SAKURA / 桜

Enveloped in awe. 🤍
These leafless flowering trees cause everyone to pause, take our breath away while filling us with new breath, relax our shoulders that have been tense during winter, dance with a rhythm of life, grow majestically yet humbly, teach us that nothing lasts forever and it is good, every year, year after year.

(See #ayakaSakura on Instagram)

It took me 7 months to slowly layer mineral pigments + figure out how to paint the “dreamy poof texture” like the master Dogyu Okumura 奥村土牛.

I’ve incorporated 7 different ways to paint sakura in this piece. While painting each section, I was deeply impressed that Creator God knows every petal just like He knows ”even the hairs of your head… Do not fear; you are more valuable than a great number of sparrows.” Luke‬ ‭12‬:‭7‬ ‭
I wish there was a technology to invite you to travel on this painting and have a chat over tea why certain areas touched you.

My teacher said, “To paint a flower is to paint its surrounding. That is how you bring out the flower's presence.” I created various hues of pink by changing the ratios of red : white pigments. I did some dots and blurry strokes while making sure that flowers resemble cherry blossoms (zigzag pointy-shaped petals) and not plum blossoms (round-shaped petals).

I always feel sad to paint over the previous layers. But the magic of mineral pigments is that it only adds depth, so the unseen parts aren’t forgotten or lost. A tiny accent of spring green transformed the entire picture to “look & FEEL more true” to the glorious sakura than when it was painted with only the visible colors like pink & white. Darkness is necessary to bring out the light. Only after adding the blue shadows, I saw a “glow of hope” (the bottom layer of yellow that I use in every painting) shining through thick layers of mineral pigments. This was a surprise, which captured the essence of the full-bloom sakura trees.

The mystery of Gofun (胡粉 oyster shell white pigment) is growing on me. I still can’t tell how opaque it is going to be until it dries on paper. But instead of being afraid or frustrated with the lack of control, I’m starting to find it fun… almost like playing lacrosse by muscle memory, you move without overthinking. Go with the flow and get in the zone. And that’s a powerful thing not to be enslaved by our mind.
胡粉の使い方が難しくて、(自分の思い通りにいかない画材だから) オドオド・イライラしてたけど、段々と「あ、これ楽しいかも！」ってなってきました。頭で考えすぎず体で動いてみる。。。スポーツやってる時みたい。頭を無にして流れに身を任せる、この空間と時間って大切！