John Hertzberg.
Dialogues in the Dark.1997.
Mixed Media Collage, 30" x 48". $1800.

The doorway of thought is opened
Not always by the deed
Sometimes just the need
For unlocking memories
And dreams of the never world
Of what might be
Like a roulette wheel spinning
Or the darts stuck fast
On the game board of chance
While the five refugees take flight
From the real to the surreal
Drifting in and out
As the pocket watch ticks off
The seconds and the minutes
Measuing nothing but stolen moments
Using numbers as metaphors
Or other possibilities
Sandwiched between
The past and the present
And the vast unknown
Of the what If
Traded about in dangling conversations
Hidden behind the walls of Margaritaville
Following trails of pure speculation
Talking about sea shells
And impossible situations
How to measure with exactitude
Just what the answer would be
While sitting face to face
On the cold concrete
When all the disguises are lost
And image means nothing at all
Behind the finger pointing
And a lone figure standing tall
Looking alot like Abe Lincoln
Seeing smiling faces
Of the two known by all
Who have been on the other side
Just above the metaphor of Truth
Disquised in a George Washington suit
Beneath the last piece of fruit
Next to an imprisoned shell
Tethered by golden spikes
Unable to wash back out to sea
Lying beneath silver threads
So mechanical and precise
Not like the roll of the dice
Taking chances to see
Just what might turn out to be
Hidden behind the wall
Of insecurity
When a wall of ears
Cannot hear
And tender lips fade
Into a shout
While questioing eyes search
The meaning behind
Those which are hidden in darkness
Peering up at the full moon
Illuminating the White Rabbit
As Alice strains to see
What is on the other side
Of the Lookdng Glass
Sitting upon the tripod
Recalling the number three
As It goes careening
Down through personal history
Hearing the sounds of the ocean
Just a heartbeat away
A gentle sound
Like the distant train whistle
Of so long ago
Trapped inside the photo booth image
Looking out at the view
Hand colored in frozen hues
Like Robinson Crusoe
Searching for his final rescue