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Ink painting dates back over 3000 years, where it was first developed in China and later found its way throughout the Orient, to Japan and Korea. Traditional ink is a mixture of soot and hide glue pressed and molded into a stick. In order to free the ink from this solid stick to use for painting, it is ground against an ‘ink stone’ - typically a piece of slate with a shallow well carved into one end for water, and a flat surface where the grinding takes place. The artist dips the end of the ink stick into the water and, with gentle pressure in a circular motion, grinds the stick against the ink stone gradually producing thick, liquid ink. The ink stone is considered one of the artist’s “four treasures” — the other treasures being paper, brushes and the ink itself. Nowadays, bottled pre-mixed ink of excellent quality is readily available and eliminates the need for a special grinding surface. Nevertheless, most ink painters still are very possessive and protective of their favorite’ ink stones. Ink stones range from oblong shapes of Zen-like simplicity to elaborately carved pieces featuring dragons, plum trees and other auspicious symbols. The Chinese brush is made of animal hairs such as goat, horse, rabbit and weasel, including their natural tips, sometimes several kinds in combination. The brush hairs are long, flexible and floppy when wet, but will hold a shape and perfect point when the hairs are saturated with water, air bubbles tamped out, and the tip of the brush dipped into the ink. Despite all this preparation, ink painting is full of surprises. The typical Xuan paper of China and Japanese washi, usually made from mulberry pulp, are unsized. Thus, capillary action within the fibers allows the ink to spread wildly across the paper. But the challenge to control the brush and ink also affords an enormous range of technical possibilities. A single brush stroke can yield infinite shades of gray that accentuate the interplay of shadow and light, form and void. Each stroke is permanent and final: no corrections are made. In this respect, an ink painting is a window into the artist’s soul. In Asia, no differentiation of genre is made between ‘picture’ painting and calligraphy. Both are considered ‘paintings’. Calligraphy is a pictorial representation of words, and thus, meanings, but also serves as a vehicle for abstract expression. Calligraphy takes varied forms: printed, running script, and grass script (the most abstract). |
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About the artist |
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About ink painting |
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After a 13 year career as V.P. of Treasury and foreign currency trading for a major international bank, Lisa embarked on a new journey in search of her 'true calling' as a fine artist. For the next ten years she worked to hone her skills in a variety of media: oils, watercolor, pastels, graphite. In 1997, a friend introduced her to Oriental ink painting, and the apparent freedom and depth of these techniques captivated her imagination— she was hooked! The discipline of Oriental brush and ink has given Lisa a new 'voice' to create paintings that reflect her own spirit as well as honor the traditions of this ancient and much esteemed art form. The inherent mystery, elegance and subtlety of Chinese ink painting, (sumi–e in Japanese) has made this genre her artistic passion. Combined with the idiosyncratic design of the Chinese brush, Chinese ink is ideally suited to reveal the essence and emotion that reside within even the most simple and commonplace of subjects. The brush techniques echo natural shapes and patterns which appear consistently throughout nature. The substrates for ink paintings – Chinese xuan paper and various washi (Japanese paper) – each have distinct characteristics. This individuality contributes to the “organic” feel of Lisa’s artwork and invites spontaneity in execution. Her approach to painting is minimalist in the sense that she strives for purity of form through direct expression and well-tempered brush strokes. |
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Home |
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Bio |
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Contact and Links |
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Exhibits and Events |
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Black Ink Project |
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GALLERY |
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Lisa's Flickr pages |
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Dragon / Lisa |
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Mo Tao (the way of ink) |
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Lisa |
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Brush and fragrant ink |
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Lisa (hiragana) |
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The Beetle |
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Lisa (Korean) |
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What a bewildering creation! You captured the nature's bounty so amazingly. I never thought a bamboo tree can have so many renditions…. — Donna C, Diamond Bar, CA |
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'Saw your work in "Painter's Keys" and really love it. Beautiful economy and sensitivity. E. McCartan, Brunswick, ME |
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Imagination and mastery moving the brush, expressing beauty, softness and the never ending flow of nature. Marieta Darrah, San Diego, CA |
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Thank you so much for sharing the site. Some wonderful things are clearly happening. —- S. Sands, New York |
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I had no clue how amazing your painting and art work was. It is absolutely beautiful. —H. Hewitt, Burbank, CA |
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…keep it up and you will find great success. its all in the freedom forms It becomes a true deliverance of the soul. it becomes the language of angels singing at the stroke of a brush… O.M., San Diego CA |
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Review and Comments:
Whilst Los Angeles based artist Lisa Chakrabarti was, like all of the best artists, drawn to art and creativity as a child, as an adult she found herself working in an environment that some might consider the opposite of aesthetic beauty, of creativity, perhaps the very of antipathy of art – as a foreign exchange currency trader.
They say the truth will out. Well, perhaps the truth lies in art, for in Lisa’s case, the art came out. After thirteen years she gave up the trading floor for the studio floor, and has never looked back.
Ten years of artistic exploration followed, during which Lisa developed upon her skills in a variety of media: oil, acrylic, pastel, traditional watercolors and photography. But after all she learned, there seems to have been a moment of enlightenment. During the mid-nineties, Lisa turned her attention, and her delicate touch, to traditional Chinese brush and ink, combined with watercolor.
This was an inspired choice. She now works in wholly water-based media, specifically Chinese brush and ink (sumi-e), Chinese watercolors, western watercolors, and gouache. One only has to glance through her considerable portfolio to admire both the decision, and the dedication which she has subsequently brought to her discipline.
As an art form, this tradition remains forever contemporary. How can it not? It captures the natural world and speaks to our innermost appreciation of all that is beauty. Lisa gives us flora and fauna, a leaping frog, perhaps her own interpretation of the classic bamboo thicket, or the rare blush of tree peony blossom. Whatever she chooses to lay down upon paper, in her celebration of this form Lisa has captured that subtle intricacy that we, perhaps, take for granted in such work.
The wonderful balance of detail and suggestion I find here creates a harmony that allows the onlooker to both see, and to experience. Lisa’s ink strokes, within the images and the accompanying calligraphic adornments equally, work to form both precision and suggestion. Surely this can, in no small way, be a reflection of the five years Lisa spent studying under a Chinese calligraphy master. Unlike western art, image and lettering here are as one, each element enjoyed equally for its beauty; both bring meaning to the piece for the observer, without the necessity to understand the texts.
There is a beguiling calm about this work. A stillness of emotion, perhaps brought about by the tranquil compositions, but which, without doubt, has its conception in the tender brushstrokes of Lisa Chakrabarti. She seems to have the ability to capture the ephemeral, celebrating its momentary offering to the world, full of vibrant energy, yet presented with a quiet, ageless dignity.
Whilst Lisa has no openings planned for the direct future, she is presently collaborating on a book project, a three volume collection exploring the relationship between sumi-e and the martial arts. Of course she is always seeking out new showcases for her work.
Lisa Chakrabarti’s art appears within numerous private collections, and you can enjoy its subtle intricacy at www.artisticallyconnected.com/lisachakrabarti.hp http://www.artisticallyconnected.com/LisaChakrabarti- Rob Thomas October, 2011 |
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Clouddragonart.com Official website of Lisa Chakrabarti, Fine Artist Specialist in sumi-e and Chinese brush and ink |