At
the beginning of March every year, already past the season for apples, the
green leaves and fruits have fallen, leaving the trees barren, with stripped-off
branches in roach wing color, without any sign of life. Nevertheless, there
is still plenty of sap flowing inside the tree, which will enable the buds
to grow in the coming months, marking the new apple season. The imprints of
the barren branches ripple over the blue sky, spotted with white clouds. The
viewer can feel the inner life source in each branch of the tree, even though
from the outside, they appear to be dead.
One
must look at the golden cabbage flowers below to see the glistening flowers
welcoming the sunshine and swaying with the gentle breeze in a tender melody.
Thousands of flowers expose their beauty competitively with the shadowy
colors of the unruffled young cabbage leaves that stretch toward the distant
horizon.
The
northern region of California is referred to as "the golden flower
valley" by writers and poets. Indeed, the immense apple orchards and
the vast flowery carpets of orange yellow lay along freeways that stretch
to infinity. Visitors who come to " the golden flower valley"
find it similar to entering a painting of perfect beauty. Although the painting
"Hope" was finished in March 1991, the brushwork still appears
glistening wet. The viewer feels as if he is allowed to enjoy the painting
just as it is given a finishing touch by Master Ching Hai's last brush stroke.
The
effect created from barren apple trees and the blue sky with white clouds
in the painting is indeed a result of technique. The field of golden cabbage
flowers and the green leaves were transformed from oils into watercolors
by skillfully thinning the oil paint. The golden colored flowers resemble
small, heavy raindrops that are woven naturally into variable shapes of
green leaves.
When
viewing this painting, I feel as if thousands of flowers have emerged after
a heavy rainstorm from Heaven. It also gives one a distinct feeling of having
visited scenery from beyond this Earth. The spirit of the viewer of the painting
"Hope" merges with God, plants and flowers in a wonderful and magnificent
revolving journey that is indescribable. The color of the golden cabbage flower
truly opens the heart of everyone that views it and symbolizes the hope for
a bright future.
