Sumi-e class

The solid ink is ground down with some warm water in a slate "tray". It's quite a therapeutic thing to do and a truly Japanese experience.
This is the solid ink that is used in sumi-e painting and creates the many different shades of black and grey. I love the specks of gold leaf embedded in it.
These are the brushes I use to paint with. I can only dream of one day creating something vaguely close to the painting below.
This is a beautiful example of sumi-e painting. I just love the ethereal quality of it and the simplicity of the layout - it breathes!
This is my own personal stamp and stands for "Gordon" and in Japanese means "a heavily embroidered curtain"!

I have been going to a new sumi-e class for the last few months now and am loving it.

Sumi-e is an ink and wash technique, used to portray many of the traditional landscapes of Japan. Many of these are done in the black ink which is ground down and can be used in many varying shades (see above image of beautiful pine trees). A lot of sumi-e paintings use colour as well and this is what I have now progressed to. The latest attempt is this painting of persimmons, which I'm quite proud of. It definitely makes it more professional looking once the stamp has been added....