The Liquid Mind
Towards the turn of the millennium, my interest shifted from the solid earth to the fluid dream. I began experimenting with non-absorbent surfaces like glossy photo paper and synthetic paper (Yupo). Unlike rice paper, which traps the ink, these smooth surfaces allow the ink to float, pool, and wander. The result is a series of “Dreamscapes”—landscape painting that seem to be dissolving or emerging from a liquid state.
1. Floating Ink
Surrendering Control
On glossy paper, the brush loses its friction. The ink moves almost on its own. This technique requires a different kind of Wu Wei (无为). I cannot force the ink into a shape; I can only guide its flow. The landscapes that emerge are organic and unpredictable—river deltas, melting glaciers, or cloud formations seen from a great height.
2. The Inner Topography
Landscapes of the Unconscious
These are not places you can find on a map. They are inner topographies. By detaching the ink from the physical texture of the paper, the image becomes ethereal. It hovers on the surface. These landscape paintings are visual metaphors for the dream state, where reality is fluid and the laws of gravity do not apply.
3. Color as Atmosphere
Mood over Matterin Dreamscapes
In traditional Shan Shui, color is often secondary. Here, it becomes atmospheric. I use washes of diluted color that blend wet-in-wet with the black ink. This creates a hazy, atmospheric depth that recalls the “boneless” (Mogu 没骨) style of ancient painting, but executed with modern, chemical intensity.
The Circle Closes
From Tradition Back to Experiment. With this series, the journey comes full circle. I started with Western Expressionism, disciplined myself with Chinese Tradition, and finally arrived at a synthesis: A modern, experimental style that uses the spirit of the East to explore the materials of the West.
Related articles: Landscapes II: The Chinese Turn (1978–1985) I Gestural Landscape: The Landscape Within I The Essence of Chinese Painting: Emptiness and the Meaning of White
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