Winter 2023
Our father's art is filled with portals. Some of those portals are symbols in the painting, as is the case in Purple Spirit Door. Some of those portals are created using actual doors as the frame for the canvas, as is the case for Seals of the Black Buddha. Some of those portals are represented by black circles, like the one in Healing Water and the Ice Dragon. His interest in these symbolic openings stemmed from his acupuncture practice. A well-known acupuncture point, for instance, is called "Spirit Gate." Activating an acupuncture point can shift the flow of energy (open a door) in one's body and catalyze healing in the process. I've always been intrigued by our father's use of symbols of a door/portal to ask big questions that we can use for self-reflection. Where does the door lead? Am I ready to go through that door? If the door is locked, is there a window I can open instead? His work meditates on the power of empty space and invites us to find our personal portals to transformation.