Announcement Video on YouTube.
3:35 PM
Wow we’re here. Have you ever researched your brains out? Sumi-E, Chinese Painting, Korean Painting, or what I call black ink painting. It’s very mysterious to us Westerners yet it’s hidden in plain sight. It’s everywhere in the East. It is also very sacred practice in Eastern Cultures. After I researched it I thought wow this material is open to so much scrutiny and prejudices I might become the most hated person in the world. However, there is a way to present this to educated minds on YouTube without offense. The approach is simple. I’ll Call it black ink painting. I must stress my approach is purely a personal, and adapted example. I promise I will carefully approach it, with the respect it deserves. The problem isn’t because the practice of Black Ink Painting is difficult. You actually get immediately satisfying results no matter your skill level. In fact, it’s the most liberating activity for artists to experience. Note I said experience. This is something that’s very awesome to watch but the experience of it is priceless.
What makes this a minefield? Well black ink painting is tied to every eastern politics, philosophy and religion. Their calligraphy is very much integrated into their paintings. What’s really beautiful is their poetry is as well. They are seldom inseparable. My adaptation will be American, I’m not going to pretend I’m Chinese, a Buddhist, or anything remotely linked to Eastern Practices even though I will take each method of their practice seriously. I can’t help but be intensive on discovering every practice and method because the beauty they produce does deserve more attention than the world has given it. I also feel many Americans who chose to practice this art inject some snob like pretense into it. This art is for all people not for exploitive purposes nor for religious agendas masked as a control mechanism.
Here’s my adaptation in a clear statement loaded with my disclaimers.
- First I am not going to criticize or put myself above or judge any religious practice, that’s God’s job. It’s a hands-off topic. I’m thrilled when any person is seeking the light, a higher power or trying to connect with the universe. I love those people because they tend to have a moral compass of some sort, and are very unlikely to hurt someone else, and as a plus they are prone to love.
- When I share these techniques it will be my personal adaptation and an honest adaptation. Americans and especially Christians tend to adopt all kinds of practices. The Christmas Tree for instance was tied strongly to the Druid Practices. My feeling is all religions contain a great deal of truth. I can acknowledge that and only practice the truth for me. I also believe examples should be the only witness to spiritual practices, not mindless laws and preaching to force any belief’s. We should live in a way where someone will ask us to share what we have. They will when they see your light. I am going to transfer these eastern methods to my Christian based perspective. I invite you to adapt them the way you believe as well, definitely not my way. It’s easily achieved if you meditate on the concepts for your own methods of integration into your practice.
- Prayers and meditations will be based on how I am practicing them. Again I must stress, I am not going to tell you how to do this. I will only have my example and maybe express examples of others as I become aware of them. Also I am open to ideas or better concepts. I am hoping by doing this everyone takes something for themselves and can apply it.
- I will reject statements saying this is the only way or you must do it my way. Afterall the Traditional Ways evolved so why shouldn’t our practices evolve as well.
- I will be applying and using old and traditional tools then transforming methods to modern tools to work with as well. For instance, I will use modern paints, supports, flat brushes, liners, and airbrushes. Then I plan on going digital; mimicking these tools as well as inventing more in the digital art world. I will be challenging and even using AI in the very advanced methods. AI doesn’t have spirit so be comforted we will produce works far greater than AI can. AI is artificial intelligence not artificial spirit.
- Be prepared to copy the masters. We will not copy copywritten work. I will have a separate video on my belief’s of copying. Anything not done by living artists in other words deceased artists must be copied, studied and interpreted. It insures the future of the original and insures the future of others to follow. I personally would be flattered to be copied and studied when I pass. In fact at my age this is my goal which is to produce something worthy of copy and studying. That’s really the true value of any work we do today. Money is only a tool enabling us to live and create an inheritance for those coming after we pass.
- I also believe everyone is a teacher and a student. When I am doing either of these things I consider myself a friend. I share my discoveries. So I prefer to be called a friend, mentor, or coach not teacher, not master, an authority, nor student.
- I ask everyone to adopt the techniques in a way you will know them. Then share them. Oh and let them know I am your friend.
