Joy in the Garden & Beyond (plus the Nature of Enchantment)

March 21 - May 25, 2025

Puget Sound Sumi Artists, in conjunction with Lakewold Gardens’ Wagner Art Series, is delighted to present this exhibit consisting of 22 paintings by PSSA artists. Established in 1986, PSSA is an organization of artists and members which aims to promote an appreciation of Sumi and brush calligraphy art in the community. This exhibit is an expression of its mission.

Sumi is the Japanese word for black ink made from burned pine resin (or burned rapeseed oil) mixed with glue and produced as solid sticks or in liquid ink forms. Sumi ink is either the basic or a prominent medium used in all the paintings hung in this exhibit, although watercolor may also be added in many of those displayed. Sumi is primarily applied with a brush, but as PSSA has grown over years and the founders were very creative, many artists have painted or created art in a variety of media and styles including collage, monoprint, and various Asian styles: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Malaysian combined with Asian, and American calligraphy.

Sumi painting attempts to express the “essence of the subject”…. “alive with the power to stir the heart and emotion”…. “beauty condensed and distilled”….but “may also be executed in a more painterly overall pattern …expressing any subject” [from PSSA bylaws]. In this exhibit you will see classical Sumi subjects (such as the lotus and orchid) executed in Sumi, Sumi in combination with color, “Sumi-e”, calligraphy in the form of kanji and American calligraphy, collage with Sumi ink and water color, and a “gyotaku” print executed with Sumi. Typically paintings are done on rice or natural fiber papers which are then mounted on stiffer paper or other backing such as silk or canvas. Sumi painters also frequently speak of their work as a form of meditation or spiritual practice.

The artists hope you look for some of these qualities, for the energy of the brush strokes, the variation in texture and darkness of the ink, and enjoy the feelings you may experience in viewing the paintings in the Wagner Gallery amid the spring beauty of Lakewold Garden. Come, more than once, if you can.

Accompanying the Sumi works is a collection of Incantare sculptures by artist Dia Calhoun. Calhoun uses natural materials to create symbolic images from mythology, fairy tales, dreams and religious traditions. Her work encourages a personal experience of mystery by connecting nature, spirit, imagination and art.