2003-2011 Fragments of Sappho Merle Mainelli Poulton

Supported by wooden frames, ancient wax tablets were the first 'blackboards'; words were hand-scribed into wax. When heated, the words melted away and the tablet could be used again. Very few remain intact today. Traditionally, the tablets were grouped together to form a book.

Sappho, a 7th century BCE poet has been described as: many-minded, wordsmith, tale-weaver, charmer of impossibilities, and definer of the symptoms of desire. David Campbell notes, "Indeed the most amazing characteristics of the divine Sappho is that she uses with charm a device that is of itself hazardous and difficult." In Hellenistic times she was acclaimed as "the tenth Muse".
Much of her work is lost. Miraculously, a series of emotionally charged fragments remain.

This new body of work is experimental and has been an ongoing labor of love for the past eight years. This new series focus is formally on the painting process and the corporeal and personified nature of paint, including paint that never makes it onto the canvas.
Fragments of Sappho
Supported by wooden frames, ancient wax tablets were the first 'blackboards'; words were hand-scribed into wax. When heated, the words melted away and the tablet could be used again. Very few remain intact today. Traditionally, the tablets were grouped together to form a book. Sappho, a 7th century BCE poet has been described as: many-minded, wordsmith, tale-weaver, charmer of impossibilities, and definer of the symptoms of desire. David Campbell notes, "Indeed the most amazing characteristics of the divine Sappho is that she uses with charm a device that is of itself hazardous and difficult." In Hellenistic times she was acclaimed as "the tenth Muse". Much of her work is lost. Miraculously, a series of emotionally charged fragments remain.

To view individual larger works, please click on the sample images below. There will be 17 tablets total completed in 2011.




Fragment #138


	Fragment #104B	Fragment #184-188

Wax Tablets as Paintings The Fragments of Sappho series is a new translation of selected fragments of Sappho's work. Considerations of meter and poetic content juxtaposed with paint fragments from past painting palettes make up these visually charged tablets. Tediously prepared, the actual encaustic wax pour was immediate with minimal control. The end result happened on its own accord. Many paint fragments were inadvertently buried during the pour, poetically mimicking the work that they represent. The paintbrush, an artist's marking tool, holds the tablets together and stands at attention as muse.

	Exhibition of work at AS220, Providence, RI January 9-29, 2011 Providence Journal Write Up: Click here to view
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