Monday, June 8, 2009

Kanji #1

Kanji #1 - 24" x 56"

I'm still intrigued with the Japanese and Chinese characters, this time distorted to fit into a horizontal format. All whites are the paper, Da Vinci on Fabriano 140# hot press.

Framed 28" x 60" - sorry for the reflections

Thanks to everyone who participated in the workshop at VisArts in Rockville! I think I'll be doing more there in the fall and next spring, details here and on my website when available.

21 comments:

perugina said...

Great to see your latest watercolour!
Love the horizontal format Nick.. and am loving all the different directions my eye gets to travel here within this watercolour world - a written landscape of sorts created because you are currently ‘still intrigued’.
Segui il tuo cuore, non devi avere ragioni.
Follow your heart, you do not have to have reasons.
Bravo!
pg
:)

cardesin said...

Nick
Magnificent!
The layout of the item.
I like it very much!
Many greetings
jk

Tóbal said...

I like it , Nick!
Love textures and theme ! Nice to see some new work from you!
I found kanjis a very and extremately complicated way of writting!
I knew a japanese caligraphy teacher who write on my journal a Haiku and even she had to think to find the correct kanji!

jamiek8 said...

Gorgeous Nick. Interesting frame size. I too very much like the format.

Janet Belich said...

What I find so appealing in your works is the depth of field you get with the letters imposed on top as if hung on a window or another plane....too profound ?
ok...it's pretty too. :)

William K. Moore said...

Horizontal is a good choice here Nicholas. The white calligraphy has the right contrast and weight for maximum visual impact. You weave it into the composition in a way that gives it the right amount of importance. The paint speckles balance the large flat color planes for an interesting texture rhythm. This one has it all for me sir: color, composition, and cool calligraphy. A thrill to see the new work!

lupus said...

Nick, fantastic composition, I like it very much.

Enrique.

Nick said...

Patricia - thanks, I like that horizontal panel look too, seemed to fit this idea. I'll be over to your place soon!

Juan - I've also been delinquent in visiting your blog, will remedy that asap. thanks for posting, amigo

Cristobal - I have no idea what it says! At least I can put Spanish into BabelFish!

Jamie - glad you like it, I think some of WKMoore has rubbed off on me, and that's a very good thing

Janet - I also like the flatness juxtaposed with an area that has dimension (the bit center right)

Bill - the large flat areas of color and the geometry are at least partly a result of following your work. I got an email from someone who doesn't like the flat areas, but they're exactly what I wanted, and I even got the color right. Photographed well, except the blue on the far left isn't quite that deep.

Enrique - I'll have new stories about Spanish art and music to relate here soon, stay tuned!

Deb Townsend said...

Very cool Nick! I'll have to send the link to my friend in Japan to find out what it means! LOL!

David Burge said...

It's a great kick to see this one Nick!
Firstly I really dig the palette, the calligraphy lends a sophisticated air to the image. I get a very clean, digi-age-sense about the piece if you know what I mean. The surface and edges have your unique thing going on which I can't explain!
It would be too clean and droid, but for the perfectly balanced ink on sienna counterpoint in the mid ground that has an almost rural humanity about it.
Full marks on the framing as well.
It's a rocket!

Susan Liles said...

Great composition, works well with the kanji symbols. Like the sense of ripped or torn (for me anyway) against the blue. Nice work!

RH Carpenter said...

Well you know I love those blues - in any hue - so my eye dances over those but then goes deeper into the structure - those "planks" of dark coming off the turquoise blue behind the kanji writing and that piece of text that seems warped, turned, twisted somehow. Very interesting and intriguing piece, Nick.

Pablo Villicaña Lara said...

I've said it before, I'll say it again! Love your work and really appreciate the scale you paint in!

Nick said...

Deb - I'd like to know too! The characters were chosen for their shape.

Dake - not surprisingly, you've explained precisely my feelings if I could write like you. The droidness was was a problem until I figued out to turn that central panel into what you describe. And I love the rocket part! thx mate

Susan - if the ripped and torn graffiti look appeals to you, check out Jose Parla!!!!!!

Rhonda - all of the adjectives fit and were part of the objective!

Pablo - I did the same piece a month ago and it was too small, destroyed it. I think every painting has its perfect size, and I hate miscalculating that. Actually this ought to be a bit bigger, but that gets into the next size of glass and foamcore, more $$$$.

Fernando Pena said...

Nick,
great composition, I don't know if distorted characters are readable but I don't care, the result is great.
You said "I think every painting has its perfect size" and I never thought about it, but it's true, thanks for sharing this

Billie Crain said...

Nick, your paintings always create a huge visual impact, not only in terms of sheer size but also great boldness in color, comp and subject matter. "Not your grandmother's watercolors"...isn't that a quote of your's? Granny would never come up with something like this!

As I mentioned on WC, I really like the horizontal format. I revisited your thread and saw the float mount close ups. What thickness of foamcore do you use under the painting? May I ask?

Nick said...

Hola Fernando, yes I really believe that..sometimes I would paint something well and couldn't figure out what was wrong with it, and then realized it was the wrong size.

Thanks again Billie, I remember saying something to that effect, but you have to watch out for those grannies that can really paint!! :) Standard 3/16" (5mm)foamcore for everything, I buy it in boxes of 40x60 sheets and sometimes have to join pieces with foam glue.

Sandy said...

A great composition Nick! Great movement too..like standing on a bridge and watching things about to float underneath.
I love the sharpness and clarity of the hard edge shapes cf the fluidity of the lettering.
Format...my favourite too!My last two paintings have been the same format!!

Nick said...

Sandy - nice to see you, yes I saw the pears on your blog, another one that looks great with this format. I think this shape and the square are my favorites....22x30 and its derivatives seem kind of boring to me.

Pat said...

Visited your blog today and enjoyed every moment. I will be back.

Nick said...

Pat - likewise, and thanks for stopping!