Contemporary African Art

I Forgot You

ninartz Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

SONY DSC

I forgot you

He touched me and I forgot you

You became a figment of my imagination

A nightmare in a dream that I had awoken from

A roller coaster ride that had finally come to an end

Ashes of a dead cadaver gone with the wind

Once again I saw your lies

And all my futile cries

And I forgot you

Because he touched me and he made me feel again

I remembered love

I remembered truth

I remembered what it felt like  without deciept

A man who knew what it was to be a man

And I forgot you

He lifted me up and I left you behind

And I forgot you

 

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

 

Pensive

ninartz Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Pensive

I wanted to think

But I could not blink

I wanted to dream

But sleep didn’t come

I stared into open space

Tears rolled down my eyes

Like an endless river of overflow

When will it stop

How will I know

I ponder still

I tried to erase the memories to no avail

Climbing a never-ending hill

On a journey that only gets steeper

Like diving into an ocean that only gets deeper

I wanted to open a safety deposit box and lock them all up in there

Away from me, so I could move with more ease

My heart raced like horses on a track

My body became warm

Sweat buds popped on my forehead

Like steam on the lid of a hot soup pot

Defensive

My emotions are like clouds in the sky

Sometimes I wonder how I get by

Soon they will erupt into a torrential downpour

Causing floods that will sweep away all that’s in its way

Only then will I be free

Pensive

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

Hacking At My Heart

ninartz Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Emotional by Nina Fabunmi, 4x3ft, Acrylic on Canvas, 2011

 

I have loved and I have lost

And I am still loving

And I will continue to love

They have come and they have gone

And they are still there

And they will continue to be there

Each one of them that I have loved and I have lost

Has hacked away at my heart

Hacked a piece of my heart away

A piece has turned into pieces

And they have hacked them away

Those whom I am still loving are hacking away at it

And are still hacking

And will continue to hack

And those who are waiting to love me still

Are holding their swords, their matchets and their hoes

Waiting to hack away at my heart

My heart is fragile but it beats still

Pumping twice the amount it was before it was hacked at

It struggles to beat but it beats still

Struggling to breathe

But it breathes still

And struggling to sustain the life in me

But I am still alive

With many more years to stay alive

And though they have hacked away at my heart

They have moulded it with beautiful curves

Defined each twist and turn on it

Moulded the bends into beautiful bends

And defined the curvature of it

And it is a beautiful heart

Beating, pumping and breathing still

Loving and giving and loving again

Loving even those to whom love has been lost to

Loving those whom still love

And waiting to love those waiting to love

Waiting to hack away at my heart

Hacking at my heart

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

Care Mistreat

ninartz Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

SONY DSC

Where peace of mind is hard to find

And you hope that the world will be kind

When care turns to fear and you quiver at the very thought of him

You look in his eyes and all you see is lies

The lies buzz like flies on a huge pile of shit

Offended by the filth!

The stench is lethal you have to flee

When your heart becomes like a tennis ball

Bouncing from racket to racket

Till its smacked down hard on the ground

The victorious cheer at your expense

When you close your eyes in sleep

Tormented thoughts

They turn into nightmares

And still you have to summon courage to face another day

Care like wear and tear

Exhausted you combust

Like a grenade about to explode

With all the load you’ve had to bear

Finally, you have to abort

Less it kills what’s left of you

Your care turns to a glare as you look back at your life

Flush strife down the toilet drain

Thrive on the gain of pain

Sowing in new soils

Praying for rain

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

 

 

 

 

Chemistry

ninartz Poetry , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Tree Of Passion by Nina Fabunmi, Acrylic on Canvas 4x2 inches in 3 panels. 2011, SOLD

When fuel met flame, a fire emerged

Whipped cream on hot chocolate

Emotions that lack commotion

Hearts beating like drums being pounded by drum sticks

Breaths cut short like an asthma attack

Attraction with no distraction

The reaction of blind passion

He undressed me with his eyeballs

Like a body under an x-ray machine

Vulnerable and at his mercy

Mutual trust that will never rust

Transfixed by his gaze upon me

Just as the moon descends on a lonely forest

And gives her sweet rest

I was lost in awe

Care mystery

Opulent stimulant

The click that turns on the light switch

When he touched me

I felt shock waves flowing through me

Like I had been bitten by an electric eel

I moved in ways I never imagined

Key in ignition

A connection that needed no correction

The speech of the unspoken

The treasure of pleasure

It was right without a fright

Like light in the night

A spark in the dark

A dog with a bark

Vehicle roaring like a raging lion

In anticipation of acceleration

We became one and begun our journey

To the never ending land of chemistry

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

Dancing With the Devil

ninartz Poetry , , , , , , , , , , ,

SONY DSC

I painted a picture of you

The way I wanted to see you

And fell in love with the idea of you

I was dancing in the sun

But when I looked beneath me, I was sinking in quick sand

Soon the full moon came and met me

Only then did I see the horns on your head

All this time

I had been dancing with the devil

The more I struggled

The quicker I sank

Until could breathe no more

Choking…. suffocating……. anguish and death befell me

Until the great tsunami came and saved me

It tore down tree, houses and everything in its path just to get to me

I moved with its ferocious motion

And went where it took me

Now here I am again

Dancing with another devil

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

You Died

ninartz Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Open Invitation by Nina Fabunmi 2009

You died

You don’t exist anymore

I took all the pain and hurt you caused me

And I buried them along with you

I threw flowers into your grave

And wept over your lifeless corpse

And now, I am a widow in mourning

I kept all the happy memories

All our pretty pictures

They are like food to my soul

Just enough to help me get by

If I ever see you again, I will walk on by

And pretend that I just saw a ghost

Because you died

You are no more

Like an image in my head

A happy thought in my heart

And if you call my name again, I will not answer

I will pretend like it’s a whisper from the wind

And I will remember you with joy

Because you are dead

I buried you with your pain and heartache

I wet the soil with the tears I cried for you

I have planted a garden in your name

And I will remember you

Because you died

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

 

Consumed By Fire

ninartz Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

sdc15333

Fire burning me up

With just one touch

He took me places

Like I had a sudden rush of blood flowing through my veins

Waking up places I never thought existed

I begged for mercy

But forgiveness was never served

I was like a patient in need of medicine

Given in bitter sweet portions

Forbidden

The savor of that which is prohibited

One touch

I was hypnotized

I left my body there for him to deal with

And my spirit was transported to a world where feelings are like ice cream on a cone

Apples were falling from the tree of life and I was eating all of them

I was dancing with sharks at the bottom of the deep blue ocean

Moving in ways that seemed like I was boneless

It was like a heat that could not be quenched

It took over me

I screamed louder and louder

But my loud cries seemed to only fire him up the more

I had no words to tell it

Completely consumed fire

 

©Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

Between Transience & Infinity

ninartz Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

SONY DSC

I feel like I have been putting leaves on a tree

Only for autumn to come take them all down

They were fresh and green

But when the fall came, they turned to orange and burnt umber

Soon they fell to the ground and my tree was without leaves

Like fetching water with a basket

I thought I was counting milestones

But it’s all gone now

Perished with the changing seasons and here I am

Staring at the naked branches of this tree

Wondering if all my labor was worth it at all

I kept the roses he gave me

Once soft and new

I put them in a pretty vase and watered them daily

But it didn’t matter how much water I gave them

They still shriveled with time

I tried to fight transience with infinity

Now I am stuck in the middle still trying to figure it out

Every step closer just keeps me further

Like the leaves on the tree which are no more

Growing again, just to fall back down again

You are like a ghost that ceases to exist

A nightmare I have woken up from

A dream I thought I had

But I am looking up at the tree now and there are no more leaves

The tree is like a figment of my imagination

Time to seek shade under another canopy

That which stands between transience and infinity

 

© Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com

 

Arise ‘O’ One Eyed Snake

ninartz Uncategorized , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

sdc15340

Arise ‘O’ one-eyed snake sleeping in the calabash

My hair is let down

My body bare

And I am playing my flute

An enchanting tune

That you may rise from your slumber

‘O’ one-eyed snake

I have began to swish my hips from side to side

The air is filled with music

And I am calling out to you

That you may arise and dance with me once more

I fear that you may be seriously ill

Decapitated and dead

Cursed to condemnation

Suffering from the poison of another

You lay there weak and feeble

Not even able to raise your head up

Soon the chilly wind befell me

And took my melody away with it

Out in the cold

No one to hold

Finally I fell to the ground

I have surrounded myself with more calabashes

Soon I will be lifted up

And I will play my tune again

That another one-eyed snake may arise from a clay calabash

And dance to the tune that I play

Someone to hold

Gone with the cold

We will dance like we could never stop

Air filled with music

And when the wind comes

We shall sail along with it

‘O’ one-eyed

 

Ⓒ Nina Fabunmi 2016

http://www.ninafabunmi.com