art
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An Explosive Beach Scene
This splatter of light ink gives the painting a sense of immediacy and action. The distant hill with a tree adds a bit of mystery. The figure and the small umbrella are a bit camp. A good collection of elements for a painting.
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Big Head Series
I have several styles or series that I have been rotating through for years. My Big Head series of paintings features compositons built around figures with oversized heads. I have done a lot of live model sketching over the years and still sketch nude models every Saturday, so I am aware of proper proportions, the…
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Landscape With Fire Pit
This landscape is painted on “shou xuan” paper. This kind of paper is less absorbent. I prefer the raw xuan paper which is harder to control but more fun and interesting to use as it is super sentive to a brush stroke. As a result of the paper this landscape has more distinct shapes that…
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Minimal Painting
Creating an interesting painting with lots of space and few brushstrokes is an ideal that I am often striving for. This painting uses an ink wash formation and a figure to describe place, scale, and mood.
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Four Seasons Residency Cats
Four Seasons Art Center, where I just finished my one month residency had a lot of street cats. They were a tight group of cats that hung around all day together. Many had distinct personalities. Some were skittish and some were very friendly.
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A Large Diptych
My residency at Foshan allowed me to work larger than I usually do. One of the results is this diptych. I don’t think I’ve created a diptych before. The Art museum at Four Seasons has lots of wall space and I can see lots of the artists here are working hard to make large striking…
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Washing Clothes
I’m finishing up a month-long painting residency at an art center and modern art museum in Foshan, a non-descript third tier city on the fringe of Guangzhou. My first time washing clothes in a washroom tucked away a few floors below my studio was a bit foreboding. I couldn’t find the light switch and all…
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Self Portrait With Sketchbook
Recently I have been doing a lot of self-portraits. In general, it is easier to draw old people with their wrinkles and slack skin. My style often leans towards caricature, so I’m more concerned about catching a feeling or context then an exact likeness. I’m a bit wary of painting a person like the human…
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Subtleties of Chinese Technique
One of the things that I love about using chinese materials for painting, is how subtle color shifts, brushstrokes, and tones can carry so much meaning. Unfortunately, subtle is not in high regard in today’s art world, where size and bold color are in vogue. Loud art “experiences” are in vogue. Important artists must work…
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Landscape with Flowers
This painting is a good example of how I like a balance between entropy (let the ink and color takes is course) and control. Adding the little figure at the top left of the painting forces the viewer to see it as a landscape and creates a scale for the piece of land that the…
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So Many Nudes
I sketch models four hours a week. I have never considered that a key part of my artistic output but I enjoy the challenge of sketching with Chinese paper, ink and brushes. It is quite a difficult medium to control in that situation. I experiment with colors, work on powerful lines and brushwork and sometime…
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Contempary Chinese Art
When I describe my art in chinese for a chinese audience, I usually call it contemporary chinese art. I use chinese brushes, paper, and most importantly, chinese techniques. A painting like this, with calligraphy of the Northern Song Su Shi poem and two branches of peach blossoms illustrating some content in the poem, is not…