The Chinese
Legend of Lady Li
One night,
in the tenth century, AD, Lady Li sat by her moonlit window, brush in
hand, practising her calligraphy. The wind rustled the bamboo leaves
outside her window; the full moon shone through, casting a delicate
shadow on her rice paper screen by her table. Awakened by the rustle
and the cool luminescence of the moon, she noticed the fragile beauty
of the bamboo pattern on her screen. Raising her ink-filled brush, she
traced the shadow onto the luminous surface. Chinese ink painting was
born.
Whether myth
or history, Lady Li is acknowledged as the inventor of Chinese ink painting.
I find it bemusing that the origin of an art form usually restricted
to men is attributed to a woman.
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Persephone
#1
ceramic
65cm high
|
Moved by
Lady Li, I cast shadows on my paintings and sculptures using an overhead
projector, and paint the designs onto the works. I also photograph shadows
on walls and objects, and overlay these onto the images.
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Lady Li with Bamboo #1
21 x 30 cm (8.25
X 11.75 in.)
$55.00 AUD
Print #2
Lady Li with
shadows and wild orchid
21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.)
$55.00
AUD
Print #3
Each painting
has a goddess in mind, and originates in a black and white photograph
of a sculpture, some of which can be seen on this page and on my website
under Goddesses. The photograph of the sculpture is first printed onto
watercolour or rice paper, and using traditional Chinese and Japanese
brush painting techniques, I embellish each sculpture with a painting.
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Lady Li
with Bamboo #2
21 x 30 cm (8.25
X 11.75 in.)
$55.00
AUD
Print #4
Each of these
paintings is from a limited edition of 50 prints. All have been reproduced
archivally to last at least 80 years behind glass and not in direct
sunlight. Each print has been stamped individually with the red seals
and is numbered and signed. The choice and position of the seals vary
with each print and may not necessarily be the same as the image depicted
on this page. I choose and place the stamps on each print according
to my whim. Prices vary depending on the complexity and size of the
piece, as well as the quality of the paper, which ranges from 185 gsm
watercolour paper to 310 gsm "vellum" quality paper.
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The red seals, based on
the traditional "chops" of Chinese painting, are my own design
and carved by my partner Carl Merten. You can also see his work on our
joint website.
Lady Li Dreaming
21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.)
$55.00
AUD
Print #5
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