Click Here to BidAfter I painted together with Richard Schmid, we had a long talk. He asked me why I paint apples and bottles. He wants me to think more how much of "me" I want to share through my art. Well, my today's painting does have that kind of info.
I have this Tibetan payer wheel for many years. To be honest with you, I don't understand much of the Tibetan Buddhism, but I am very curious about what have been taught in that mysterious place. On the prayer wheel, I see six Tibetan words. I googled them and know they are pronounced: "OM MA NI PAD ME HUM" It is a mantra, and it can not be translated literately. So I don't understand the mantra means. However, I like the "wheel" idea. It is turning, repeating. That is the characteristics of our world and our life. We see days and nights. We experience seasons. We know we live on a globe. With advanced technology, we learned the solar system. We learned the spinning galaxies. We know the vibrating atoms. We know colors of light have different frequencies. We know complicated organic systems are based on repetition of simpler chemical structures. Mathematically, we can model the world with something called the "Fourier Transform"...... We are on the "wheel". To be more accurate, we are part of the "wheel".
However nowadays, very few people have time to care if we are "turning" or not. Our mantra is: "Oh! MONEY buy me home".
Wow! Qiang ... this post is about more than art. This is a whole philosophy on our lives and way of thinking. What you've said about this high key painting takes us to a higher plain of thinking.
ReplyDeletePainter and philosopher. Nice work and thoughts. Bet you enjoyed your time with Richard Schmid. Good for you.
ReplyDeleteRichard Schmidt asked a very simple and important question and I thank you for posting it. I will ask myself the same thing.
ReplyDeleteYou know... I like people that still find apples and bottles interesting enough to be subject of a painting. It means the painter does appreciate the little things in life, the every day things that most people who share that "Oh! MONEY buy me home" mantra tend to take for granted.
ReplyDeleteSo if you like apples and strawberries, please keep painting them from time to time.
Richard was right to make that suggestion. I do love your apples and bottles etc., but this subject and the commentary adds another fascinating dimension to the painting. I think it makes it richer somehow. Still, don't give up on the apples and bottles completely, variety is the spice of life!
ReplyDeleteI love the out of focus feel of the background objects in this, it really makes the prayer wheel stand out. A fantastically clever technique!
I believe the question was not about apples or bottles but about THINKING and growing. Richard Schmid is a great thinker. As are you! Thanks for a great post.
ReplyDeleteHi Qiang,
ReplyDeleteGreat post and painting. I was there at the end of the last day when Richard asked you why you paint so many apples and you replied about how they have a good shape, color etc. to contrast with flowers and other still life objects. His response was "Yes, but do you 'love' apples?" We all fell dead silent. You could tell it was a life changing moment for many of us artists lucky enough to have been there for that pearl of wisdom from the great Richard Schmid.
Dalan
Ooh, a light background this time! Nice! I think most times what you paint is less important than how you paint it. ...and to paint something well, repetition is necessary.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great question...makes one really think! How I feel about the subjects I paint is important to me...but whether or not I 'love' them all I'm not sure. Beautiful painting Qiang.
ReplyDeleteI discovered in my early painting classes, when I initally thought the teacher had picked something stupid for us to paint, that I fall in love with what I pay attention to. I still struggle with that, wandering around a landscape or the house feeling there's nothing calling to me to paint, but after I finally start, whatever I picked becomes fascinating.
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