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Author Archives: Reluctant Rat
The ripple effect—painting net water
I’ve spent hundreds of hours in the bow of a canoe staring at water. I’ve seen the wind whipping small wavelets flat as it gusts, the afternoon sun glint off gently rippling diamond-shapes, and many ugly greys and greens of … Continue reading
Posted in Chinese Brush Painting, water compositions
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Water village necessity—painting sampans
“It is more skillful to paint half a boat than a whole one. A common load on a sampan is the wine that will encourage the composing of poems. This boat would never be shown in rough waters; place it … Continue reading
Posted in boats, Chinese Brush Painting, sampan, water compositions
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The gift (horse) that keeps on giving: a Japanese Ema board
Sometimes when I trip over a legend, myth, or traditional belief from another culture I am totally amazed at the complexity and the “rightness” of the various nuances to the concept. Thus my appreciation of the Ema or Japanese Shinto … Continue reading
Posted in Chinese Brush Painting, Ema board, painting horses
2 Comments
Capture the breeze—painting kapok trees
While studying the body of art by contemporary artist Zhang Shipei I spied a distinctive tree appearing in his village scenes. In most instances the tree was large, spreading limbs almost horizontally near the tops, and frequently sporting red dots. … Continue reading
Part 2: Under my scope–Zhang’s Treatment of figures and animals
Instinctively I knew there were many aspects to Zhang Shipei’s painting style that I loved. For the sake of greater understanding I set out to assess individual elements and then try to emulate them. I also recognized that his style … Continue reading
When you fall in love, deconstruct.
Every so often in my exploration of this ancient art form known as Chinese brush painting or CBP (so called because the brush you use is handmade in China according to traditional ways) I trip over an artist whose work … Continue reading
Posted in Chinese Brush Painting, landscape
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Sponge-dabbing for effect
My recent experiments with bubble and mono printing reminded me of the fun effects you can achieve with sponge-printing. I hadn’t done this since childhood and never using my CBP tools. Sea sponges are best for this as they have … Continue reading
