Sumie

Sumie or Suibokuga is n ink and wash painting seen in Japan, China, Korea, Vietnam. Various tone is expressed by ink concentration (notan or light and dark) created by the amount of ink stick ground in water. Effects are also created by speed, force, thickness of the brush strokes creating effects such as kasumi (faint trace) and migimi (smudging). Sumie is in this sense created by the meditative concentration of the artist focused on the space between the paper and brush.

Night Song

Do koalas sing lullaby to their babies? ... in the morning light...

Deep Ocean

The ocean is a world deeply known. Ama, women divers, plunge into their world that is 'my own, beautiful place'. Not romanticising but Mishima Yukio's novel Sounds of the Waves (Shiosai) gives us the glimpse of the world. Perhaps the fascination is the enticement of the world, from which you may not be able to return, like Eurydice. In our radiophonic story of ama women Waiting for the Tide (ABC Radio National, 2007), Tony Barrell gave a brilliant reading of the women plunging into the ocean deep.
http://www.abc.net.au/rn/radioeye/stories/2007/2694298.htm ) Sadly, Tony died suddenly last week in Sydney. My sincere tribute, gratitude and farewell to the most inspiring audio storyteller (Photo: Taiji, Simon Wearne)

Sakura 2 (Negoro)

Sakura (Wakayama)

Light and darkness 光と影 陰陽

Light and darkness or ying and yang - each is born out of the other, each enhances the other and neither exists without the other. There is a fractional moment, however in changing light, when both exist or neither exists. Such is the moment of void and fullness that emerges in deep contemplation, quiet listening and absolute stillness (inspired by Nao, paper artist).

Prayer

My deepest sympathy and sincere wishes for those people affected in the recent disaster. There is no word to describe the devastation and loss, and the nuclear is giving further threats nationally and beyond. Human vulnerability despite of the power we thought we had gained is so real. We are at a time of serious re-thinking. In all the sadness, one reassurance is that the mountain still watches over us and the flowers are starting to bloom. May the blue sky and bright warm sun keep shining over those people who have lost family, home and homeland.