Making of Octopus

Octopus

2010
116cm x 91cm

Japanese Painting (Mineral stone, Metal leaf, gelatin, on Japanese Paper)

Step 1:

The leg of octopus should be very flesh. Choose the one with brighter color in a white meat part as well as a cortex part. The patience in observation is essential while sketching.
Key Tool at This Stage: Patience

Step 2:

Enlarged the octopus sketch by photo copy machine and transferred important lines onto paper.
The Key Tool at This Stage: Photocopy machine




The materials being used at this stage:
Japanese paper, pencil, metallic leaves, gelatin and the ink for calligraphy.

Step 3:
With using a painting knife scratched the surface while the metallic leaves are still wet with. Some parts were broken by fingers to add fragile impression.

The Key Tool at This Stage: A painting knife





Step 4:
Split the image into 4 pieces and mounted them on panels.



Step 5:
Oxidized metallic leaves by pressing the sulfured paper with an iron.

Note:
Measuring the time and temperature are very important when using an iron.



Step 6:
Add some lines to enhance the tablets. Vertically stretched figures need to be emphasized to give the look competitive enough to the physically divided lines.

The materials being used at this stage:
Wooden panels, mineral stones (pigments)

Making of Cicada

Cicada
2009
116cm x 91cm




I found a cicada specimen at The National History Museum.
I thought the branch-like shapes in the wings look interesting.

I was wondering if I can make abstract trial with extracting the cicada’s characteristic features such as transparent wings and skeletons. I sprinkled some solution of alum imaging some part of cicada first. Then dye paper with gold ink.

The materials being used at this stage: Japanese paper, diluted alum, gold ink cake



I liked the freedom looking of dye work. I cut the paper into 4 and mount on the board after changed their order. Added some colors and tried to observe the fractals. I realized that the color works started this way are very difficult for me if I still want to stay with original motif, cicada. Though I enjoyed colors, I decide to withhold this painting because abstraction with colors seemed large issue to be studied independently from my current project.



Split the image into 4 pieces and oxidized metallic leaves by pressing the sulfurized paper with an iron. (The same technique is used in my octopus painting.)

Trying to enhance the painting with representing the wings…




I decided to omit the panel in the right end. I think I should dye paper first to enjoy this painting more. I wanted to avoid dull symmetry looking and that is why I added some wings in left sides but now the large blank space in the right side became boring