Hi all, Bob says (in part): "The words "art" "artifice" and
"artificial" may share the same root but they're different words, at
least they are in my dictionaries!"

Mine too Bob ('dictionary' is a good thought btw, if we're going to
use words it's probably best to use them properly). 'Art' and
'Artifice' only share part of the same root: 'art'. The key to our
debate it seems to me is 'ifice' - which comes from 'facio' - 'I
make', or perhaps more exactly 'I manufacture'.

Given that I write very short verse it is not unusual for a poem to
arrive fully formed in my mind. The haiku (hokku actually) I posted
the other day was one such:

April Fools Day --
a poet
with a pocketful of fish

The poem may well be utterly without merit. But it cannot be
'artifice' as no conscious volition was involved in its creation.

Once upon a time I was a good enough musician to be able to improvise
at will - often in a way that was entirely spontaneous. Wherein lies
the 'artifice'?

Best wishes, john e c