This original ink and brush painting on rice paper comes from the Pearl River Delta region of China. It features Taoist themes of harmony with references to joy and honor. The bird in the painting is a magpie, which in China is known as the bird of happiness. Its name translates quite literally to joyful bird. The flowers in the painting are purple wisteria, which is associated with high rank and honor because of its resemblance to the purple belts on imperial robes. Taken together the two elements are interpreted as a promise of promotion or success. At the same time the bird and flowers emphasize Taoist themes of harmony. They are an essential contrast of opposing energies or Chi. The flowers are bound to the earth while birds can move freely, the pairing is a demonstration of harmony in Taoism. The same contrast is found with mountains and water or people and objects. The Taoist idea of Yin and Yang pervades eastern thought and is expressed in paintings just as in Feng Shui. On a Stylistic level the brush strokes in this painting fall into the technique known as hsieh yi, also called "white lightning" or the spontaneous style. Literally hsieh yi means "writing ideas". The name comes from the bold brush strokes, which resemble Chinese character writing. It tends toward the abstract and is intended to appear as a brief moment of inspiration, though in truth the artist typically struggles to attain perfection in form. An important aspect of the style is the use of a single bush for all inks and stroke sizes. This is thought to preserve the universality of the work. While the look may be modern, the technique is actually centuries old. As with all the paintings in Reorient's collections this is a one-of-a-kind original.

Original hand painted water color by Chinese artist

Matted in the traditional Chinese manner with white brocade borders

Brocade matting is easily trimmed to desired frame size

Painting is shipped rolled

Painting size with brocade border is approxomately 22" x 32"