China Sketchbook

Xiamen

Back in NYC in body, although the brain is still partially in transit---until full arrival here are pictures from Xiamen:





The fish we picked for lunch, before:


...and after:

Nanjing Massacre Museum

Nanjing

Nanjing (southern capitol in Mandarin)---its a gritty urban/back alley with almost tropical trees city. There's a hazy pollution over the sprawl of big city towers, tiny shops & restaurants, street cooks, sidewalk bicycle menders and modern supermarkets. The alleyways that meander through the Nanjing University area are full of mopeds, bicycles, people on foot and cars honking their way through. For breakfast we went out for baozi at a small stall where the line runs over the tilted sidewalk into the street. The woman serving us clearly knew Virgil and recognized me as his Mom. Everyone seems amazed when I speak in Chinese. I've gotten good at pretending I understand everything they say. There are well-fed feral cats, wandering unattended (also well-fed and healthy) dogs and some beautiful blue birds with long flared tail feathers and black-capped heads. Last night there were a lot of tiny fires against the curbs--their coals pulsing red in the dark--Virgil said it might be because it was the winter solstice. The city has its own ordinary rhythm that is not that of NYC yet not utterly unfamiliar. The food is wonderful. Last night we went to a local place and I had delicate dumplings and a clear broth noodle and vegetable soup. For both of us dinner was 14 kuai (just over $2). At the table next to us several young women were discussing shuai ge (cute guys).

CHINA

Going to China...going to CHINA in 48 hours

Thanksgiving Roses

Thanksgiving 2010

Green Window

mugshot

Ganesh and the Autumn

An Explanatory Note

In reference to recent painting, The Mermaid's Feet, a brief little aside, illustration style.

Pen & Ink

Went to the Spanish drawing show at the Frick...they had a roomful of Goyas. Lots of sepia ink and red chalk beauties. So I came home and reacquainted myself with my pen and little bottle of ink...

The Mermaid's Feet

Angelucci

Sally's Lights & Beans

My friend Sally put up an installation in an empty Brooklyn lot about 3 months ago. It involved a vertical pattern of mesh with little red lights, and planting various kinds of ornamental (but edible) beans and corn--that would grow up through the mesh among the lights. Here are some photos of the installation at night from this weekend:

Portrait of Steve

A Day, Hot

The temperature is in the nineties. When you go out the sun grabs at you and insists on piercing you with heat. No floating along allowed, just plain old fire arrows.
Hid in the loft and watched Ong Bak 2, a movie of incredible physicality (Tony Jaa), beautiful & rainy scenery, and a rather bleak, tortured ending. Sometimes I just love a balls-to-the-wall martial arts movie.
Working my way through the decades and I still love the adrenalized grace of extreme movement.