In Pursuit of Art

Ah! what pleasant visions haunt me As I gaze upon the sea! All the old romantic legends, All my dreams, come back to me. (Henry Wadford Longfellow)
Ah! what pleasant visions haunt me
     As I gaze upon the sea!
     All the old romantic legends,
     All my dreams, come back to me.
                                                                                                          (Henry Wadford Longfellow)

Beautiful pictures take us on journeys we might never pursue ourselves.  Artistic expression comes out of the artist on to the canvas or computer and we decide for ourselves whether it has an emotional appeal for us or not.  It’s not always a conscious decision but rather something that takes place within our hearts, souls,  and spirits. Just as we choose that “Like” button so frequently on Facebook to express our approval of what we feel about a certain image, a “Like” happens within our hearts  on viewing a beautiful image. The artist’s rendition resonates within us on a deep level within. “The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance.” ~ Aristotle

"Look at the cherry blossoms! Their color and scent fall with them, Are gone forever, Yet mindless The spring comes again.” ~ Ikkyu
“Look at the cherry blossoms!
Their color and scent fall with them,
Are gone forever,
Yet mindless
The spring comes again.”
                                                ~ Ikkyu

The art work featured in this post appeals to me on a deep level and I hope you too will like this offering.  The artist, Ronald Janki, paints with a rich palette of colors and in a variety of styles.  The poetry/sayings beneath each  picture were my own findings and help to express what the image brought up for me within my own soul and spirit.

"The sun was hidden while I cried, I wandered lost, in sight unseen. When there upon the fence I spied Hibiscus red, and leaves of green." (itchyfish.com)
“The sun was hidden while I cried,
I wandered lost, in sight unseen.
When there upon the fence I spied
Hibiscus red, and leaves of green.”
                                                                       ~  (itchyfish.com)

Many artists, at one time or another, paint flowers.  Nature is a universal theme.  The above paintings are in a different style to the one below – which brings to my mind Impressionist Art.  “Impressionist art is a style in which the artist captures the image of an object as someone would see it if they just caught a glimpse of it. They paint the pictures with a lot of color and most of their pictures are outdoor scenes. Their pictures are very bright and vibrant. The artists like to capture their images without detail but with bold colors. Some of the greatest impressionist artists were Edouard Manet, Camille Pissaro, Edgar Degas, Alfred Sisley, Claude Monet, Berthe Morisot and Pierre Auguste Renoir.” (Impressionism – Arts Movement Directory)

Impressionist Art Impressionism is a beautiful thing Every speck of paint has a delicate ring The human eye is a handy device For It receives the signals of this art, so nice Renoir and Monet, Cezanne and Colin Camille Pisaro was also a win Impressionist artists designed all of this stuff These paintings, this art, its all far from gruff The characteristic mist that conquers the brush Each storke full of beauty, ever so lush Emotions and skill are thrown into one They become a painting, restrictions all shun Lucy

Impressionism is a beautiful thing
Every speck of paint has a delicate ring
The human eye is a handy device
For It receives the signals of this art, so nice
Renoir and Monet, Cezanne and Colin
Camille Pisaro was also a win
Impressionist artists designed all of this stuff
These paintings, this art, its all far from gruff
The characteristic mist that conquers the brush
Each storke full of beauty, ever so lush
Emotions and skill are thrown into one
They become a painting, restrictions all shun
                                                                                            ~ Lucy (Internet)

Hope this gave you that Impressionist feeling too!

What do you do when things go wrong? Oh! You sing a song. –Snow White”
“What do you do when things go wrong? Oh! You sing a song.”  –Snow White

The artist has children and a grandchild so he paints many Disney pictures. His children’s paintings are very popular with them and with other children and their parents as well.

So come with me where dreams are born and time is never planned. Just think of happy things and your heart will fly on wings forever in never never land. ~Peter Pan
“So come with me where dreams are born and time is never planned. Just think of happy things and your heart will fly on wings forever in never never land.”
                                                                                                                  ~Peter Pan

The painting below is one he did for Christmas and is a favourite of mine. The fire and the children sitting around it with their toys captures the spirit of Christmas very well.

Chestnuts roasting on an open fire Jack Frost nipping at your nose (yeah) Yuletide carols being sung by a choir And folks dressed up like Eskimos (Metro Lyrics)
Chestnuts roasting on an open fire
                               Jack Frost nipping at your nose (yeah)
                               Yuletide carols being sung by a choir
                               And folks dressed up like Eskimos
                                                                                                      ~   (Metro Lyrics)

Before sharing the last set of Ronald Janki’s paintings that I’ve chosen for this post, here is what Oscar Wilde had to say about Art and Life.  Perhaps it will give you some room for thought about how art plays itself out in your own life.  “Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life . . . Life holds the mirror up to Art, and either reproduces some strange type imagined by a painter or sculptor, or realises in fact what has been dreamed in fiction. . . . For what is Nature? Nature is no great mother who has borne us. She is our creation. It is in our brain that she quickens to life. Things are because we see them, and what we see, and how we see it, depends on the Arts that have influenced us. . . . At present, people see fogs, not because there are fogs, but because poets and painters have taught them the mysterious loveliness of such effects. There may have been fogs for centuries in London. I dare say there were. But no one saw them, and so we do not know anything about them. They did not exist till Art had invented them. Now, it must be admitted, fogs are carried to excess. They have become the mere mannerism of a clique, and the exaggerated realism of their method gives dull people bronchitis. Where the cultured catch an effect, the uncultured catch cold.” 
~Oscar Wilde, ‘The Decay of Lying: An Observation’, 188 on the question of how art affects your own life.

Sittin' here a thousand miles from nowhere People, I'm in my one room country little shack I'm sittin' here a thousand miles from nowhere People, I'm in my own own one room country little shack All my worries and companion Is an old is an old 'leven foot cotton sack (allthelyrics.com)
Sittin’ here a thousand miles from nowhere
People, I’m in my one room country little shack
I’m sittin’ here a thousand miles from nowhere
People, I’m in my own own one room country little shack
All my worries and companion
Is an old is an old ‘leven foot cotton sack
                                                                                     (allthelyrics.com)

These aren’t the kind of shacks that we see in Canada yet people in many parts of the world live in places like these.  This is definitely a case where Life holds the mirror up to Art, don’t you think?

 fattened lambs no longer laze in sun - market day dawns Linda Jackson
fattened lambs no longer
laze in sun –
market day dawns
                                     ~  Linda Jackson

The above painting is a scene from Stabroek Market, Guyana.  The clock is a very prominent feature of this market building.  The artist has captured this building very well.

When do they their true colours show? ........... Or in the Fall When motley colours seem to vie For pride of place and honour high And the competing hues outspread Their brown, their yellow and flamboyant red? ~ Excerpt from a poem "Autumn Leaves" by Robert Janki
Or in the Fall
When motley colours seem to vie
For pride of place and honour high
And the competing hues outspread
Their brown, their yellow
and flamboyant red?
                                                                   ~ Excerpt from a poem “Autumn Leaves” by Robert Janki

The artist’s father wrote poetry as does the artist.  In the poem “Autumn Leaves,” his father was reflecting on when the leaves show their true colors – comparing the seasons.  This verse fits very well with the painting.

Ronald Janki’s digital art encompasses a whole range of artistic expression and I hope what you saw here gives you a greater sense of respect for digital art and artists. John Maeda, says:  “If there were a prerequisite for the future successful digital creative, it would be the passion for discovery.”

Ronald Janki has certainly been taking a marvellous journey of creative discovery and it’s been wonderful sharing a small part of this journey with you.  You can see more of Ronald Janki’s work at:  Simply Spectacular Designs.