Theresa Chong
I create large works on paper using gouache, pencil, Japanese handmade paper, and white and hand dyed indigo rice paper. The imagery is a combination of computer generated personal landscapes and doodles, and the scanned and manipulated brush strokes of abstract painters such as de Kooning and Lichtenstein. Inspired by the fragility and strength of the rice paper that I saw during my first visit to Korea since leaving in 1974, my art combines old and new materials and techniques in an effort to keep traditional Asian aesthetics alive in conjunction with the rise of contemporary technology.
In many of my digital images, the abstract brush strokes are traced and incorporated into my own line compositions in the computer. This usage of preexisting historical abstract gestural marks are to keep the heart beat of the abstract expressionist gestures alive. The final drawings are traced by hand onto rice paper and joint points are added using small square templates. The square points/dots exist wherever there are two lines that merge and are filled in with gouache brush strokes. This is done in order to mimic the “highlight” function in the Adobe Illustrator program. It is through this painstaking process that I build a rhythmic composition that is both analytical and passionate.
