Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Taiwan 2013 Challenge - "ShaKaDang Pool 2"

"ShaKaDang Pool 2"
- acrylic on canvas
- approx. 455x380mm/18x13"

This is another view of the same pool from a slightly different perspective and later in the day. We had hiked in quite a distance down a trail that most take for only a few hundred meters. By the time we got back to this point, which is not far from the trailhead, the light had changed so much. Wind barely rippled the water, allowing for wonderful reflections and a refreshingly clear view of the rocks in the stream bed. This marble canyon has so many beautiful rocks. I thoroughly enjoyed painting so many of them in this image.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Taiwan 2013 Challenge - "XiaoZi Shan, Pingxi"

"XiaoZi Shan, Pingxi District" - 孝子
- acrylic on canvas, approx. 33x24cm/13x9.4"
In the northeast corner of Taiwan, you'll find the Pingxi District where the land rises in great spiking leaps from the river valley below. What looks like a simple 3.4 kilometer semi-loop turns out to be a 4-hour challenge with hundreds of steps cut directly into the bedrock, and knotted ropes tied to conveniently obstinate tree roots or strung across an outcrop to help you get up a steep face--and almost all of the faces are steep. Every step counts. On several of the peaks, local authorities have bolted steel poles into the scalp of the tiny summit and strung a cable to demarcate the point past which what went up could go down. XiaoZi Shan 孝子, or "Dutiful Son Mountain," is a  distinctive finger of rock thrust up out of the ground at the feet of several other taller peaks. By the time we got to it, we were too tired to climb it safely. (Next time!) I've depicted it here without its bolted poles or cables, as it was before people ever saw it. This painting shows only the very summit. For a sense of scale and to put the mountain in context, check out our view of the peak from another angle (zoom in to see a few people standing on top): https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtGeRcucwK4tXJgbXuMdQhBriJDQTNmt5r53CeorSLIyU0f2HRn8T7HoxlGeWGi0SKy4WHw7ZZW4vtkGajPtyDb1KLMDYrNXR1nGSxW8sqwlk9JYfjrmCcbVLetgVbQzab88RKmF96aaU/s1600/DSC03874.JPG

Full hike details here: http://letsgotakealook.blogspot.tw/2012/01/awesome-day.html

Wednesday, July 3, 2013

Taiwan Challenge 2013 - "Between Worlds"

"Between Worlds"
- acrylic on canvas, approx. 455x380mm/18x15"


He stands at the threshold, having crossed it himself long, long ago. You cannot pass without first proving your authenticity. If you can prove that you are who you really are, you may proceed. Otherwise, you may go no further--be you a deity or a mortal, it makes no difference.


These were my favorite guys from the Beitou Bai-Bai "Gods on Patrol." Someday, I'll do them from the front and show you their awesome face paint and tusks!