Dancing Brush: The Fine art of Calligraphy

Shhh...just watch..

This is Shodo Harada Roshi, the head of the Rinzai Zen monastery of Sogenji, Okayama, Japan, giving a demonstration of Zen Calligraphy. Harada Roshi is also the head of the worldwide One Drop Zen-buddhist community.
I have often known that a spiritual discipline leads to the most extraordinary art, especially in the Eastern forms such as Zen or the martial arts such as kung fu or Tai Chi. The complete mastery over space, the beautiful sense of rhythm and complete control over the technique in such forms have always held me enthralled.


In this particular demonstration you can see the undivided attention, perfect comprehension of space, highly calibrated and skilful use of pressure in the strokes--and a pregnant silence that permeates the space.

Calligraphy, amongst several others, is an art form that calls for the practice of "no-mind" or a mental stillness acquired by years of spiritual practice. Each piece of artwork that we just witnessed being created is therefore the result of true mental calmness and focussed intention.
I am still holding my breath...! Whew..

What's in a pair of shoes? : Intention and the Artist

Here is one more post to do with Vincent Van Gogh! This post was triggered when I found some interesting information about Van Gogh's painting "A Pair of Shoes". And a friend of mine just told me she was drawing shoes--
 Van Gogh was fascinated with shoes. The first pair below he painted in 1886, the next three in 1887.











THhe following pair he painted in 1888.

These shoe paintings have in come for a lot of discussion from several art writers, critics and philosophers. They conjecture that these paintings speak of Van Gogh's sympathy and feeling for the underdog, the peasant or the poor. It is said that these shoes symbolised not just the suffering and poverty, but more the endurance, inner fortitude of the peasant towards their lot--and lent it dignity.
There are other theories to say that all these pairs actually belonged to the artist himself, not the peasants whom he was so fond of depicting in all their ruggedness. [His famous painting of the Potato Eaters and other hundreds of sketches he made of the hardship and grinding poverty of the rural peasant reveal an immense understanding and sensitivity.]
It seems quite reasonable therefore to infer that these boots, shoes and clogs that he painted so often similarly were an attempt to reveal the character of the wearer and his situation.
There is even one more theory, that I find quite quaint, that Van Gogh had a great attachment to one particular pair of shoes--and so he kept painting it. 
Be all that as it may, the fact is that Van Gogh himself lived in abject poverty for a large part of his short life. Under these circumstances, he needed to keep finding objects or models which he could use for his paintings. He found everything around him thus served a purpose--of course, his eye found great beauty, colour and character wherever he looked.

Tell me what do you see?

To me everything about these shoes seems to speak--their well-worn lived-in look, weathered appearance and ruggedness greet you at once. And I love looking at them.
They are full of presence.

Falling Water

A photo feature of Falling Water, an architectural marvel.

Frank Lloyd Wright represents some of the most evolved thinking in western architecture. His minimalist style and grand inclusion of space and openness particularly appeal to me.

Falling Water is the beautiful house created by Frank Lloyd Wright the famous American architect, known for his landmark buildings all over the US. Apparently Wright visited the stunning location of the waterfall and after accepting the commission to design the house, did nothing for 3 months. At the end of that time he sat down and began to draw--in a matter of just 3 hrs he had put down in complete detail the entire floor plan of the house, with all the levels, the connecting bridge and space that it would occupy just above the waterfall! He even knew the exact location of each tree and rock that was found on the site and included them in his drawing.Every aspect of the house including the furniture and art pieces were personally designed or selected by him and placed in a specific way.
 The house is till today a masterpiece of architecture--conceived with the idea of living within nature, as part of nature. He purposely left out a view of the waterfall from the house--he did not want the owners to take the magnificent waterfall for granted! In order to view the falls, one has to trek a little while into the forest to be able to see it fully, with the house cantilevered above it as though it was carved out the rock itself.
See below also an animation of how the house was created.

Peacocks and Foliage

Some photos of  peacocks I took recently. Majesty personified! Click on the pic for larger view.

Pictures that speak a thousand words

So we have all heard this expression before. Pictures do often speak much more than words can. In some cases, such as in illustrated books they enhance the story so much that they become identified with the tale. Good, imaginative illustrations that we see leave an imprint on our minds for ever. We can then never think of the story without the pictures flashing on our inward eye!

Children's classics are a special category of story-telling that I am especially fond of. I remember thinking as a child that I would never tire of some of the stories I read--I vowed that I would keep them on my shelf (under my pillow?) for ever and never allow the "grown-ups" to replace them with serious reading material.
I remember reading "Treasure Island"--a small illustrated one which I pored over till it was in tatters. Classics have the capacity to bring a whole world of rich adventure, fantasy and dreamland within our reach. For those of us who love children's literature, we can never forget the simple joys of childhood or what it means to be a child--and in some sense we never grow up--just like Peter Pan.

I bought a rectangular little book which caught my eye several years ago at some book exhibition--I think for second-hand books. I could not take my eyes off the cover page. Such detailed, evocative and beautiful colours and textures--the picture of a brownish kettle-like sailboat with tiny little people trying to board it to go to sea seemed lovely, gentle and quite extraordinary. Nothing like I had seen before--and certainly I had seen a lot of children's books by then! I immediately bought the book.
I always thought of it as a treasure.

And what do you know--Robert Ingpen, the illustrator who made this picture is one of the world's best! An Australian, he has won the Hans Christian Andersen Prize for Book Illustration--a very prestigious recognition. His contribution to the world of children's illustrations is enormous--he has lent his talent to at least a 100 of the most well-known classics in the western world--and brought his own extremely sensitive and imaginative reinterpretation of these stories to them.

 Just a very few of his illustrations below. I am sure you can guess the first story. Those of the kettle and the little people are adapted from an ancient Peruvian myth to do with the Hairy Peruvians who set out on a voyage to Austraila and it is called "The Poppy Kettle Papers". Every year in Geelong, Victoria, one of the towns in Australia an entire festival is held around this tale! It is attended by young children who participate in a parade, wearing costumes associated with the story. What fun.


Can you guess what the last illustration is about--if you guess the name of the story I will try and get the book for you! Click on the pics for a larger view!

An Inward Glance--Works of Gao Xingjian

 

The paintings by Gao Xingjian which I just discovered by accident, strike such a chord of deep meaning as far as I am concerned. I am astonished by their fluid, expressive and dreamlike nature---they seem to exist at the edge of reality, touching upon moments of illumination and the innermost depths of the human condition. Gao Xingjiang believed that the our world cannot be explained rationally--he therefore looked within, at the source of the inner light.
I am gratfiied to find that he is the Chinese Nobel Prize winner of Literature in 2000 and has written equally haunting, poetic plays and essays. His works are banned in China since one of his plays is set in the Tianenmen Square.
Xingjian uses Chinese rice paper and ink and brush to paint very pure black and white pictures which straddle abstract and figurative themes. One can see figures which appear as in a mirage, landscapes and a beautiful effulgence of piercing light emerging from deep somnolescence---just as though one were waking from deep slumber. The brush strokes are tender, understated and poetic, yet firm in their conviction. His is a modern mind, but one which captures the universal yearning of man for a state of purity, of being one with a great Truth. Watch this video for more images by him:

The brilliance of Escher

Day and Night 


 
Three Worlds

 
Sphere Spirals in black, yellow and pink: woodcut
 
 Waterfall

 M.C. Escher, was a Dutch graphic artist who conceived of unbelievable worlds. He made hundreds of drawings, etchings, linoleum prints and woodcuts. We see in his works a mathematical precision, a preoccupation with contrasts of light and dark, and a perfection of execution rarely found anywhere, in any medium. He played with planes and shapes, so as to achieve impossibilites as revealed in his works Ascending and Descending and Metamorphosis. He was preoccupied with interlocking shapes that could be reproduced to infiinity. Using highly detailed technique and with a mind for perfection, he produced extraordinary and wonderful woodcuts and drawings. He largely made works that depended purely on his imagination--even his works of still life, self portraits, buildings and architecture such as of Rome and the Roman countryside are a testimony to his skill in putting together such involved and complex imagery as to boggle the mind!
























Contrast (Order and Chaos)

 

Relativity


The Sixth Day of Creation

 
Castrovalva (lithograph)

 
The Bridge 

 
 Hand with Reflecting Sphere (lithograph)
 
 
The above two are from his Symmetry series.
 
Self-portrai: woodcut
 
 Self-portrait in Linoleum with shades of grey, light blue and black.
 
Sea shell:woodcut

The Wow factor in the photographs of Ansel Adams

 Tetons and the Snake River
 Words fail when one is confronted with this image--captured for all eternity by the master of light--the American photographer and champion of wilderness and conservation--the great Ansel Adams. This and several thousands of such extraordinary photographs that he took enrapture all who view them. Photography as an art form has never been the same after his time--everyone began to view the medium differently--as something that could hold a place of its own in the world of the best of fine art. Ansel Adams was taken with a profound passion for the great parks and expanses of natural beauty--such as Yosemite. Besides producing a colossal output of writing and trying to make a living as a commercial photographer,  he spent enormous energy travelling around America making exquisite records of lakes, mountains, trees and landscapes--all of which resonate with an ennobling, uplifting spirit. Don't know about you but I simply can't get enough of them! Just a few for sampling below.
The last one is a unique picture (not taken by Adams) of two of my favourite artists together--guess who the weathered, stately woman is...
Vernal Fall


Jeffrey Pine, Sentinel Dome


Frozen Lake and Cliffs


White House Ruin



Ansel Adams and Georgia O'Keefe, photo by Alan Ross

Starry starry night

 

It is not possible to talk of anguish, pain and suffering in the artistic world without at once thinking of Vincent Van Gogh. The swirling colours, the deep and strong lines and the vivid images he created are eternal testaments to the beauty only an artist with a great emotional connection to the world could recreate. The irony was that in spite of Van Gogh's obvious lust for life and an abiding compassion for other poor souls, he was still destined to lead a largely lonely existence. But the vitality, the sheer vividness of his vision finally got the better of him--and he took his own life--unable to get a hold of his inner demons.
This lovely song is a poetic tribute to him, composed by Don Maclean

Anguish and Release

Sometimes, in fact, very often, art is not pretty--it is not easy to come to terms with its urgency and call for release. It seethes with emotions that we would rather not face. Although this may sound contradictory, artists such as Van Gogh and Edvard Munch, never set out to paint "beautiful" things--yet their most unbelievably painful, twisted works of art have come to be known as some of the most authentic representations of the human condition.
 In the life and paintings of Edvard Munch (famous Norwegian painter and writer) we glimpse at a tortured being--an artist, who expressed an anguish so deep that he was considered psychotic. Today, his painting The Scream, is said to embody the pain of humanity itself, in turmoil, raging against the vicissitudes of modern man.
Munch too became reclusive during his middle years, living in solitude.
Seen below is Vampire and The Scream. Munch maintained a journal where he described his experience about the first painting thus:
"The deep purple darkness settled itself over the earth. I sat under a tree--whose leaves had begun to yellow, to wither. She had sat by my side--she had bowed her head over mine. Her blood-red hair entangled me--it had wrapped itself around me like blood-red snakes--its finest threads had wrapped themselves around my heart. Then she stood up--I don't know why. Slowly she moved towards the sea--further and further away. Then a strange thing happened--I felt there were invisible threads binding us. I felt that invisible strands of her hair were still wrapped around me. Even when she disappeared over the ocean--I still felt the pain where my heart was bleeding, because the threads could not be torn away."

Out of the Labyrinth

For this post, I am allowing myself to use this phrase I just heard from artist, Robert Genn: "Out of the labyrinth". Art allows you to step out of the labyrinth--of life, of being caught in a constant round of unceasing outward activity, getting drawn into more pursuits that do not always satisfy. Art offers repose... a private place of joy.

Below are two photos that I took in a small grove--it was drizzling and as one looked out from beneath the sheltering leaves, the clouds parted and there was a sudden burst of light. These pictures symbolise this sense of moving away from too much "busy" ness to emerging into a free, open space--the light ahead beckons with the promise of a fresh, new beginning! It is almost as though the whole world is holding its breath--waiting...
Click on the pics for expanded view!

The Play of Light

Light has the quality to make even the inconsequential, transcendent.


Sometimes the way light reveals the intangible something that lurks behind the ordinary can make us stop in our tracks. But only the most evolved of artists can manage that superlative task--of bringing forth the hidden beauty in the things and people we see around us.
Some of the most brilliant and extraordinary paintings throughout history have come about due the way light has enriched them and made them come alive. Of course, there has been no one quite like Jan Vermeer the famous Dutch painter, who achieved a profound tranquility, a meditative stillness in his picures of everyday life. He is well known for his painting "Girl with a Pearl Earring". There is a very good film, that I would recommend, that tells the story of how he came to paint this simply exquisite picture and of his life. His paintings are the last word on the pure, translucent play of light. It is as though he has painted with his brush dipped into light itself--the glow comes from within and is not simply superimposed on the object of his attention! He was thus one who understood how light did not merely help us to see things--but when observed with care, could make them sing with an ethereal beauty.

A Mystic Landscape--Paul Klee

I have been amazed by Vasily Kandinsky who was a master of abstract art. It is only recently I discovered the unbelievably dreamlike abstractions of Paul Klee (who was in fact a close associate and friend of Kandinsky's)! He traverses the space between mind and spirit with complete ease. He allows us to gain a magical glimpse into the hidden,subtle layers that lie below the surface of the objective world. He was a master draftsman, one who initially struggled with colour, but later began using colour in the most fluid, soft and nuanced ways.
Paul Klee said, "The objective world surrounding us is not the only one possible; there are others latent." These are the words of a genius who comprehended deeper shades of meaning and had a connection with  the mysterious or even mystic aspects of life.
It is said that Paul Klee was "influenced" by cubism, expressionism and so on. I find that irrelevant. In my opinion every artist makes use of the technique that best suits his needs at any point of time. Not the other way round.

I want to you to take particular notice of the mysterious glow or as I call it the "shimmer" that transfuses his art.
In the Gold Fish shown below, its shining hue, its large pink eyes and its aloofness make it special. The drawing itself is almost childlike, and conveys great innocence--but also a certain air of infinite calmness.

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Faith and healing--and the world's tallest bronze Nataraja

Travelling amongst the sleepy hamlets of Tanjavur means stepping back in time. So full of cultural and religious history is it that you come across ancient temples virtually round every corner within this district for a radius of about 100 kms--there are literally thousands of them.While all of us hear of the famous and the grand Tanjavur Brihadeeswara temple or the Chidambaram temple, it is when you visit the more nondescript ones, tucked away in the remote rural countryside that you realise the import and extent of legend, myth, belief and ritual that make up the spiritual and religious ethos of this extraordinary district. One such is that in Konerirajapuram or Thirunallam of ancient times.

I had heard about the world's tallest bronze Nataraja--that can be seen within the precincts of this rather small, unassuming temple. Just outside the temple is a really large, beautiful tank--set amidst quiet, rural surroundings. In this picture below, you can see the entrance to the corridor leading up to the sanctum sanctorum--the ceiling is covered in colourful frescoes.

Apparently Sembiyan Mahadevi, the grandmother of Raja Raja Chola had endowed funds for the construction of the temple. The story goes that the raja then wished to install a tall bronze Nataraja--at least 6 ft tall and ordered the royal stapati (sculptor) to cast it. Try as he might the stapati could not go beyond 31/2 ft in height--it seemed an impossible task. Three times the raja rejected his attempt--the first was just 11/2 ft in height, the next 21/2 ft and third 31/2 ft. The stapati was in despair as the raja then threatened to behead him, and gave him a deadline for completion. Being an ardent devotee of Siva, all the stapati could do was pray as there remained just one more night, and he still could not fulfill the raja's order. During the course of that night (while he was in the throes of extreme anxiety and fear of what the morning would bring)--two Brahmins, a man and a woman came by his place and begged for some water to drink. This was unusual, since Brahmins would as a matter of rule never drink water offered by non-Brahmins.

The stapati, by now in a state of complete frustration, told them to leave--they could go and get water at the Brahmin Agraharam nearby. They refused and insisted that he should give them some water. Exclaiming impatiently, the stapati told the man and woman to drink up the molten metal he had prepared for the bronze cast! He watched in utter amazement as they both proceeded to do exactly that--within a few seconds, as they lifted the vessel and drank, where they had stood appeared two most beautiful statues, one of Nataraja, 6 ft tall and a smaller one of Sivakami! The stapati was overcome and could not trust his eyes; with joy and astonishment  he realised that Siva and Parvati had themselves come to save him from his plight. In the morning the raja discovered the resplendent Nataraja statue, and by his side the most beautiful smiling Sivakami. He was incredulous when the stapati denied having cast these splendid bronzes, claiming that it was Siva himself--who had transformed himself as the statue.

Lifting his sword in disbelief and anger, the raja struck a wild blow which hit the upraised foot--at once drops of blood spurted out and where they fell on the raja's body, he developed leprous wounds. The raja, realising his horrendous error, then undertook penance and performed special abhishekams to Vaidyanathaswamy, who is worshipped as the lingam here in the outer prakaram, and was finally cured. This deity has now a reputation for its power of healing.


Till today, you can see the mark where the sword cut the foot of the statue. This Swayambu Nataraja is kept in its own separate alcove, exuding sheer joy and grace, along with his consort. In the next alcove can be seen the first three bronzes of smaller size that were cast initially. I must not forget to point out some of the beautiful  frescoes found on the walls and ceiling of the temple; these are made of organic dye taken from leaves and herbs in the area.You can see in the photo, they still retain astonishing colour and vibrancy, in spite of the lack of good care and of course they reveal degradation due to weather and age.The third of the frescoes shown below is particularly interesting, for it shows a British officer who is offering prayers to Vaidyanathaswamy in gratitude, for he too was cured of leprosy after praying here.

The last shows a gypsy and his wife. Or perhaps not. I wonder if this represents Siva himself as the Hunter, with hounds at his feet? What do you think?