"Ascend" is an acrylic painting on a wood panel 34.5" x 18" in size and about 2" deep and was made in 2008. The calligraphy at the lower part means "Ascend."
It is actually not formal calligraphy. I designed it from the Chinese character that means, "ascend" or "rise." The Japanese and Chinese written languages share hundreds of characters, in case you didn't know. Admittedly, my calligraphy skill is limited to the one I leaned at Japanese elementally school, and I do not want to think how long ago that was.
I placed the title in the portrait because I wanted to express the mystery of life, especially the transiency of life. The upper portion of the splashy line is a movement that was there but yet isn't there any more. It is a "trace" of existence, so to speak.
The entire painting has a sheer, but generally speaking it is a "dark" painting. Close up photos are posted at my Flickr account set if interested.
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