Artist's statement:
Images are created in an endless cycle. They make their appearance in various ways and are combined in various fashions. There are those that appear in a flash and those that appear in our imaginations in a continuous stream. Some of these images are nothing more than drops of water in a vast ocean while others are eternal and unchanging.
I use the eyes of a animal with their swift predatory instincts to capture life in a drop of colour, to peak into the vast universe found in a speck of dust.
Perhaps it is the spirit of the animal that gives my work an "aura of wisdom". Capturing the essence of things allows my paintings to glow with colour. Fused with nature, these colours assume a myriad of forms. What I reveal is the musical rest within eternal and unchanging time.
About the technique:
My work brings together subconsciously the five elements found in nature. Metallic colours come from the element of metal. Ink from smoke and coal which belongs to the element of earth. Plant dyes which correspond to the element of wood. Water is the intermediary. Fire is needed for the melding of colours and dissolving glue. My work dissolves into nature and nature gives form to my work. My technique is the product of two different methods. Colour in powered form is blended with glue. These are ground together by hand. Water is added to create the desired consistency. These in turn are applied in layers onto Xuan paper. Water and ink are combined and ground on an ink stone into very pale dyes. The combination of paper strips and patches of colour is very fine and ornamental. The combination of the free flowing style and the detailed style give animation to the whole picture.
Vancouver,