Water-Colours
in
"Spirit and Truth"

            As much as I love painting, it remains a challenge for me to balance between subjective expression and objective reality. If I am too into self-expression forgetting about the hidden laws that govern the beauty of nature, disregarding the discipline of proportions and ignoring the aerial perceptive of hue changes, I will produce a product entirely for myself, something that will bring no pleasure to others. If I am too confined by reality, it will be much faster to take photographs. Water-colour is a particularly interesting medium. Seeing and planning take as much as the act of painting. Even then, there is no guarantee how the water will run or dry. This element of surprise is, for me, God's participation.
            I have titled this painting "Rolling Hills of Mt. Saviour." I painted  it during a retreat at the Mt. Saviour Monastery in the New York State. The scenery outside my bedroom window was so serene, the air so fresh one morning that I couldn't help but wanted to capture it with clean, single-stroke brushes. My intent was to have no overlap, no going back and no weeping between strokes. Of course it didn't turn out exactly like what I planned.

By the way
click on each of the smaller images
to enlarge them in a separate window

 
          The Hat and The Shoes
was painted during a camping trip up north
with some friends.
I saw the worn out hat and shoes
by the beach drying under the sun. 
I was thankful for what these humble items
did for me.
I thought they looked very beautiful.
They are now long gone except in this painting.
 
                Hat and Shoes 97
 I had the privilege
of staying for a couple of days near
Long Beach along the west coast
of Vancouver Island. 
How to capture the vastness of that beach, 
the waves, and the people with a single shot
from a camera? 
So I ended up
sketching the scene with the two paint brushes 
I had with me using very limited colour palette.
               Long Beach, BC 98
The Pansies was a very spontaneous move
while dropping in to visit a couple whose garden
had won prizes in the city of Burlington.
In those days, 
I used to carry my painting supplies
in the trunk of my car most of the time. 
It was done after a couple glasses of red wine 
in the afternoon sun. 
Up till now I feel that this painting is unmatched
in what I am able to do.
I have been teased since then
as one who can paint better in wine.
                   Pansies 97
 
 
It was a cold and calm winter day.
The lake was not quite completely frozen yet, when I saw Hamilton 
from across the bridge while driving to work. 
I stopped and took a photograph. 
The Hamilton Harbour was painted
from the photograph.
               Hamilton Harbour 87

 

l Homepage l Who is Vicky? l My Gallery l In Silence l Music l In Memory l Travelling l