Bamboo, plum blossoms and orchids are very popular subjects in Japanese art. In addition to their obvious beauty, each plant symbolizes particular human characteristics.

Bamboo – The bamboo is symbolic of what the Japanese believe to be ‘masculine qualities’. It represents great flexibility, integrity, vitality and enduring strength.

Orchid – The orchid is symbolic of what the Japanese believe to be ‘feminine qualities’. It represents elegance, gentleness, vulnerability and beauty.

Plum Blossom – Blooming after surviving the winter weather, the plum blossom symbolizes hope and endurance. The plum blossom is also popular because of the contrast between its gnarled trunk and its fragile blossoms.

Here’s a video of me, Soniei, trying to explain the evolution and inspiration behind my contemporary Japanese art, canvas art, and art prints.

This video includes a brief explanation of how I left the 9-5 work world to live my dream as a full-time artist.

Buy the Seika (Sacred Fire) Print

Ever had one of those days where everything seems to be going wrong?  Well, today was my day.

It started out early this morning with a migraine. I could hardly sleep with the nauseating pain and I was really counting on a good night’s sleep since my energy seems to be missing in action lately.Everything went downhill ever since.

Here’s some math for you…

Sleepless Night + Soniei + A Pinch of Migraine Leftovers = Miss Grumpy Pants

My day was so bad that I was thinking, “I’m gone to bed. I can’t deal with today anymore”. Satisfied with my decision, I got up from my desk and accidentally spilled a glass of water all over my Japanese lesson notes. Nice. Great. Terrific. After I cleaned up the mess, I was on my way to crawl into bed and hide from today for awhile.

On my way to the bedroom, I saw my cat (Steve) in the living room. He was on the love seat, next to the window. So, of course, I had to go cuddle him like crazy before I hid from life.

I saw the sunset; an orange glow in the sky. It was pretty, but my mindset was stuck on “What the f-ever. I hate life right now”. Seriously, I was that grumpy. My only cure out of it was to catch up on sleep.

However, next thing I knew I was in a daze, staring at the sun. I started daydreaming. To be honest, I don’t even know what I was daydreaming about. It wasn’t about anything in particular. I was just daydreaming; probably about hot men. All I know is that I wasn’t in my life anymore.

Then my other cat (Loki) decided to bite Steve’s tail and I snapped out of it.

I felt much better. Miraculously, I wasn’t Miss Grumpy Pants anymore. I’m not saying that you could have compared me with Buddha, but I felt much better than before the daydreaming. So, instead of crawling into bed, I had black tea to keep my energy levels up and I painted all evening and night.

The Art

I painted the sun and added the Japanese kanji for Seika (sacred fire) because that’s how I felt about the sun at the moment since it turned me into Miss Grumpy Pants to Soniei, the artist. I mean, that’s a miracle, right there.

I decided to paint black and grey bamboo, to represent my negative mood. I added a touch of green in the back of the grey to represent the turning of my mood… the leaves going from grey to green representing Miss Grumpy Pants turning into Miss Happier Pants.

Or, maybe I should say this painting symbolizes negative emotions turning into positive ones by the simple act of being captivated by mundane things, like the sacred fire in the sky.

K… I’m gone to bed now.

Here’s a video of me, Soniei, trying to explain the evolution of my art and the inspiration behind my contemporary paintings.

This video includes a brief explanation of how I left the 9-5 work world to live my dream as a full-time artist.

Zen Brushwork
Zen Brushwork, a type of calligraphy, differs from other calligraphic disciplines because it focuses on achieving mu-shin (no-mind) through meditation. It is the practice and belief that true creativity is not the product of a conscious effort but develops from mu-shin, a state beyond thought, emotions and expectations. For those who are captivated with art, Zen Brushwork can be seen as a form of true artistic expression.

Demanding the highest level of spirituality, the ability to make one’s strength visible in Zen Brushwork comes only through dedicated practice. In contrast to other calligraphic disciplines, which use Chinese characters as a basis, Zen Brushwork is the expression of Zen through a brush, whether the end result is a single stroke, a circle or a painting. Using the principles of Zen, this art form represents the relationship between the mind, body and universe.

Why my Zen Brushworks are not available to the public.
I know that if my Zen Brushworks or other more traditional Japanese calligraphy pieces were available to the public, sooner or later I’d start feeling the pressure to make it aesthetically pleasing. I started practicing Zen Brushwork to help me unwind and stay balanced, regardless of what the end product looked like or if I made mistakes. If I keep these works private, then I keep any conscious or unconscious pressures off. It’s just a personal decision I made and it works for me. I’m definitely not against people showing their Zen art to the public. I bow to those who master the brush as I’m still very early in my evolution of mastering Zen Brushwork.

Influence of Zen Brushwork on my contemporary Zen Sho Collection
The title of my contemporary Zen Sho Collection is more about honoring my practice of Zen Brushwork since it is what initially inspired me to paint contemporary Japanese themed art.
The Zen Sho Collection falls into the decorative contemporary art category and cannot be categorized as traditional Zen art. Actually, some of my paintings can be quite complicated and chaotic. Each of my paintings are influenced by my practice of Zen Brushwork in varying degrees, depending on how “Zen” I can let myself be that day.
My paintings are also greatly influenced by my experiences in Japan which include: hiking in bamboo forests; participating in Hanami night-time celebrations (cherry-blossom viewing) under hundreds of spectacular tree-hanging lanterns; going to trendy clubs in Roppongi (Tokyo); and climbing Mount Fuji to watch the sunrise above the clouds.

Why sometimes my paintings and Japanese kanji characters are repetitive.
I may be inclined to paint the same subjects or Japanese kanji characters over and over again for two reasons.
Reason #1 is that I paint what I usually want to be surrounded by and/or I try to represent my current emotions in a painting… which is pretty repetitive in itself. After the majority of the painting is done, I will look at it and usually pick Japanese kanji compounds that best describe the feeling or thought I get from the painting even though I’ve used the same Japanese characters in other paintings. I’m more focused on the feeling at the present moment, than whether or not I’m repetitive in my kanji use.
Reason #2 is that sometimes I simply enjoy making the same painting over and over again using different angles or colors. Sometimes I do it just so that I can practice different painting techniques.

Here’s a video of me, Soniei, trying to explain the evolution of my art and the inspiration behind my contemporary paintings.

This video includes a brief explanation of how I left the 9-5 work world to live my dream as a full-time artist.