AQUA 2007

Several pieces of mine are in a group show entitled "Aqua" at the Kennedy Heights Art Center!
The opening reception is Saturday, June 16th 6-8pm!
I hope to see you there!




The Kennedy Heights Arts Center is delighted to announce the show “ AQUA ”, an exhibition fully dedicated to artwork based on the beautiful theme of “water”. For ages, the wonderful shapes, colors and reflections created by flows of water have served as a source of inspiration to artists.

The interpretation of this theme can be broad, diverse and imaginative in scope. The exhibition will include art forms in a variety of different media, including but not limited to, sculpture, photography, paintings, pottery, glass and other forms of expression.
AQUA will be featured at the
Kennedy Heights Arts Center
from June 9 to August 25, 2007.

A Grand Opening Reception will be hosted on Saturday June 16th, from 6:00p.m. – 8:00p.m. with complimentary refreshments and entertainment.

Kennedy Heights Art Center 6546 Montgomery Road Cincinnati , OH 45213

Opera Dogs Day

Please come visit Lian and view her artwork at the 2nd Annual Opera Dogs Day on June 10th!

This open air street fair is part of the Second Sunday on Main St. and runs from Noon to 5pm in Over-the-Rhine, Cincinnati.

There will be a dog singing contest at Noon and a dog parade at 1:30pm that leads to the street fair on Main Street (where you will be able to visit Lian) along with many other contests and events! Bring your dogs!

Lian will be presenting her original paintings, prints, greeting cards, and magnets for sale.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Boann: Goddess of the River

 watercolor, gouache, colored pencil on canvas, SOLD

The painting is called Boann: Goddess of the Rivers. The stories surrounding Boann are very interesting. She started out as the wife of Nechtan, a god of the water. And became a water-goddess herself, and one of her myths concerns water. She was a kind of "Pandora" of the Tuatha Dé Danann. According to legend, there was a sacred well (Sidhe Nechtan) that contained the source of knowledge. All were forbidden to approach this well, with the exception of the god Nechtan and his servants. Curiousity forced Boann to ignore the warnings, and she approached the sacred well, thus violating the sanctity of the area. As a result, she was punished, and the waters of the defiled well swelled and were transformed into a raging river, a river that pursued her. In some versions, she drowned and lost her limbs from torrent; while in others, she managed to outrun the currents. In either case, this water became the river that was known henceforth as the Boyne, and Boann thereafter became the presiding deity.

Another aspect of the myth of Boann is that she bore Oenghus Mac Og. She and the leader of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the Dagdha, had an affair that resulted in the birth of the god of love. Boann and the Dagdha wished to keep their affair a secret, and used their powers to cause the nine month gestation period to last only one day by causing the sun to remain still in the sky for nine months, never setting and never rising. On this magical day, Oenghus Mac Og emerged into the world.

I thought it was appropriate represent a water goddess using watercolor. This is the first painting I completed on watercolor canvas. It was a challenging surface to paint on, but I enjoyed the challenge. I combined watercolor, water soluable colored pencils and gouache to complete this painting. Then finished it off with a coat of UV Varnish. The greatest aspect of using watercolor canvas it that it does not require framing and it is not as delicate and sensitive to fluctuations in temperature and humidity as watercolor on paper is.

I felt a lot of emotion and a powerful influence while working on this painting. I have a strong feeling that this goddess is not finished with me yet!

Lilac Garden: Brooklyn Botanical Gardens

Lilac Garden, 36 x 36, acrylic on canvas, SOLD

After several weeks of diligent work, and a slight delay due to some virus that knocked me down, I finally completed a new landscape! This landscape comes from photos I took at the Brooklyn Botannical Society's lilac garden a few years ago. I was struck by the colors and the sunlight streaking between the lilac trees and turning the grass a brilliant yellow green. I had started this painting earlier in the year on a smaller canvas, but something wasn't connecting for me. So I put it aside and picked it back up again at the end of March, but this time started it on a large canvas. That seemed to be the solution. This painting, for me, is as much about space as it is color. I hope you enjoy it!

In regard to new work, I will be spending the month of May producing watercolor paintings on canvas and watercolor board. In addition to preparing existing work for upcoming shows and grant applications.

Lian Xin in the News!

Today's Downtowner newspaper in Cincinnati has an article featuring Lian!

In addition to this Final Friday's studio opening (April 26th, 6-10:30pm), she will also be appearing at Hyde Bark on Wednesday, April 25th from 5:30pm to 9pm for Yappy Hour to celebrate the opening of the movie Year of the Dog.

Lian has been busy painting since the last Final Friday, so even if you came to the March 30th show there will be new work to see! Lian and I look forward to greeting you there!

DoAn

Creidhne

(15 x 30, acrylic on canvas, SOLD)

The latest in the From Beyond the Ninth Wave series comes: Creidhne, (pronounced krev-nee) the God of metal working, the son of the goddess Brigid (the last painting in the series I completed) and the god Tuireann. He was one of three brothers (Creidhne, Goibhniu and Luchta) known as the Trí Dée Dána--the three gods of art. Together the three brothers forged the weapons for the Tuatha Dé Danann.

For this painting, I used an image of rusted metal. I loved the colors in the rust, and as I worked on the painting, I intesified the yellow to give the image a feeling of the precious metal gold, Creidhne's favorite metal to work with. Though not visible in this image, there is a layer of irridescent gold and metallic red glazed over the less intense sections to give the painting a subtle shimmer and feel of gold.

In other news, I am busy working on my web gallery . It is challenging work, since I am very new to web design every step is a learning process. I fully expect to have it ready this month, so keep an eye out for that!

DoAn

The Art of Lian Xin!

Things have been busy here at DoAn Art Studio. I spent much of March experimenting with some new materials and working on the newest painting for the From Beyond the 9th Wave series, which I just finished and will be posting soon. Also, I am about half-way from finishing a new landscape painting, and about to begin some watercolor paintings on canvas! I am very excited about all the new work I will be showing in the next few weeks. Until then, I wanted to share with you a new, emerging artist who has been sharing the studio with me:



The Art of Lian Xin!

The Open Studio last Friday, March 30th went very well. Lian was very excited to meet and greet all the guests (people, dogs, and even one cat!) who came to see her work. Many people found it hard to believe that she really did the paintings, I suspect because, surprisingly, the pieces actually have a sense of composition and a very unique style. With the help of Natalie Hagar, I made a short video documenting Lian's painting process.

Because her work was so well received, I will be adding a page to DoAn Art devoted to Lian's Art. The page will have a gallery of her work and information about ordering personalized work by Lian. The paintings are made from non-toxic tempera paints on canvas boards and are sealed on the front and back with a UV-Varnish, which preserves the tempera and protects the canvas board from moisture. A picture bio appears on the back of every painting. (see image)



It is not my intention for Lian's work to be merely a novelty, but truly unique works of art that people can enjoy and appreciate! Not only are the paintings varnished to make them lasting works of art, but the paintings are very affordable, due to the low cost of the materials used to create them. If you can't make it to the studio to see Lian's art, then keep an eye out for the launch of Lian's gallery page, which will be going up this month!

DoAn & Lian Xin