‘Thunderstorm in Glasgow, July 25, 2013’
— Andrew Sargus Klein
Sometimes the dual-nature of an illustrated poem is in conflict with itself. Try to literalize a poem’s imagery and you can end up watering down the effect; go too abstract, and the connection between image and text disappears.
But done right, an illustrated poem is an experience unto itself, and that’s what we have with Amal El-Mohtar’s incredible poem ‘Thunderstorm in Glasgow, July 25, 2013,’ illustrated perfectly by Molly Crabapple and published by Fireside Fiction. Its success is also due in no small part to how it’s presented online.
The small things made this piece sing. Click on the link, and watch the title (in a deeply romantic cursive typeface) and header image fade into view. Pen and ink is almost too perfect a match for a poem about a thunderstorm, but by the second stanza, when the poem connects the rainstorm in Glasgow to a rainstorm in an unnamed, war-torn country, the accompanying images create a tension with the content. Hover your mouse over the (what I believe is) Arabic text to reveal Arabic script in gorgeous watercolor strokes.
The illustrations support the text, give it flesh and color without dominating. The use of negative space to provide balance and give the text its own room is critical. The style of illustration matches the nostalgic and heartbreaking tones in the poem without over-sentimentalizing. Despite soft colors and thin black lines, this isn’t a precious collaboration. It’s held together with a gentle but palpable force.
I’m left with questions by the end of the poem. Neither the text nor the images can answer them for me, a measure of restraint that elevates the work as a whole.