$18
Item#: 2014SYR01
11x17-inches, printed on heavy weight (100-pound) Hammermill cover paper. We package each print with a piece of chipboard in a clear plastic sleeve.
You also receive…
An information page with photos of the artist and poet, and hand-written comments from each.
Medium- and large-format posters are available by custom order. Contact us for details.
Winter is coming
wool socks and long underwear
the long sleep is near
Winter is so much more than a season to those who live in Syracuse. It's a state of mind. This haiku reflects how many of us longtime Central New York residents prepare for the coldest season of the year, which—around here—can last from October to April! I start growing my winter beard in the fall and make sure that I have plenty of wool socks, long underwear, flannel shirts, and wood for the fireplace. So once the snow starts falling, and buries everything in white, I'm ready once again for the long sleep. Anyone who believes that humans can't hibernate obviously has never lived in this part of the world.
When I read this poem, I immediately thought of comfort, family and relationships. It's a feeling I can empathize with: It's really cold out and you can snuggle up and wait out the cold. The main thing I was trying to evoke in terms of color and light was the difference between the cold and the warmth of the couple with the contrast between the blue and red. It was sort of the twilight time, when the streetlights are coming on. There's something about the early part of the evening when it's quiet and it calms down. I'm trying to show an interaction that shows comfort and simplicity and being happy in spite of the cold. I want people to look at it and say, “I've been there before and I know what that's like.”