Tuesday, July 31, 2007 Lotus position By Ritchie Landis Doner Quijano
IT’S sacred and beautiful. The bud highlights as a centerpiece of a living pond. And when they bloom they appear to be walking on water. In shades from red to pink the lotus flower is meditative.
The lotus complements the evergreen aquatic environment. Because the plant figures prominently in Asian religion, it is used symbolically in Hindu and Buddhist art.
The lotus in Greek myth is a legendary plant that induces luxurious languor when eaten. It is also widely believed to cause euphoria and addiction.
The Egyptians regard it as the Sacred Lily of the Nile. As a popular subject in local art, the water lily has proven to be highly marketable for its decorative character.
A lotus painting, in whatever medium and material it is done, just seems to fit in any wall and space.
The flower’s beauty is timeless. Foremost of artists who went crazy over the subject was Claude Monet who painted countless pictures, many of which were enormous murals inspired from the artist’s own lotus pond at the center of his garden.
Monet spent leisurely time at his garden and seemed to have grown old with it. Moments of contemplation were also spent there.
We, too, have our own share of local lotus-eaters, er, painters. The three paintings that accompany this page are in oil and watercolor. These painting were made with the aide of photographs.
The pictures were shot in a real environ, and subsequently painted and interpreted by the artists in their respective studios.
