Paul Ching-Bor
APPREHENSION I
watercolor on Arches paper
80×60 inches in two panels
2005
“The perception in the grey zone where psychology overlaps with landscape - where soul seeks both inspiration and liberation from environmental constraints …”
The medium, watercolor is delicate enough, in opposition to the scene, which contains the narration of the existing human condition. The steel, depicted in my work, is provocative and brutal, in opposition to a New York state of mind. And the motion, perhaps, is the realization of a displacement, and the effort, restlessness in the on going search of the sublime mental idealism …
The reason I keep my focus in the urban cityscape, is for the sake of revelation - we go to the living space of a person, instead of just the person, as he or she may have a natural disguise when confronted with the intention of inquiry.
The truthful knowledge of ourselves, the urban spaces and their human stains are the best resources to create the realms in my work.
So as not to be so “wishy-washy”, I apply multiple layers of glazing to some areas (up to 40 or 50 coats if need be). For the atmosphere, I apply white pigment. For the visual tension, I increase these opposites: wet and dry, light and dark, working intensely and delicately – sometimes using just one layer (or even bare paper) and sometimes using multiple layers in opposition…
I am only a part of the work I have created. I strongly sense that time and space have been playing their incontestable roles, through me, on to the work.
My practice in the medium is about building up watercolor, and then to dematerialize it to the parallel notion of material (visceral) and immaterial (cerebral), which is also reminiscent of the eastern philosophy - between like it and not like it.
Paul Ching-Bor
Thank you for posting this artist Gordon. My world is richer for it. It’s also refreshing to find an artist who is open about his practice. How a piece is made is often just as important as the piece itself. I wonder if others agree.
i agree inga. discussing the process of how we make our work is really important for artists and paul is super generous. in the past, artists used to live and work and eat and drink coffee together visit each other’s studios getting in heated discussions almost daily. i find today there is not as open an exchange. artists are all over the place, you’re in australia and i’m jersey city. it’s also harder too for artists to interact as most of us have to balance jobs with our artistic practice and families/relationships and the time hanging out with other artists exchanging ideas is really limited if it happens at all. even though i paint in shared studio space, i have such a limited amount of time that when i am at the studio i am there to paint, not to hang out.
i also think another thing is that artists now are more secretive about there practice. not that this is anything new…but so much emphasis is given to style in the marketplace that artists need to protect their “trade secrets” especially when information moves so quickly and knockoffs can be manufactured so easily in china. so when artists are open and generous it is really wonderful.