I just posted four new meihua paintings to the website. Two are October works, mounted on scrolls, and two are November works that might be finished. One of the November works depicts a scroll behind the meihua, a theme I’ve used before. In the other I tried a different kind of space, one created by a mass of background flowers. I’ve also posted the final mounted versions of the two earlier works. The two mounted October works have a new seal stamped on them, one in the lower right, the other in the lower left. I chose the last three words of a fairly well-known poem by the early fifth century poet Tao Qian (Tao Yuanmning) to use as a studio name to put on all my Hong Kong paintings. The poet tells how he lives in a city but doesn’t hear horse carriages rolling by because he is focused on the mountains visible in the south. Here in Hong Kong, when I look out of the window in the room where I paint and look beyond the Wanchai district, and beyond Victoria Harbour, and beyond the Kowloon Peninsula, I see the mountains of Kowloon and feel far from urban Hong Kong. Tao’s poem ends when he offers to explain how this transportation works but then instead explains he “already forgot the words”. It’s a Daoist concept: what is most important (The Way) cannot be expressed in words. It’s also a nice concept for a non-verbal art. I decided to call this studio where I work “Already Forgot the Words Studio” 已 yi2 already / 忘 wang4 forget/ 言 yan2 words/ 室 shi4 studio. I asked the calligrapher Zhang Peng to cut a seal for me and he did a great job. I’ll try to photograph it and show it.
Seals are function as signatures, with full legal standing. Chinese companies here in Hong Kong and also on the mainland have legal seals which must be on legal documents. I have several seals with my name on them which I put on paintings, usually just below where I signed. There is an art to placing one’s signature and seal on a painting. Although I have good knowledge as to where to place them, I still prefer to consult an expert. Whenever possible, I turn to Mr. Li at Man Luen Choon, the shop in Sheung Wan where I have most works mounted these days. The most famous seal is probably that of the Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799) whose approximately 3″ x 3″ seal ruined painting after painting. Ego. His seal always occupies some central area of the paintings and consistently distracts the viewer. It’s surely the most easily noticed seal. With this note in mind, you will immediately recognize the Qianlong Emperor’s seal if it’s on any works you see in a museum or in a book. You in turn can impress someone.
