ANDREW JOHNSTON

 

Made in Paris

 
A film crew in the garment district 
tries to make it up 
 
to the sound of the whole thing 
backfiring – 
 
hoots and shouts, a pizza scooter, 
cars whose horns sound mournful all morning 
 
blocked by a truck from China 
unloading a costume change. 
 
Paris goes to the movies to see Paris: 
the golden zones, a Porsche on the cobbles, 
 
a certain idea containing all others 
while ‘Made in Paris’, 
 
made in China, 
gleams in the rain behind the scenes – 
 
waiting for the credits, 
waiting to take a bow: 
 
Paris misses itself 
and this is how. 
 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrew Johnston’s fourth collection of poems, Sol, will be published by Victoria University Press in March. He will spend 2007 as the Stout Research Fellow at Victoria University, working on a book about New Zealand poetry. ‘Made in Paris’ is about the Porte St-Martin neighbourhood he lives in.

 

Return to 2006 contents >