription “Here lies one whose name was writ in water.” Of course, what else could the tombstone of the greatest romantic poet read??