Seeing the Painter and His Paintings!

#2016-0122

I was so pleased to accompany my mother visiting Taichung City Dadun Culture Center this morning. And I was so very excited to see Prof. Lientung Chuang (畫家 莊連東教授) there in the first of the six exhibition halls (named Da Dun Gallery I), where his amazing works of art were being shown.

I was able to recognize this artist at a glance because he had been a good friend of my best friend Lao Zhan, and because he always dyed his hair reddish orange! Oh, how happy I was! After I introduced my mother and myself to him, he generously gave me as a gift an album entitled 碑體、敘事、記錄簿 - SOLO EXHIBITION BY CHUANG, LIEN-TUNG. This made it possible for me to review and study his paintings after I returned home.

Well, my mother was also happy about our trip there today. But she was almost too shy to sign her name in the Book of Guests/Visitors, when invited to. She said she couldn't read or write because of her lack of formal schooling; but, after she wrote her name, I found that her signature was pretty good -- "Oh, ma'am," said the attendant at the desk, "you can write so well." And everybody nodded and smiled.

In fact, my mother has drawn a few pictures and painted a couple of watercolors; her drawings and paintings impressed me so much when I saw them for the first time, that I would like to share some of them at once with my blog readers. Are you, too, interested in seeing some? You may click here for a small collection of

My Mother's Drawings and Paintings (妙香畫展).

(See also Visiting the Art Museum with Mom, if you like.)

Waterfalls, Lunch, and the Cottage

#2016-0118

"In a sense, Lao Ye and I were not only 'birds of a feather' but also 'leaves on a branch' -- breathing quietly in the same sunlight, swaying gently in the same wind!"

-- Taken from Lao Ye, one of the 10 stories 

in "A Story Untitled + 9 Other Stories"

We visited the artist Lao Ye's private cottage in the mountains, in the region called "Aowanda," this afternoon, after seeing the Guanyin waterfalls and having lunch at Taluowan together with him (as a tour guide). The trip today reminded me of those "good old days" some of which I've already included in my short stories.

=  =  =  =  =

Part one of the photos: Guanyin Waterfall

（前往奧萬大途中，先造訪觀音瀑布。）

.                      photoed by Lao Ye

.                      photoed by Lao Ye

=  =  =  =  =

Part two of the photos: Lunch at Taluowan

（中午於塔洛灣用餐，並欣賞美麗的「碧湖」。）

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Part three of the photos: The Artist's Cottage at Aowanda

（畫家葉老師的山中別居，稱作「塗墨居」也。）

.                                       photoed by Lao Ye

.                                       photoed by Lao Ye

.                                              photoed by Lao Ye

Visiting the Art Museum with Mom

#2016-0115

My mom is interested in the fine arts, as I can see, although she has repeatedly emphasized that she can't read or write due to her lack of formal schooling.

My mom has spent most of her life as a simple peasant working in the crop fields and on the mountain slopes. Now she is in her eighties and, indeed, too old to work as a farm laborer. She should have more opportunities to enjoy what she likes to see and to do! -- So I took her to National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts (國立台灣美術館) this morning.

It was my mom's first time to visit such a place. A place marvelous, fantastic, and amazing! A place so new and so impressive to my mom! Even outside of the main buildings of the museum are so many beautiful things for the public to see. -- Well, now, see the photos, which I took when it was drizzling! ...

(See also Seeing the Painter and His Paintings, if you like.)

Writing Goals

#2016-0106

I just got an email from Creative Writing Now (http://www.creative-writing-now.com) and I find it very readable to me. Now on Epiphany, let me keep a copy of it here in my personal blog so that I as well as other receivers of the same email will be reminded of what the "suggestions" are and how a writer's dream can come true!

The email reads:

Hello,

What are your goals for your writing in 2016? Here are some suggestions:

1) Try something new. You could try writing in a different genre (e.g., fantasy, mystery, romance, memoir, poetry), or writing about a very different kind of character or topic. Come up with a challenge that excites you.

2) Read for inspiration. Read the kind of thing you want to write, novels or poetry or short stories. Read books that will remind you of the magic of wonderful writing, how it can create new worlds and new ways of seeing. Read books that make you want to write something just as wonderful. And then write it.

3) Be fearless. Be bold. Allow yourself to experiment, to make mistakes. That's how you'll grow as a writer. Remember that you don't have to show what you write to anyone else until and unless you're ready. Take advantage of that privacy, and write what you truly want to write.

4) Call yourself a writer. You don't have to tell other people you're a writer if you don't want to, but say it to yourself. Remember that you don't need anyone's permission to write. There's no test you have to pass. You become a writer by writing.

5) Treat your writing as important. Is writing your dream, your passion? Then give it the priority in your life that it deserves. Organize other things around your writing, instead of vice-versa.

6) Have fun. Let yourself get absorbed by the words, by the world you're creating on the page. Let writing be an escape, a pleasure. Play. If you enjoy writing something, others are likely to enjoy reading it.

7) Live the life you want. The only way to achieve your dreams is through action. The longer you wait, the more time slips away from you. Take small steps, one at a time, but in the direction of where you want to go. This is your life. Decide how you want to spend it, and start now.

All the best,

Nancy

Creative Writing Now
http://www.creative-writing-now.com

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