Category: fine arts
-
Nature’s Calligraphy: The Art of Seeing
We see how we think. What occupies our mind directly shapes our vision. In this post, I share a series of photos of ducks and swans that document my artistic shift from visual abundance toward minimalism. By observing waterfowl in their natural environment, you can trace what was driving me at the exact moment I…
-
Visual Response to “The Last Rag” by Soundeagle
Can you translate the “ragged time” of a contemporary piano piece into a visual language? Following a casual comment on a previous article, I took on the challenge of graphically interpreting soundeagle’s composition. Moving away from traditional calligraphy, I chose to take the word “rag” literally—creating an aesthetic of use where soft, faded layers of…
-
Light as State of Being
“Light as State of Being” explores the depiction of light in painting – from the academic studio through the Impressionists to my own attempt to make Ur-light and cosmic light tangible in images.
-
When the World Shatters
This article explores the systemic collapse of our modern world, where the high art of diplomacy is being replaced by the “right of the strongest” and international institutions are systematically undermined. From the razed olive groves in Gaza to the manipulation of global financial markets through leveraged options, the text examines how greed and the…
-
Dot and Emptiness: The Essence of Chinese Art
An article about the significance of Dot and Emptiness in Chinese artistic traditions. This theme reveals the essence of Chinese painting after my lecture from January 9, 2026
-
Just Shaxi and Fengyu. Yunnan Spring Greetings (II)
Journey to Shaxi (沙溪) On the way from Dali to Shaxi, we passed through Fengyu (凤羽). It’s a quiet, traditional town, famous for its intricate stone carvings and inkstones. A good place to see the rural side of Yunnan before entering the Shaxi valley. Authentic Flavors We had lunch there and the restaurant was simple…
-
Before I gotta go, go, go…
“Before I gotta go…” is an article about a new series on dreams, marking a deliberate departure from minimalism in favor of abstract depth. It introduces the concept of the “Oneiric Divide”—visualizing not the story of a dream, but the raw energy it leaves behind—and offers a glimpse into my upcoming dialogue on “Dot and…
-
Don’t let the old man in
Don’t let the old man in is more than just a song title; it is a directive for maintaining an open spirit against bitterness. This article explores that mindset by contrasting striking political imagery with the artistic independence of my 2025 Yearbook, proving that staying young is a matter of attitude, not age.
-
Autumn Greetings,
This article explores autumn destinations near Vienna that are rich with the stories of historical figures. We trace the steps of the Habsburgs, visiting Empress Sisi’s and Emperor Franz Joseph’s favorite retreats in Laxenburg and the Vienna Woods. The journey also leads us to the Wachau Valley to recount the dramatic tale of King Richard…
-
Tao and Zen again: Applying Eastern Philosophy to Contemporary Ink Painting
Tao and Zen, along with minimalism, became my focus during a forced pause due to illness. This short article shares how fever dreams led to abstract works that explore the tension between Yin and Yang—an attempt to artistically grasp our world, which has been thrown off balance.
-
Autumn Reflections
Autumn Reflections explores the connection between poetry, calligraphy, and painting through a series of original semi-haiku.
-
Terra Dystopia
Terra Dystopia, a new series of artworks, serves as the starting point for an essay on the core characteristics of a dystopian society, questioning how many of these once-fictional traits have become our reality.
-
The Abundance of Modesty
Delving into Daoist philosophy and the pictographic wisdom of Chinese calligraphy, this article unpacks the ancient proverb that “Modesty Brings Abundance” (謙受益). Grounding this profound concept in personal experiences, the author reflects on how the humility of an “empty vessel” allows one to receive a true overflow of friendship, knowledge, and spiritual wealth.
-
Cracks in the Silence
A deep dive into the La Gacilly-Baden Photo Festival under the theme ‘One Planet, Many Perspectives.’ This review journeys from the rituals of Papua New Guinea to the paradoxes of modern development, exploring powerful photography that confronts our world’s greatest challenges and finds a path to understanding, mindfulness, and ultimately, hope.
-
State of the Art 2025
State of the Art 2025 is my contribution this year to an ongoing series of “self-portraits.” For years, these pieces have documented my creative journey, reflecting the current status of my work.
-
Nothingness in Color
Nothingness in Color continues the thought experiment that began with the journey to the Zen master—evolving beyond monochrome, embracing color, and preserving the essence of minimalism
-
The Gift of the Green Snake
The Gift of the Green Snake is an article about an unexpected gift and the resulting images.
-
Goodbye to the Winter
Explore the artist’s journey from winter’s darkness to spring’s light through abstract paintings. Learn how black paper challenges traditional Chinese painting concepts.
-
Depression: A Journey Through the Long Winter.
Depression: A long winter is behind me. It felt endless, stretching on and on. While snowfall isn’t guaranteed every year, one thing I can count on is my winter depression. Let’s take a closer look at some works from this long winter.
-
Every Picture Tells a Story
Every Picture Tells a Story. Let’s dive into the rich tapestry of Chinese minority people, captured in photographs from the hinterlands of northeast China, specifically Qinghai and the border area with Tibet, taken between 1979 and 1982.
-
Meditation of the Zen Master
Explore the meditation practices of the Zen Master in this insightful article. Gain profound insights and discover the beauty and tranquility of Zen.
-
Journey to the Zen Master
This is the second part of a three-part article on a Journey to a Zen Master. We encounter the living space of the master.
-
The Journey to the Zen Master
This article explores an imaginary journey to a Zen master, represented through a series of paintings. It delves into philosophical reflections on Zen, using a combination of western and eastern artistic techniques to illustrate the transition from the real world to a spiritual one. The journey begins at a busy train station and gradually leads…
-
The Dao of Annual Planning in 2024
New Year’s Resolutions and Implementation Annual Planning and Dao: Today’s article focuses on a personal topic that I hope my valued readers can benefit from. It also includes reflections on topics such as SEO and AI, which were cut off during the year and are now revisited at the end of the year. When discussing…
-
Emperor Hui Zong: When Rulers Still Loved Art
Emperor Hui Zong, a significant ruler of the Song Dynasty but also a remarkable artist and a patron of the arts.
-
Discovering the Beauty in the Ugly
Exploring Aesthetic Sensibilities Through Photography. Discovering the Beauty in the Ugly – or at least discover something attractive in the ugly: In our last article, we delved into the concept of wabi-sabi and I shared some of my work. Thanks for the positive feedback! Today, we will go a step beyond wabi-sabi, using photos from…
-
Wabi Sabi and the Aesthetics of Imperfection
Wabi Sabi, a term relatively unknown in the West until recently, holds a special place in my heart. This article reflects my personal approach to Wabi Sabi, illustrated with my own works painted this year.
-
Blind Drawings: Artistic Expression in Darkness
The Blind Drawings series is an experimental collection of over 20 charcoal works, mainly depicting female nudes. This series reflects my exploration into how sensory limitations impact artistic expression.
-
Theme and Variations
In the series “Theme and Variations about a Blossom in Autumn,” the delicate image of a fading blossom takes center stage, offering an allusion to the graceful aging of a young lady.
-
The Silk Road: Personal Reflections
The Silk Road: From a young age, I was fascinated by distant countries, with Asia and the Orient capturing my imagination the most.
-
Daoist Aspects in My Paintings
Today’s article is divided into two interconnected parts. The sequence of images, all recent works, illustrates my approach to the concept of Nothingness.
-
What is Reality? What is Nothingness?
What is Reality? Embark on a journey through the realms of reality. Uncover the historical beliefs and scientific progress that have shaped our modern understanding.
-
Visit of the old Zen Master and other Nonzens
Visit of the old Zen master is nonsense because there is no Zen master that I know. So I can’t visit one, so no one can visit me.
-
Summer Inventory
Summer Inventory. As a good businessman should, I conduct inventory twice a year. During this process, I find items I had written off as lost or even things I never realized I owned.
-
Can We Hear a Painting?
Can you hear a painting? The idea of paintings creating music has captivated artists for centuries.
-
Emptiness, Space, and Depth
Emptiness, Space, and Depth: The Spring Collection. Selection of recent Artworks. Studies, sketches, paintings.
-
Essence in Art: Less is More
Brainstorming on the subject of the soul. Due to requests that I was very pleased to receive, I would like to focus on the subject of the soul in this and the next post.
-
break on through
The Doors, known for capturing exploration and the human desire to uncover the unknown in their music, embody the theme of breaking through to ‘the other side’. The 1970s era of experimentation with mind-altering substances, influenced by psychedelic art, has shaped graphic design. The artist, recently participating in exhibitions in London and Sao Paulo, reflects…
-
Delving into the Realm of Seals on Artwork
Article about the fascinating world of Chinese seals. From a carver and collector. And above all, an enthusiast.
-
Selection of New Works
Selection of new works: A small selection of recent works in different techniques.
-
Between Calligraphy and Painting
Who Sows Calligraphy will Reap Paintings. Between Calligraphy and Painting: In order not to get too boring, this article will be the last one for some time in which calligraphy sets the tone. We have already heard quite a bit about this high-quality art form by now. A few more aspects will be addressed today…
-
Superior Haiku by Ashley
calligraphed by Friedrich. Superior Haiku by Ashley: This article is about a haiku (俳句 or hokku) [1] and the creative process of turning it into calligraphy. The wonderful poem is by Ashley. A short video shows the creation process. In the extra-part there are details about calligraphy. Many people know Ashley because of his beautiful…
-
red dao and black zen
newly painted calligraphy. red dao and black zen: This article is about creating my series “painted calligraphy” [samples] with more details this time. Which can be a bit boring if you’re not fundamentally interested in the topic of calligraphy. I recently received a call from someone who had bought some of my paintings many years…
-
Birthday present from Confucius and
one of the best love poems. Birthday present from Confucius: So I’m 70 years old now. So what?! Really – so what? How should I react? Emotional? Annoy me that I’m an old fart now? But I was an old fart last year too – and the year before. Don’t even think about it? This…
-
old and new works
and thoughts and concepts. Old and new works – mostly new. And it’s about more than a few brush strokes. When Chinese people see my calligraphy, especially the one written in the traditional style (portfolio), they usually shower me with praise and emphasize that they could never do it that well. The second part of…
-
new yearbook is out
surprising stats and tensions. New yearbook is out. To keep things interesting, this blog article comes with two extras. I’ll start with the extras first, and for some reason, the main text will come at the end. Contrary to my previous habits, the main text takes up a few thoughts on current events. These days,…
-
Wu Wei a Key Term. Daoist Talks (X)
Chinese Painting and Wu Wei. Wu Wei is a key concept in Daoism. It is an idea that originated in ancient Chinese philosophy and is of central importance to Daoism. However, the term is not always easy to understand, at least for Westerners. But understanding it can help us in many ways, not only in…
-
day dream job
and some remarks. Day dream job: Little boys, especially those of preschool age, often aspire to become firefighters or police officers. However, I’m not sure about girls’ future career aspirations. I’m also not sure what my vision was as a 5-year-old. Probably a demolitionist, since my father was one at the time. When I came…
-
Between Here and There
and the Fever-night-creeper between here and there: The topic of this post first came about in reflection on dreams and waking up. One could consider “Here” as the normal state and “There” as the dream world. When we awaken, we are still surrounded by fragments of dreams, and we are between “There” and “Here.” Where…
-
between cold and heat
We have an old joke: “Should you take medication if you have a cold?” “Absolutely! If you don’t take any, it will take 7 days until you get well again. If you take some, you’ll be back on your feet after 1 week.” Well, it took me more than 2 weeks to stay in bed…
-
and the beat goes on
recent artworks. recent artworks: It’s not that there’s nothing to tell, nor that I don’t have enough new pictures to show, but I’m quite busy with a few projects. These projects require a lot of time and attention, so I’ll be posting less frequently in the near future. As someone who writes posts here, you…
-
a kinda yin-yang too
Not many would immediately recognize the yin-yang aspects in the two images I present today. As an extra there is a short video about the presentation of Zen images.
-
When the let-go period is over
Presentation: I have chosen a work that probably does not immediately cause a “love at first sight” feeling to everybod. Plus a book presentation video.
-
not nothing this time, but
I actually wanted to write a post called “More Nothing” or something like that. However, my marketing director convinced me that giving my readers more nothing every week was not a recipe for success.
-
works on meditation
Works on Meditation: According to a study experts estimate that the mind thinks between 60,000 – 80,000 thoughts a day. Of course, many thoughts seem very important to us. After all, they come from us.
-
Another new morning for the same old sod
As I wrote in my last post, I treated myself to a 3-week spa stay. Well, a vintage car will no longer become a racing car. But a refurbished classic car also has its appeal, it is said.
-
Elements of Rhyme
Elements of Rhyme pays homage to Dominik Alexander, an impressive living writer with the courage to innovate and a penchant for quality and individualism.
-
Summer swan song – or the bitter croaking of ravens
The summer holidays are just around the corner and the last article concludes for the time being on the basis of 2 pictures with the theme of emptiness.
-
Gaining by letting go
Gaining by letting go is again a formulation that could come from the field of esotericism. I have previously indicated that this is not an area in which I am proficient.
-
about letting go
Flow and letting go. New series of abstract images on the subject of omission.
-
What game shall we play today?
About knowing and believing. Quantum physicist Anton Zeilinger: “Sciences are good at measuring something, but cannot say anything about our being”.
-
Cucumber cutting, abstracting and –
A few quick notes on our world of perception, from slicing cucumbers to the feeling of diving. And about abstraction itself.
-
Two Links – TV Portrait and Dao Index
Two links: I recently posted that a portrait of me would be shown on a Chinese and Austrian TV channel. It was broadcast on May 27th in Austria and May 30th in China.
-
environment and nature topic
From time to time I dedicate myself to the topic of the environment in my paintings. This is also the case in this picture, which addresses the topic of environmental destruction in a special way.
-
Interview for TV and Stream
Interview for TV and Stream: Earlier in the week I had a TV crew over at my house. A portrait was shot of me, which will be broadcast on Chinese television and on the streaming service.
-
a poem about one of my paintings
A poem about one of my paintings by Dominik Alexander – and an extra poem by him.
-
Daoist Talks (VIII) Ego versus Self
Daoism distinguishes between the ego and the self. The ego refers to the individual’s sense of self, which is often shaped by societal norms, cultural values, and personal experiences.
-
the magic sea
Magic Sea Opera: Even if the idea that I would like to present today might sound unrealistic or at least utopian at first, I would by no means see it as unfeasible. Namely, the idea of an opera as a total work of art, in which the visual part is the actor
-
Back from Egypt trip – stones and sands
My Egypt trip came to an end. Here is a small selection of a series of photos taken by the sea in Hurghada and area. Stones and sand were the focus.
-
The children’s book of my last post
The children’s book of my last post is not a project in progress, it’s just a play around. If you want to play, play with us! Now that I have started with the topic and my last post on it received such positive feedback, I would like to write a little more about it. Thanks…
-
Dao in Chinese Poetry. Daoist Talks (VII).
Dao in Chinese Poetry: Two masterpieces of classical Chinese poetry with a Taoist structure. Li Bai and Du Fu.
-
Criticism: Not amused with the Emperor
A few criticism examples by Chinese artists over time. Most of my blog posts deal directly or indirectly with art in the broadest sense. This is insofar as I attach great importance to dealing with Asian philosophies and art history in the broadest sense. I don’t touch on political issues, although this post might suggest…
-
state of the art 2023 – a step further
I have been painting a self-portrait every year since 1976 and call this ongoing series State of the Art.
-
ginkgo leaves in autumn and winter
Ginkgo leaves. Theme and four variations. In late autumn the leaves like gold lie in the meadow. In winter, a few leaves always manage to peep through the light snow cover.
-
About Jack
About Jack: Our generation is part of so many new developments and we take many things for granted. And yet I am always enthusiastic about the opportunities that are given to us and what often results from them. And so today I would like to tell you about my friend Jack.
-
Project in the home straight – almost
I mentioned some time ago that after the Theodor Storm book, I was invited to illustrate another book by Prof. Wolfgang Kubin.
-
Daoist talks (VI) Principles of Dao in Painting
Daoist talks (VI) Principles of Dao in Painting: Chinese painting of the last 1000 years has been shaped primarily by Daoist ideas.
-
gone they are
Depression: I would like to take up a topic again today and I promise it will be the last time – for this year. I recently wrote about my winter blues – and they’re gone! Hopefully sustainable.
-
Getting rid of the Blues…..
Since my work is very much influenced by ideas from Chinese calligraphy, I wanted to try again to approach things in a more “western” way.
-
Winter is here – with its gifts
Even if it’s difficult to predict something these days and even if a lot doesn’t last: my winter depressions are as certain as the back taxes. Nearly. The tax-back payment is more reliable in terms of time.
-
Daoist talks (V) Dao and Zen in Arts – analyzed by AI
What AI says, answering my question: The Role of Dao and Zen in Chinese Painting
-
How an idea takes root and persists
Poetry from the sky: Something has stuck in the back of my mind: characters that float down from the sky like leaves or something similar and write a poem at the same time.
-
Because it’s Wednesday again…
This and That and Everything: I’ve started 2 new series, one spilling over into the other.
-
Daoist talks (IV): Liang Kai The Story of Eight Eminent Monks
Liang Kai is best known in the West for his painting of Li Bai. Only a few know the scroll of “The story of eight eminent monks”.
-
New Works for Old Series
A series that is particularly close to my heart is gestural expression. However, my progress in doing so is heavily dependent on how busy I am with calligraphy.
-
Jean Michel Basquiat Exhibition in Vienna
There are exhibitions that give me impulses and make me want to paint myself. However, Basquiat is of such greatness that afterward I ask myself whether it makes any sense at all to continue painting myself.
-
Daoist Talks (III): The Cosmos in One Dot
Mindfulness in a dot After a lot of theory, we want to highlight practical aspects today, but first a summary of the last post: Everything is Dao, from the smallest dot to the universe; thus, everything is imbued with Dao, especially the counterplay of yin and yang. These are not opposing forces but depend on…
-
The Dreamweaver’s daughters cast their nets
The Dreamweaver’s daughters cast their nets and the Wolf hour are my last works on the dream cycle.
-
three strikes
Three strikes: Today I would like to present 3 newer works and will not write much about them. The first is a play on Zen thought. In the sense of what was said above, it remains without further explanations.
-
Daoist Talks (II): The Basics
Our main topic will be Daoism in Chinese painting. Understanding the essential aspects of the Dao should help us to understand Chinese painting better and more profoundly.