Ekphrastic Poetry Prompts

• Describe the scene

• Speak as a character in the work

• Ask a character a question

• Speak as an inanimate object

• Speak as the artist

• Interrogate the artist

• Imagine what’s happening outside the frame

• Write about a color

• Be guided by the artwork’s shape

• Incorporate historical research

• Write about your experience as a viewer

• Write about other people looking at the art

Read more about ekphrastic poetry at Poetry Foundation.