Rebirth

Today, Renaissance in the 15th century takes on a new meaning for me. It is President's day long weekend and have stayed in to read "The Story of Painting" by H.W Janson and Dora Jane Janson.

While many in the Northern Europe felt hopeless towards the end of the Middle Ages, "the Italians welcomed the new era as a 'rebirth'". It is the "rebirth of the powers of the human mind that had created the glories of Greece and Rome". Also mentioned to be the "rebirth of antiquity".  Two master pieces during the 15th century described that social phenomenon I never really appreciated until today.

In admiring Sandro Bortecelli's Birth of Venus again from a 6" by 8" book, it meant more to me today than when I saw the original painting in Uffizi back in 2007. Venus is born of the sea, "like a shimmering pearl, stands for the rebirth of mankind, which was the great hope of the Renaissance. Venus looked frail and very romantic, her long hair blown by the wind from the gods on her right. She covers herself gently with her poised hands. The image of Venus from Bortecelli brings out the elusive, romantic mood and air of class of the people who were hopeful of the rebirth in their culture, the arts and the evolution of expression. Like Venus shining beauty in the middle of the painting, the positive movement in the art world took center stage in Italy and all of Europe. Flowers are shown horizontally in the middle of the painting, carried by the wind, floating towards Venus. Does it suggest a hint of transcience, that there could be a chance this beauty may not be permanent?

The second masterpiece is introduced to me for the first time today. Piero di Cosimo's The Discovery of Honey (about 1498) . It shows how simple men can be happy as they discovered honey, liken to the "first step towards civilisation", man in the early Renaissance era finds themselves again. The contrasting sceneries on each end of the painting represented positive, hopeful change, that man can progress from a barren land to some place civilised. 

Art teaches mankind countless history lessons. When admired at different times, it brings about distinct meanings. Sometimes, it just looks beautiful and we all go "Wow, how did he do it"? Today, these two pieces mean a rebirth for me, in a literal sense. Only when one has lived and breathed for about half a lifetime that rebirth means everything. I am happy to have found what I enjoy doing most these days - reading and writing about art, reflecting lessons from the past and applying them to present day. Making art to make a difference is the first faint view of my vision. Writing this blog is my first step towards the enrichment of my life, and it is sweet like honey.

Car in the Wild

How is it that my first woodcut print will be that of an antique car abandoned in the wild? It is hard to explain in words how an image speaks to you. A glance at the 12" x 9.5" maple wood block and the image later, somehow, they just felt right and I knew I got to cut the image on the wood. The transformation of the background was unexpected because I had to express colors of the brown and yellow grass in black and white. In its 1st state, I had made 3 prints of it. In the 2nd state, 12 original prints were made.... one is hanging in my living room, another resides in HK. That piece in HK also marks the first artwork that I have gave away as a gift. The 3rd is with another pair of good friends who live right by us. The rest of them, I have posted them up for sale and lets await results!

Sold!

After a 10 minute sketch of a model at this semester's last life drawing class at Parsons, the model, Nick, asked if he can buy the drawing! That is the best praise I have received this semester about my works. Life Drawing with Grace, at Parsons has been an enlightening experience. She explored various ways of drawing portraits, parts of the body, using mediums such as markers, charcoal and pencils. Simple as it may sound, I had discovered the technique I am most comfortable and inspired to work with. For the first time in my life, I understand what exploration and self discovery really means. Should I have asked for a token sum in exchange of this 10 minute sketch? Beauty truly lies in the eyes of the beholder and such is the mystery about art.

Etching of a Cat - Peek a Boo!

Etchings of a cat on Zinc Plate. This set will be a series of prints of the same 5" x 7" zinc plate exploring techniques of etching and aquatint. It is now in its 3rd state, in preparation for a first use of aquatint. See link for more description on the process. http://bit.ly/e1SLGm

First Twitter account and my first tweet

I did many "First(s)" this week. Created my first blog account and a first twitter account. Squirrelreal is getting familiar now. My first tweet represents a desire for change yet I am afraid to face it. There are so many "what-ifs" and "what-will-I-not have" I have choose this path. Interesting how I thought the only path available is a full time MA study in Art History. This evening I actually discovered that there are many schools in NY that offer graduate programs in Art History on a part time basis. USA, or maybe just NY for now, is truly a land of possibilities... where one's dream may come true.

First blog after my nth birthday

It is beyond my imagination that I am now creating my first blog. This craziness started out when I tried to make a comment on one of my favourites sites: http://www.urbansketchers.com/. A blogger account is required in order to provide feedback on another's drawing. Oh well, as such, here we are. Maybe I can create a phantom character out of this new whim.