A Painter’s Poems comprises poetry that Pratt has written over the past 50 years, echoing his career as a painter. They are autobiographical – “pages from a diary.” They respond to encounters with people, places, and events that have had particular significance and impact on his working life. My poetry is a personal exorcism; I am aware that exorcism is not always ‘art’. It is a self-portrait, random pages from a ‘diary’ in code, and portraits of others, friends, anonymous, given the protection of pronouns. I use simple language: some poetry glitters and illuminates like a foyer chandelier; I think mine as a single light bulb in a porch. Christopher Pratt 1999