Taoist Art
The simplicity and “ordinariness” of Taoist thought is often expressed in the traditional ink 
brush painting that developed in China over 2,000 years ago. Because Taoist thought emerges from a direct experience of the world of mountains, oceans, forests, rivers, clouds, seasons, and all things “Earthy,” this art uses nature themes as its usual subject matter. Rather than painting on site, the artist usually returns to the studio and sits with the memory and the “Qi,” or “Spirit,” of the scene and attempts to express that Spirit with simple brush strokes and monochromatic shadings of black and grey.
Lao-Tzu began his classic, The Tao Te Ching, with the verse: “The tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao.” I have spent much of my life trying to capture and express that Tao in the words of my books and essays. That’s fine, it’s what I do. However I am also trying to express in brush strokes the Tao that I can never express in my words, so I have turned more and more to my meditative art practice.
The time it takes to grind a stick of ink in a bit of water on an ink stone until it has the desired texture and color, slows my thinking and my breathing. I put some more water in a small bowl and mix in some ink to get a grey shade. Combining the two shades on my brush I make a swirling stroke that I intend to be the beginnings of a twisted tree trunk. I stop and look and see instead the eddies of a stream as it flows around a rock. I feel less like a “picture painter” and more like a improvisational pianist. Words fade away. The attempt to communicate in concepts and ideas seems less important.
I have been reticent to share this work, but several people have broken through my defenses and communicated their appreciation. So I have decided to publish some note cards with a few of my paintings along with verses from my translation of The Tao Te Ching. I use these as note cards and perhaps you might find them useful as well – for that occasion when email just doesn’t seem “enough.” I have also made some 8”x12” prints of a few paintings as well. Cards and prints are available at the new “Taoist Art” pages in the menu.
I hope you enjoy them.
Blessings,
Bill
