Summer, 1998

Print size 20" x 30"

This painting was inspired by the wonderful variety of doors and architecture seen throughout the country. The shape comes from 2 specific references, the first being a keyhole door located in the small village of Qiankou. The second is an elegant red keyhole door located in Yuyuan Garden in Shanghai.

In my vision, this doorway represents the entrance into a very special garden. The door is closed so you can not see directly inside, however, the fish and cloud designs around the circular portion of the door provide a "peek" into the garden. The ginko leaves represent the changing seasons and set the expectation that the garden inside will be full of trees and nature.

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The raw elements below represent the source material that helped to inspire the overall concept of the painting.

Cloud texture found on a Fu Dog inside the Lama Temple in Beijing.

I've been fascinated with the simple yet elegant flow of cloud and water designs from all over Asia. I took this digital photo as a reference shot. It seemed to work well as the top element of the doorway, indicating the clouds that float above the garden inside.

Metal door with fan shaped sign above found in Xuguo village in Anhui Province.

The characters inside the fan shaped object above the door roughly translate into "rare or special garden". The style of writing is elegant and fluid, causing me to remember the lectures on calligraphy the week before. The meaning and the form of the characters provided a perfect complement to the painting.

Stone carving on ancient arch in Xuguo village.

The stone carvings found on the ancient arches around Anhui Provence were beautifully cut and very detailed. I took this photo of the fish jumping out of the water for its rich texture and sense of movement. I incorporated it into this peice to give the sense that a pond waits for the viewer inside the garden.

A pavilion window screen in Yuyung Garden, Shanghai.

The architecture inside Yuyung garden was finely crafted and cared for. The luminosity through the screen window created a very soft feeling. The lattice work around the screen itself was intricate yet simple. I choose to use this for the main window of the door because it suggested the light of the garden behind the window, but didn't allow a direct view into the garden.

Wall panel detail in Yuyung Garden, Shanghai.

Everything within Yuyung garden was masterfully crafted, and the wooden wall panels were no exception. In the painting, I used the circular pattern to symbolize China. The bats represent happiness and the animals that live in the garden.

Ginko leaf found at White Horse Temple, Luoyang

The White Horse Temple was a magical place. It was a simple temple, and the monks were among the friendliest I've encountered anywhere in the world. As I was leaving, I bent down to pick up this ginko leaf as a way to remember this special place. I've used the leaf in this painting to represent the seasons and the nature that grows inside the garden gate.

Name seal, digitally created, representing my name, Lyn.

The use of the name seal or chop is an ever present element in Chinese painting and calligraphy. The chop represents the signature of the artist. I've chosen this character, pronounced "rin" as my name seal because it means "small grove of trees" and represents my love of nature.

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