Tao Hui KSANA, 2023
Water-based pigment on shell paper
50 x 60 cm (unframed)
The work is from a series of paintings executed on opalescent paper covered with a thin layer of slices of shell. The material is significant as conch shells are considered a magical vessel. In a reference to their use as trumpets, they symbolize the spread of the Buddha's teachings and the awakening of his subjects from the slumber of ignorance.
Each painting features a motif that represents personal experiences veiled in modified traditional imagery, some associated with Buddhist motifs.
The artist has noted about this motif:
"A decaying, incomplete human sculpture lies on the ground, as if it once had life. On the wooden boards on the ground are the marks of his previous carvings, inscribed with "KSANA," meaning a moment in Sanskrit. In the picture, only the moment carved into the ground becomes eternal, while the person who carved this concept has decayed and shattered."
Each painting features a motif that represents personal experiences veiled in modified traditional imagery, some associated with Buddhist motifs.
This painting juxtaposes the Sanskrit word for "moment," KSANA, written on the wooden blanks in the center of the composition, with the image of a decaying human form.
The artist has noted about this motif:
"A decaying, incomplete human sculpture lies on the ground, as if it once had life. On the wooden boards on the ground are the marks of his previous carvings, inscribed with "KSANA," meaning a moment in Sanskrit. In the picture, only the moment carved into the ground becomes eternal, while the person who carved this concept has decayed and shattered."
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