The seven participating artists in East Asian Inspired Art: 7 Artists produced dozens of pieces across a wide variety of artist media featuring subjects considered artistically symbolic in Asian cultures. The koi on the scrolls above, symbolize luck or prosperity.
Sumi-e ink paintings on rice paper and mounted to fabric scrolls are among the more than 50 pieces on display at North River Civic Center.
Sumi-e ink paintings on rice paper and mounted to fabric scrolls are among the more than 50 pieces on display at North River Civic Center.
Sumi-e ink paintings on rice paper and mounted to fabric scrolls are among the more than 50 pieces on display at North River Civic Center.IF YOU GO* What: East Asian Inspired Art: 7 Artists.* Where: North River Civic Center, 1009 Executive Drive, Suite 102.* When: Daily through May 29.* Admission: Free.* Phone: 870-8924.* Website: www.chattanooga.gov/youthandfamily/senior-and-cultural-facilities/north-river-civic-centerASIAN ARTISTIC SYMBOLS* Wild orchids: Spring/grace* Bamboo: Summer/strength/flexibility* Plum blossom: Winter/austerity* Pine: Longevity* Koi: Luck/prosperity* Cranes: Longevity/luck/happiness* Cherry blossom: New beginnings/beauty/power/feminine beautySource: Online sources and “Japanese Ink Painting” by Susan Frame
In Hixson, the koi are conspicuously absent from the ponds, and there’s a decided lack of bamboo. With the exception of the occasionally creeping carpet of kudzu, there’s very little about the area that smacks of East Asia.
An ongoing exhibition of works by seven local artists inspired by Japanese and Chinese cultures, however, has brought a bit of East Asian flair to the middle of a business park next to Northgate Mall.
The walls of the gallery inside North River Civic Center are adorned with minimalist rice paper paintings of red-crowned cranes, galloping horses and cherry blossoms mounted to hanging fabric scrolls. A silk scarf on one wall displays a waterfall peacefully halted in mid-torrent, and oil-painted still lifes depict blue-and-white glazed porcelain tea pots.
“Each wall has a treasure,” says painter Carol Hobbs, who masterminded the yearlong process of creating the works on display in “East Asian Inspired Art: 7 Artists.”