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International Art Treasures Web Magazine April 2006 |
Wenyun Hua
Artist and Instructor Wenyun Hua was recently the subject of an exhibition at XEXE gallery in Toronto. Her life is as intriguing as her art work. "I came from Mainland China six years ago. Before I came to Canada all of my art education was in China. The first four years in University we were taught creative painting. That is where we learn all the basics of fine art, it didn't matter whether it was Eastern or Western Art. Later I learned brush painting. I could combine the different sources of Eastern and Western Art together to make my own unique style," explains Wenyun Hua. "Actually I work with three different kinds of drawing in my career. I want to be a professional artist. Second I learned graphic design so I'm familiar with contemporary design. Added to that I am an art Instructor. I teach people brush painting and watercolor." Wenyun discussed some of the works in the exhibit at XEXE Gallery. "Redland Impressions comes from a memory I had in 1990 when I was in University. I went to the South of China and was really impressed with the landscape. I saw mountains that had a reddish color contrasting with the green trees. I always remembered that scene. I couldn't do a painting at that moment so I just let the memory stay in my brain for seven years and then made this picture."
It's what I feel when I look at the trees or the landscape. I really feel that there is a strong blue inside. I look at the spiritual and the deep character from inside. This is why I love to use that particular shade of blue to depict this tree. One can see the movement within the tree. It's blue by wind. I love the shape, looking at the root of the tree and the feeling of sheer might."
Wenyun explains, "my signature is composed of two parts. The black ink is the signature of my family name. The other one is my given name. It's a very traditional Chinese stamp." She adds, "the location of the signature is from traditional Chinese art. We never stick to one position point for a signature such as the lower right hand corner more commonly associated with Western art. The signature is a part of the artwork and it has to have a specific position within each art work and this is done as part of the creative process."
"When I was outside enjoying the landscape I could feel wind is everywhere. Even when the weather was quiet I could always feel the wind. From that sensation I could feel the rhythm, which could be described as the symphony of life. It's moving in the air, in the tree, in the mountains. The feeling from wind inspired me to create a special type of line to express the shape," said Wenyun.
"The inspiration was from a trip I took to an area in China called Nein Village. It is an old place with a lot of Tibetans inhabiting it. I was impressed with the colors I saw. There is a lot of green and yellow hues in the water. That scenery spoke to me directly from nature. I picked up what I could remember when I painted A Song of Autumn. The yellow line, the water line, the decorative line and the feeling of Kandinsky. He said that '... pieces of color could make the music in the paper'. That was the source of my inspiration." German abstract artist Wassily Kandinsky often used musical terminology to describe his works. The artist described her technique. "I use Chinese brush painting materials. Every work of art is on rice paper, which is a natural fabric. The brush is quite different from Western brushes. It is made from goat hair or auk hair. The ink is pine tree charcoal. It's extremely dark and naturally combines with the rice paper, allowing different features of darkness or light. We often discuss the different level of inks. The level in Chinese watercolor can only be shown on rice paper. The color is organic; a true color. These colors are extremely strong and last for an eternity." "I prefer the natural or organic colors to chemically created colors because natural colors don't change over time as chemical colors tend to. Plus they have a more natural feeling and through my fingers I can feel everything flowing naturally. I don't have to think about anything not belonging, to me it combines extremely well with my feelings."
"In this instance purple is from cloud. The yellow is the feeling I could see in the air between trees and mountains. The wind is my feeling from nature."
"I was so impressed with Western Art. There were so many museums and art galleries, which is something I wasn't used to in China. German Inspiration was created when I returned to China. It is of my memories of Germany. I found I learned a lot from German artists. I can't say specifically which gallery or artist provided my inspiration. It's rather a very general impression. From this piece I found my art was totally released, it provided the freedom in my heart! I have met a lot of artists both in Germany and in China. When they discuss art they also want traditions to be followed. For example, in Chinese brush paintings artists would tell me that I should follow the old ways and specific principles. The Western artists I met said the same thing, such as in relation to Oil Painting, I would hear that I had to follow the old methods and not combine it with the Eastern way. In my experience real artists are not like that. They express the feelings in their hearts. I can say that about myself, beginning with this work. Everybody has that kind of inspiration but a lot of people are restricted by principle." Even though the Wenyun Hua exhibit at XEXE Gallery has concluded, German Inspiration will be on display until April 29th, 2006 along with two exhibits: Ross Bonfanti's How do you like them apples? and John Monteith's (re)constructing Love Inspirations for Wenyun Hua include Chinese traditional art as she explains it "is a very strong influence which can be seen from my lines. They are more like a calligraphy line not like a rough drawing or draft. Each line has to stay on its position." Adding, "I found some influence from master artists like Van Gogh, Gauguin, Emily Carr. When I read their artwork its very natural. Their paintings spoke to me. It's not that I copy from them. As I've seen their works it has become part of my style. What I mean by 'reading' their artwork is I feel their lines, their strokes, their impressions. It automatically becomes part of me. When I pick up my brush the stroke is natural." All of which is evident from Wenyun Hua's creativity. |
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