Sumi-e Watercolour and Ink Brush Paintings
Limited Edition Prints
by Joan Relke
Lady Li series, based on ceramic sculpture images of Demeter, Pythia, Persephone, and Eve.
Contemplative Paintings for Quiet SpacesLADY LILimited edition printsby Joan Relke |
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sizes are without black border archival ink and watercolour on watercolour paper unframed, but suited to a black mat, as illustrated here, and a plain black frame. $55.00 - $65.00 AUD each, packaging and shipping included to anywhere in the world. |
Lady Li with Wild Flowers 21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.) |
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21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.)
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The Chinese Legend of Lady Li One night, in the tenth century, AD, Lady Li sat by her moonlit window, brush in hand, practising her calligraphy. The wind rustled the bamboo leaves outside her window; the full moon shone through, casting a delicate shadow on her rice paper screen by her table. Awakened by the rustle and the cool luminescence of the moon, she noticed the fragile beauty of the bamboo pattern on her screen. Raising her ink-filled brush, she traced the shadow onto the luminous surface. Chinese ink painting was born. Whether myth or history, Lady Li is acknowledged as the inventor of Chinese ink painting. I find it bemusing that the origin of an art form usually restricted to men is attributed to a woman. |
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Persephone
#1
ceramic 65cm high Moved by Lady Li, I cast shadows on my paintings and sculptures using an overhead projector, and paint the designs onto the works. I also photograph shadows on walls and objects, and overlay these onto the images. Each painting has a goddess in mind, and originates in a black and white photograph of a sculpture, some of which can be seen on this page and on my website under Goddesses or Mythological Females. The photograph of the sculpture is first printed onto watercolour or rice paper, and using traditional Chinese and Japanese brush painting techniques, I embellish each sculpture with a painting. |
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The red seals, based on the traditional "chops" of Chinese painting, are my own design and carved by my partner Carl Merten. You can also see his work on our joint website. Lady Li with Bamboo #2 21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.) Print #4 ![]() |
Each of these paintings is from a limited edition of 50 prints. All have been reproduced archivally to last at least 80 years behind glass and not in direct sunlight. Each print has been stamped individually with the red seals and is numbered and signed. The choice and position of the seals vary with each print and may not necessarily be the same as the image depicted on this page. I choose and place the stamps on each print according to my whim. Prices vary depending on the complexity and size of the piece, as well as the quality of the paper, which ranges from 185 gsm watercolour paper to 310 gsm "vellum" quality paper. |
Gaia and Demeter ceramic
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Lady Li with Plum Blossom #2 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.)
Print #7
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Lady Li Dreaming #2 21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.)
Print #8
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Lady Li and her Cat 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.)
Print #9
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Lady Li with Blossom #2 21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.) |
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Lady Li Shadow Blossom 21
x 30 cm (8.25 X 11.75 in.)
Print #11
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Lady Li Reflecting 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.) Print #12
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Lady Li in Shadow 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.)
Print #13
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Lady Li with Bamboo #2 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.) Print #14
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Lady Li with Bamboo #3 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.)
Print #15
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Lady Li in the Wind 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.) Print #16
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Lady Li Reflecting #2 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.)
Print #17
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Lady Li with Eucalyptus #1 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.) Print #18
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Lady Li with Eucalyptus #2 19.5
x 28 cm (7.75 x 11 in.) Print #19
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Lady Li with Windy Blossom 19.5 x 28 cm (7.75
x 11 in.)
Print #20
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Metis, goddess of thought cast stone |
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Lady Li in the Wind #2 19.5 x 28 cm (7.75
x 11 in.)
Print #21 |
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Lady Li Dreaming #3 19.5 x 28 cm (7.75
x 11 in.) Print #22
Goddesses used in these images are Gaia, Demeter, Persephone, Metis, and Pythia.
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Shadows Cast
by the Moon
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01/2011 jr