He thought he solved the problem that each artist faces,
To feed and house his body (and his soul, as well)
While he pursues (in art) the Muses and the Graces
Through years of toil and criticism, till he excel.

He studied art and architecture simultaneously,
Broke down, spent six months in a lumber camp,
Knew what to do, and turned to art wholeheartedly,
Won scholarships; and thrived. It was as if a lamp

Had turned on and revealed a path for him to take.
He went to France and learned lithography, and saw
The problem of his art: His early training as
An architect had made it difficult to draw

The human figure! So, the choices of his well-planned past
Came back to haunt him in his newfound state of grace at last.

Copyright (2006) by Arnold Cantor.
All rights reserved.

[Completed September 5, 2006. This experimental ‘sonnet’ consists of
6-feet lines in the quatrains and 7-feet lines in the couplet.]