Intro to East Asian Brush Painting
Saturday & Sunday
June 27 & 28
10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
With Karen Kurka Jensen
$240 (10% discount for members) + $55 materials fee.
Sumi-e is the Asian word for ink painting or ink picture and began in China over 5,000 years ago. It's a spirit art that's been transmitted over 110 generations, from teacher to student, priest to disciple, artist to artist. It was used predominately by priests and the upper class and focused on calligraphy, landscapes and scenes from Chinese mythology. But it's ALWAYS been a 'spirit' art. Trying to capture the spirit or essence of a subject is primary. Sumi-e is an abstract art form - we look for the meaning in a subject and then put that 'spirit' into our brushstroke. So the lines are simple, dramatic - the white space equally as important as the painted ink strokes. For centuries, Sumi-e has been the medium of expressing marvelous beauty, the simplest of tools have been able to create outstanding beauty. Every sumi-e artist uses those traditional materials to create their work; sumi ink, bamboo brush and Asian paper. The sobriety of the form, black and white combined with skillful brushstrokes, continue, after countless centuries, to provide an insight into the imperceptible, ever-changing richness of life. It is another example of an art that embodies the very essence of simplicity and yet, in practice, it is complex and often will involve a lifetime of study. Learning to master a gesture, without apprehension or second thoughts, it also brings the gift of making do with less; less emphasis, less indifference in the way we look at things, less pride in our fleeting successes. Karen Kurka Jensen has been painting in the sumi-e-inspired style for 25 years and teaching for nearly 10. Her work has been honored with awards, both nationally and internationally and is in collections across the country.
*Please note that the membership discount price is based on an honor system. We will be referencing your account to confirm your active membership with the Kimball Art Center. If you are not a member and would like to receive discounts on classes as well as other benefits, please visit our membership webpage: http://www.kimballartcenter.org/membership/