Bamboo - red postcard

Bamboo - red is a brush painting in traditional Chinese free style (Xie Yi) with ink and watercolor on Xuan rice paper. My favourite subject to paint is bamboo. Apart from the special painting technique, for me, bamboo is the plant that represents China or Asia the most. Apart from this, bamboo is the plant most closely associated with traditional Chinese art. The Chinese often compare bamboo to a gentleman for its unique character of being neither cringing nor arrogant. In addition, bamboo painting is a symbol of modesty and integrity. In Feng Shui, bamboo symbolises tenacity, modesty, and gradual advancement. With the high and straight bamboo poles and their joints, people therefore also use bamboo painting to express their desire to preserve a person can be promoted to a higher position or rank. Gongshi also known as scholar's rocks, are naturally occurring or shaped rocks. Most of these rocks were made out of limestone. The twisting, unnatural stones are the result of natural water erosion or calcification. First emerged during the Tang Dynasty and were common in the studios of rulers and intellectuals throughout Chinese history. The scholar’s rock was viewed as a microcosm of the universe and appreciated for their ability to capture nature’s essence, especially qi, the universal energy of things. The value of those rocks was based on four essential qualities, thinness, openness and perforations and wrinkling. An arrangement consisting of a longevity stone and bamboo is a traditional birthday arrangement in Chinese art. The longevity stone representing eternity and the bamboo homophonous with the word "wish." The whole arrangement conveys the wish that may one's life as long as immortals.