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from Sidetracks

  The Paris Review Subscribe from Sidetracks Bei Dao , translated by Jeffrey Yang Issue 245, Fall 2023 1. Gone is the sea       the seafoam returns Gone is the river of springtime       the empty riverbed returns Gone is the clear sky       the whistling arrow returns Gone is the seed       the running tally returns Gone is the tree       the firewood returns Gone is the great fire       the hoarfrost returns Gone is the old legend       the rumors return Gone is the bird       the lines of the poem return Gone is the feast of stars       the tyranny of night returns Gone is the common folk       the emperor returns Gone is the dream       the song returns Gone is the song       the road returns Gone is the road       the fore...
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The swimming-pool genius

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Obituary | The swimming-pool genius David Hockney believed in working from the heart Britain’s boldest and most innovative painter died on June 11th, aged 88 Save Share Photograph: Getty Images Jun 12th 2026 | 5 min read Listen to this story T he painting , ten feet wide, is a window onto a world. The slim man in the peachy-pink jacket stands by the edge of the pool, looking down, uncertain. Someone is swimming underwater towards him; a young man, clad in modest white trunks. The hills beyond the pool make overlapping triangles of cerulean blue, of olive, sage and lime. They could be those of California or Provence—or even biblical Galilee. Ever since the Renaissance, artists have painted bathers washing off stains and sin amid the peace of nature. David Hockney , who created this scene, knew that. He studied them all. The swimmer’s arms are outstretched. In the blue amniotic water he could be an angel. Or a new lover. It is a double portrait, one of many that made him famous in the 1...
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