Scholar by a Waterfall

Ma Yuan (Chinese, active ca. 1190–1225)
Scholar by a Waterfall
Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279), late 12th–early 13th century
Album leaf: ink and color on silk
9 7/8 x 10 1/4 in. (25.1 x 26 cm)
Metropolitan Museum of Art
image: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ho/07/eac/ho_1973.120.9.htm

Ma Yuan "was a master of “one-corner” painting, in which visual interest is focused in a corner of the work." (britannica.com). Very much a master, the corner focus is what drew me to this work. I think it creates a greater intimacy in the work, a small delicate world that the viewer can enter.

I have to admit to my complete lack of knowledge in Chinese painting as from what I can gather with a little research, Ma Yuan is one of the most famous and popular Chinese traditional painter known to the western world. Landscape painting in Chinese art.

A Broader Definition

Untitled, 2006
Jasper Johns
Ink on plastic
26 1/2 x 31 in.
image - Matthew Marks Gallery

Since this image is currently hanging on the wall in front of me, it seemed fitting to share. John's drawing is a great example of the broad spectrum which the term drawing covers. (Here is a an exhibition focused on a broader definition of drawing at the Met). Drawing also typically falls into the category of works on paper in most museums. My own work (when I get to it) consists of what I call drawing, which is conducted with ink and a brush on paper. The lack of a formal canvas as well as paint (though paint is often a part of drawing as well) are often consistencies in "drawings". This is a particularly abstract image (though affinities with celestial objects, trees and water all come to mind) and I like it because of the material as well as the sectioning of the overall image. Very different things are going on but alll come together through the liquidity and touch of the ink.

Wood Landscape

Upon this Bank and Shoal of Time
Orit Hofshi
Ink drawing, woodcut and watercolor on pine wood panels and paper, 1068 x 264 cm, 427.2" x 105.6"

Click on the image to see it in a fuller length and more detail. I saw this work in a small exhibition catalog of the work of Orit Hofshi and Nogah Engler at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Both female Israeli artists, their work is rich and and intricate. Surely, the work of today needs full attention at it's full size, but we'll deal with the extended version on the web. I can't see all of the details so I am not sure if the prints were made from wood to wood or that the woodcuts were printed to paper which was affixed to individual wood panels which were mounted side by side. This creates a beautiful grid effect. The choice of leaving space between each panel allows you to see each panel as its own work in addition to their collaboration as one whole image .I am also not exactly sure about the inclusion of the ink and watercolor but am guessing that it was a simple print transfer with details added with ink and watercolor. One of the great things about printmaking is it's conduciveness to mixed media additions.

Click on the title and you can scroll through the installation process of the work, and get a better idea of it's scale. The combination of sepia and black and white gives varied dimension to the work, moving you from warmth (sepia) to a cooler effect.