Since my first exhibition in 1984, every time I communicate with the audience at the exhibition venue, they like to ask me many questions about art.  I choose a few of them and talk about art in a relaxed way through Q&A.​

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In 1984, a lady pointed to a painting of mine and asked, "How many strokes do you have to draw?  Wouldn't it be easy to paint a painting?" ‘. Let me introduce this painting first. It depicts a white dew looking for food in the water. The wave on the lake is smooth as a mirror. The environment is quiet, with the gentle breeze only.  In order to retain this poetic picture, I paint in a concise and freehand way. The painting is drawn in a few strokes, simple lines, relatively subtle colors and much white space. At that time, I was just starting out and was a young artist. When I heard this negative question, I couldn't help but feel a little unhappy.  However, I knew a little about etiquette, so I didn’t say anything bad to retort. I just smiled and said: It’s easy to start a stroke but hard to stop it!

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This sentence was from my teacher Irene Chau. A common mistake that novice artists make is to add a wide variety of technique to their paintings. They worry that the painting is not rich enough and the colors are not layered enough, and others will criticize them for their lack of painting skills. If they are not confident enough, they would rather do more than less. Teacher Chau gave me the advice in the hope that I would build up my confidence and stop painting when I felt it was perfect.

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It was difficult for viewers who didn’t know painting much to understand, so the lady looked dissatisfied and left quickly. The incident was not over yet. Ten years later, in 1994, it was another solo exhibition of mine. I met this lady again. This time, her attitude was completely different. She came over to take a photo with me and expressed her great appreciation for my work. She now understood the beauty of simplicity. In the past ten years, she fell in love with photography and had become a professional photographer. Now, she understood that in the creative process, we had to learn the trade-offs.

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During this exhibition in 1994, I encountered another question. One day, a group of middle school students, led by their teacher, came to visit my art exhibition. While I was guiding them through the exhibition, a student asked me, 'How can I draw a stylish painting? ‘Looking at this young man, he looked smart. I quickly answered: It depends on your style. Everyone laughed, but I could see that that student didn't quite grasp my answer, and even thought I was teasing them. I explained further:

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The work of art itself expresses the innermost feelings of its creator.

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We cannot rush to draw "style," the artwork naturally reveals the "style" of the author.

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To explain it in a daily example of a mother’s work. When a mother is preparing a meal, she will not think of how to make the dishes to express her love for her children, how to make the soup to show that she cares about her family, or how to place the tableware to highlight her love for her children.  In a mother's mind, she only pays attention to issue such as family health, everyone's taste, and how to cook delicious food.  At the dining table, enjoying your mother's food , you will naturally feel her love.

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Let’s also talk about a question I encountered recently. A young artist came to visit my home. During the chat, she revealed that she had just start ink painting and wanted to try it in many aspects. She practiced some sketches from life, such as fruits and vegetables, flowers, birds, insects, fish, daily necessities and characters, etc. However, she gradually felt unsustainable. ’Sometimes I pick up a paintbrush and sit in front of the table, but my mind is blank and I am confused and unable to paint. What should I draw? How to find themes and inspiration?’, she asked me.

 

I couldn't immediately think of an answer. I myself often painted here and there and loved to paint anything I like.  Whenever I found a new medium, I would buy and took it home to experiment with the color effects. It’s an infinite delight. The question "I don't know what to draw" really didn't come to my mind. So, I told her that I would answer her question later.

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The next day, I called a senior artist friend and forwarded the question to him. After hearing this, he laughed and said: I want to draw too much, I only afraid that I don’t have enough time to draw. Like you, I have no such experience.

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Couldn’t get an answer from him. It’s hard to analyze yourself, so let’s take a look at my good friend first. We were friends for many years. He was very friendly and had a very good relationship with his family and friends. In addition to painting, he had a wide range of interests, including performing arts, sports, planting and cooking. He was curious about everything he encounters in life. Every time I saw him, we had a lot of topics to chat about.

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Both of us have many hobbies, often able to multitask. I found the key to the mystery. Inspiration is everywhere, but if you want to catch it, you will never be able to catch it. If you live a rich life, which is full of curiosity about the surrounding environment, things and people, keep your eyes open and open your heart to experience the world, inspiration will appear without having to spend all your energy to seek it.

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After a while, when I met the young artist again, I told her: Your life experience is the raw material for nourishing inspiration. Enjoy life to the fullest, open your eyes, bring out your passion for the world, and inspiration will come to you.

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I am very grateful to have the chance to answer these questions. Looking back on my decades of creative career, I enjoy the pleasure of creation very much. My life experiences have influenced my art, and art has also made my life richer.