The Dragon Icon – Landscapes of Twisting and Turning Mountain Ridges Lee Hsiu Tuan’s Creative Concept and Style

• Main Authors: Lee Hsiu Tuan, 李秀緞
• Other Authors: 倪再沁
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2013
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/8a34up

碩士 === 東海大學 === 美術學系 === 101 === Abstract In my paintings, I use the traditional image of a dragon flying among the clouds – or, rather, the shape of the dragon – to design my landscape paintings. My paintings are of natural scenes I have personally viewed, and my palette is based on the red earth of Huoyen Mountain near my home in central Taiwan, complimenting the white of the paper and the black of the ink. I also use the multi-point perspective found in traditional Chinese landscape painting, making it possible for the viewer to appreciate the depicted scenery from all angles. The remainder of this thesis is divided into three sections. In the second section, I describe the inspiration behind my paintings. The inspiration for my visual composition is the flying dragon, whose body twists and turns, and from the variegated textures present in mountain views, I find inspiration for my brushwork technique. In the third section, I discuss the aesthetic theory behind my painting. In the silence of nature, I explore the origins of traditional Chinese ink washes and brushwork and bring these essences into my landscape paintings. Gradually, what emerges is a language allowing me to express a harmony between the visual perception of a natural scene and my inner experience. With this language, I create images depicting the many visual textures in twisting and turning mountain ridges that are at once realistic and fantastic. In the fourth and final section, I present a critical discussion of my work. My work is based on life studies done of scenes here in Taiwan, supplemented both by images gathered from my travels abroad and the compositional element of the flying dragon shape. The result is the series of works entitled, “Fantastic Landscapes.” The works in this series employ a variety of techniques, colors, ink washes, and compositional formats to express my personal reflections on and interpretations of the natural scenes I have experienced.