The humbling experience in Chinese Painting

I realised that this journey of learning how to paint has been very humbling.

For a long time, there isn't many people will dare to tell that I have done something incorrect.

While I am enjoying the learning process of painting, largely because I was able to regain my new interest to pursue painting. Just recently, a long time friend ( a class mate in my secondary school) also complimented that my paintings are nice and have a tint of western (water colour) style. Also there are friends who paid for my paintings as I told many of them that they can sponsor my community outreach project in Laos by buying my paintings! Many of my friends also commented and liked my postings of my paintings over Facebook.

These actually for once took me to 'Cloud Nine'!

I thought that my drawings have reached a certain 'standard' and started to dream that I can succeed and become an accomplished artist soon!

When I showed my teacher Mr Lin Luzai the painting of my Heavenly Bliss in our last lesson, although he did said the colour was right, but there were flaws. He patiently shared his experiences co-relating to what nature actually is in contrast to my paintings. Although the technique is known as 'spontaneous' form of Chinese brush painting, the perspective and 'logic' of the contend must not deviate from what is being offer in nature.

A revelation that we have not been observant to our mother nature, and that I am too self-centred (that I am already there) brings me back to this world!

我才意识到这个学习如何画画的旅程非常令人谦卑。

长期以来，如有我做了一些不正确的决定，也没有多少人敢告诉我。

虽然我很享受学习绘画过程中，这主要是因为我能够重新找回自己想追求绘画的兴趣。就在最近，有个老朋友（在我读中学的同学）也称赞我的画很不错，色调有西方（水彩的颜色）风格。也有朋友以赞助我在老挝的社区外展项目买我的画！我的许多朋友也通过Facebook中意我的画。

实际上，这些已经将我带我'到‘达九霄云外'！

我幻想，我的画已经达到了一定的'标准'，并开始梦想，我很快能成功并很快成为一个多才多艺的艺术家！

当我拿给老师林禄在先生评这幅画时，虽然他说颜色光泽是正确的，但也有许多瑕疵。他耐心地分享他的经验，讨论有关的自然现象。虽然这技术是所谓的写意画，但也必须根据形式，透视和“逻辑”的角度，必须不偏离大自然的规律来发挥。

这个启示，让我了解到我们还没有细心的观察我们的大自然，而我也过于以自我为中心，这经验将我带回了这个世界！还要多多练习。

This is life! 

When someone didn't dispute your thoughts, it does not mean you are right. For many of us who are in a supervisory role, your subordinates may not dare to dispute your viewpoints, but that does not make you 100% right.

In analogy to my painting experiences, my friends are surprise that I can take up painting and starting to make sense of the colours and mustering of the brushes and the rice paper. Their encouragement are in the form of liking my posting of Facebook and blogs, most of them will view it in one dimension, from someone who once have no clue of using a paint brush to someone who can 'abstractly' paint a complete picture!

For me, this is a lesson learnt that irregardless of how great one can be, there will be someone greater, no matter how good you are, there will always be someone better than you. There is no need to feel that you are at Cloud Nine, as there are always new lessons to learn from someone.

这就是人生！

当没有人质疑你的想法时，这并不意味着你是正确的。我们当中有很多都担任监管角色，你的下属可能不敢质疑你的观点，但是，这并不代表你是100％对的。

对于我来说，吸取了这一个教训，无论你有多伟大，也将会有人比你更了不起，不管你是多么好，总是会有人比你更好。人生是没有必要感到你位于九霄云外，总会有向别人学习新的经验和教训。一山还有一山高啊！

Heavenly Bliss 富贵神仙图

I have always love to paint Narcissus. It never fail to bring a smile in my face whenever I finish a painting of the flower, which blossom in Spring. It means whenever I see an nice picture of it, I will relate to the happy mood of Chinese New Year. Peony is also a flower that blossom during late winter and Spring and often seen as a flower that bloom during Spring, and appears in many New Year greeting as it relate to prosperity (富贵).

Very often in Chinese brush painting, combining both of these flowers together, it depicts heavenly bliss. A blissful mood when the fairies dancing within a peony garden. If you do a search on the website, you will find many opainting under '富贵神仙图'.

I tried to create the heavenly feeling by painting the following:

我一直喜欢画画水仙。每当我完成一幅画水仙花，它总是让我的脸上带着微笑。

水仙盛开在春天。这意味着每当我看到一副漂亮的水仙图，我就会想象过新年快乐的心情。牡丹花，也盛开于晚冬和春季，常常被看作是一朵在春天花盛开的花，，因为它出现在许多新年时相关祝福（富贵）。

很多时候，在中国画，这两种花组合在一起时，它能描绘天堂般的幸福。仙女在牡丹花园里跳舞时，幸福的心情，。如果你在网站上搜索，你会发现很多类似的“富贵神仙图”画。

我也尝试画神仙图，来创建这天堂般的感觉：

借鉴净空法师的法语： 

有书真富贵 无事小神仙

I do hope that when you do visit this page, you can also feel the vibrant mood in this painting. In contrast, here is one that I painted some time back when I first started, and incidentally the one above is twice the size of my one below (720 x 460 mm)

An expression of Mid Autumn 中秋的感想

Mid Autumn festival had just passed by, and incidentally we had painting lesson on that festive day. Teacher Lin Luzai mentioned that chrysanthemum flowers actually blossom during mid autumn in sub-tropical countries such as China. It is therefore a flower representing autumn season.

Having a cup of tea in hand, looking up at the full moon during mid autumn, it is a season of reunion of families. The fragrance of the blossoming flower enhance the happy mood of mid autumn.

中秋节刚过，那一天，我们有绘画课。林禄在老师提到，实际上在温带国家，菊花绽放在秋季。它代表秋季盛开的花卉。

一杯茶在手，望着圆圆的月亮，在中秋节期间，也是家庭团聚的季节。朵朵菊花的香味提升中秋愉快的心情。

From these 2 paintings, I think I will need to practise my hand writing with brushes in order to compliment my painting.

Having the mood to paint chrysanthemum, I painted another painting 2 nights ago, this time I attempted to combine 2 beautiful flowers typically grown in the wild. I am happy that some of my friends gave me some thumbs up for the following painting.

从这些画，我想我需要多练习我的书法，以美化我的画。

前两晚有心情画菊花时，我试图描绘另一幅作品，当时，我试图结合两种美丽的花朵，通常生长在野外的菊花和野菊花， 完成了以下的画。我很高兴，得到了一些朋友的恭维。

Although the flowers are found mainly in the wild, they did their best to blossom in order to attract the bees in order for them to continue spreading the pollen and growing, knowing that they will wither as they age. Just like human life cycle, we were born, grow up and eventually die. While we are alive, we actively pursue what we deem fit for our material life. 

The lesson we can learn from these wild flowers, is to be able to live today and be grateful to our root.  As human being, we have a mind to understand that our root will wither, without them we will not be blossoming. Human life is unlike the wild flowers, we get to live with the root before they wither, it a blessing to be able to appreciate and treasure our roots, without them, we will not exist!

这花主要是在野外中找到，虽然知道它们会枯萎，它们还尽心尽力绽放以吸引蜜蜂，以便它们继续传播花粉，并让下一代 继续生长。就像人的生命周期，我们出生，长大，并最终死亡。尽管我们健在活着，我们积极追求的是什么，也就是我们视为适宜供我们的的生命的物质上的享受。

也许I我们可以借鉴这些野花的教训，就是能够以活在今天为本！并感谢我们的根。作为人类，我们会有自己的正念，要明白，我们的根会枯萎，没有他们，我们将不会成长。人的生命是不像野生的花朵，我们能和我们的根枯萎之前一起生活的，能够感激和好好珍惜我们的根，没有他们，我们将不存在！

无论人能有多成功，多富有，都有根。如能珍惜眼前人，就有福报！一个人的福报有多少，是可以由自己决定的！