Time to Bury Heroes is a bilingual tanka in Irish and English (5-7-5-7-7 syllables) by Gabriel Rosenstock in response to a painting by Russian artist Vasily Vereshchagin (October 26, 1842 – April 13, 1904). Vereschagin made no bones about the horrors of war.

it has come again
the time to bury heroes
they'll enrich the earth
yellow wheat will grow stronger
and feed our young warriors

sé an t-am sin é
am adhlactha na laochra
saibhreoidh siad an chré
neartóidh siad an chruithneacht
chun an macra a chothú

Gabriel Rosenstock presents a bilingual tanka, in Irish and English (5-7-5-7-7 syllables) in response to an artwork (above) by Henry Ossawa Tanner, the first African-American artist to achieve international renown. The Thankful Poor is the ironic title of Tanner's painting from 1894. 

The Thankful Poor

by Gabriel Rosenstock 

they are everywhere
their heads bowed, the thankful poor
it weighs heavily
their silence . . . their gratitude
for what - for being alive?

tá siad gach aon áit
na bochtáin, a gceann cromtha
is trom é a dtost
cén fáth tost, cén fáth buíochas
an buíoch atáid as bheith beo?

Gabriel Rosenstock presents a bilingual haiku in Irish and English in response to a photograph by Maxime Crozet

Iraq

ravaged, empty
like the face of Tony Blair . . .
a street in Iraq

folamh, scriosta
ar nós aghaidh Tony Blair . . .
sráid san Iaráic

Gabriel Rosenstock presents a bilingual tanka in Irish and English, the 31 syllables configured as 5-7-5-7-7, written in response to the above work of street art by Banksy.

i am watching You
Beloved, You're watching me
they are watching us
keep Your eyes open, won't you
when You're awake and asleep

táim ag faire ort
taoise ag faire ormsa
táid ag faire orainn
coinnigh do shúile ar oscailt
id' dhúiseacht duit is fá shuan

 Gabriel Rosenstock's latest free book of tanka is available here

Gabriel Rosenstock presents a tanka in Irish and English, written in response to Norman Rockwell's 1964 masterpiece The Problem We All Live With, (above)  

is bóthar fada é
chun na scoile, a Ruby
tóg céim ar céim é
bróga is stocaí geala
ag lonrú faoin ngréin, 'Ruby

a long way to school
a long way to school, Ruby
one step at a time
your white shoes and white stockings
gleaming in the sun, Ruby

This is a bilingual ekphrastic tanka, in Irish and English, following the 5-7-5-7-7 configuration of 31 syllables. The painting depicts six-year old Ruby Bridges in 1960 on her way to an all-white school during the New Orleans desegregation crisis. The marshals are cropped, headless, but we can see the N-word on the wall, bloodied by a smashed tomato, and on the top left hand corner the ominous letters of the Klan.