It seems to have been a long time since Japan, though it has only been a little over a year. Part of me is still left in that country, in a place where everything seemed simpler. I fell in love with the traditional Japanese culture, which in most parts of the country are nearly obsolete, but I was fortunate to live in a very rural area where I could be taught. I searched Flickr for some images of the traditional houses, calligraphy, and gardens that I fell in love with, but I was disappointed. Flickr yielded no quality pictures, but a google search gave me some beautiful calligraphy. After learning how to do shodo and giving it a concerted try--I fell in love with the art form--the difficulty of the stroke, the ability of a talented artist to capture the act of writing within the final product. This image shows great skill in controlling a vibrant and at times wild stroke. The use of space and position of the kanji is superb--every time I would give it a try I would go off the page and/or end up floating off to one side as I went--clearly the verticality is maintained, while producing active diagonals, demonstrating refined control, a sign of a mature and talented Japanese artist.
I had to add a couple more of my favorites:
1 comment:
Brandon,
Japan left a big impression on me, too. After spending a year there, upon return to the United States I think I dealt with some reverse culture shock issues. The calligraphy is definitely a refined artform, one that I revere, but cannot really see myself practicing. I tried learning to write in hiragana, but quickly became very frustrated with the fact that I was writing like a child learning to write. That and too much criticism from folks looking over my shoulder. I quickly gave up on that venture.
- David
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