Leonardo da Vinci’s outstanding merit is to have shown by his own example that the pursuit of beauty and the pursuit of truth are not incompatible.”
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Drawing More
The anthropologist Margaret Meade said that education would never work unless it was based on art, by which she meant that all subjects should be taught in the spirit of imagination, exploration, and play. “We talk too much,” said the poet Johann Goethe, “We should talk less and draw more.”
Just imagine what that would be like…
This painting isn’t leaving me alone
My current muse is this painting by Tsuguhara Foujita (1886-1968), a Japanese artist who applied Japanese ink techniques to Western-style paintings. There’s something that’s really captivating about it…the simple lines and muted color make me want to go draw and paint. I love the girl’s expression and the cat is cute and hilarious. My photo isn’t so good, but thought I’d share it anyway.
Here’s what The Art Book had to say about the painting:
“The nostalgic and enchanting scene of a young girl holding a cat was created when the artist was 71 years old. The outline is painted with a fine Japanese brush dripped in black paint. The image was then delicately filled in using only a small amount of color. This is especially noticeable in the girl’s pale flesh tones. Foujita was a master of drawing, and this painting demonstrates how he used simple lines to convey a sense of childlike innocence and purity. The Japanese tradition of art is mainly graphic, and Foujita continued this tradition by exploiting the use of ink, while absorbing Western artistic influences.” (p. 160, published by Phaidon)
Enjoy!
On play…
By perceiving the complementary opposites in any phenomenon, you open the door to play.”
–Jessica Porter, The Hip Chick’s Guide to Macrobiotics
Uncertainty…
It was a great workshop at Esalen — full of learnings, as well as amazing and gifted people. Thanks to all for your support and good wishes. Here’s a quote that I ended the workshop with:
“I used to think Faith was a set of dogmas, something cast in concrete; now I realize it is simply being comfortable in Uncertainty, being secure enough to be insecure.”
I’m not sure where the quote came from. If anyone knows, please inform me so I can credit it properly! In the meantime, happy spring to you all.