This ecopoetic poem is written as a gesture of gratitude toward the tree from which the violin is made. It reflects on the awareness that holding the instrument is also a form of contact with the living matter it once was, and with the earth from which it grew.
The poem traces a quiet, contemplative connection between human presence, wood, and planetary life, recognizing the violin not as an object of use, but as a continuation of natural cycles. Through this perspective, the text becomes an act of acknowledgment – of origin, transformation, and the shared materiality that links the human body, the tree, and the earth itself.
THE VIOLIN
Tree branches
Move like
Arms of a
Violinist
Wood
Is lined
In circles
A fingerprint
Vibration
On the neck
Feels like leaves
Falling
Autumn
Strings
Like a seam
A state of mind
An occasion
The dance of the wrist
In the air
Fingers
Go down and up
Go up and down
They go down and up
Marching
In a parade of
Touching
Of
Playing
Of breathing
Of bringing something outside
While feeling everything inside
In gratitude
My gut plays to the
Seed of that tree
The project is part of the subtheme Symbiotic Futures – Ecopoetics in the Age of Extinction.
Author
Isabela Basombrío Hoban
Isabela Basombrío Hoban is an award-winning poet. She is also a multidisciplinary artist working in music, sound and visual art. Originally from Peru and living in Ireland, she is a bilingual poet writing in both English and Spanish. Her recent books are “Nothing belongs to everyone” (Nada pertenece a todos 2022) and “Rain Love Death Poets” (Lluvia Amor Muerte Poetas 2023) both published by Ediciones Vitruvio. Her publishers are Ediciones Vitruvio in Madrid, Spain and Salmon Poetry in Ennistymon, Ireland. Isabela is the recipient of the 2023 Premio Nuevo Ateneo Online (New Athenaeum Online Award). The New Athenaeum Online Award recognizes the work of authors who have written an important work of great literary value and who strive to contribute to new forms of cultural diffusion to reach the reading public. The jury is composed of authors of recognized prestige. Her work explores internal states and the search for meaning with multiple readings. Her poetry has been described as "being between the philosophical and the existential, with a very original loving intensity.” Isabela was a fellow with the “Next Generation Leadership Project” of the Rockefeller Foundation and New York University and the recipient of the Smithsonian award for museum leadership. She has received awards for her poetry from the Mayo County Council Arts Section and Culture Ireland. She has carried out artistic work with various arts, educational and cultural organizations internationally.
