Gongbi 工笔 Painting

I am taking this Summer to go back to my traditional training in Chinese painting. Gongbi painting is known as fine brush painting. It is a little like western watercolor, but it is done in many layers on a very thin rice paper. I am interested in exploring the subject of motherhood in these newest paintings. My daughter is growing up in a very different time and place than I did. In some ways it is wonderful, and in others it is scary. I hope to share these feelings, and the feeling of how short and precious this time is, through a process that invests a lot of time, attention, and care.

Works in Progress

These images are of works in progress. I have been making pottery with many versions of the Chinese word for “man.” I was inspired by the longevity ceramics I saw in the palace museum in Beijing. I experimented with stamping and inlay processes for these. I hope to see them fired soon!

Summer 2019 Projects

A new series of paintings is in the works around a new technique( more on this later). For now, there are some nice results from a new collaborative series with my partner, Andy Holliday.