Illustration

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Guest Shots: Jiro Takidaira

February 25, 2010 in Art, Children's, Guest Shots, Illustration, Japan | 2 comments

Guest Shots: Jiro Takidaira“Baby Powder” Takidaira Jiro, 1974

Not so long ago, I gave a brief PaperCutting workshop to the local Tokyo chapter of the SCBWI. It was a ton of fun to do, and I really enjoyed being able to show a little bit of what goes into the process of one of my cut paper images. Just as rewarding for me, though, was researching the history of the art form and some of its most talented practitioners.

I had always assumed that cut paper art in Japan had as long a history as the Chinese tradition (which dates back to…well, pretty much the day after they invented paper!). Shockingly, I was wrong. While paper cutouts had been used for centuries as stencils in the textile industry, mostly for creating exquisite kimono designs, it was not recognized as as art unto itself.

That changed with 滝平二郎 (Takidaira Jiro). Born in 1921, he grew up in the Japanese countryside on a farm. After returning from the war, he threw himself into artwork. His early work reminds me of Russian poster art of the time, with it’s strong, serious, proletariat farmers. As time went on, the paintings become sparser and more graphic, borrowing the strong and simple line of manga comics. Eventually, he segued into children’s book illustration, and this is where his work truly bloomed. Sometime in the 1960’s, Takidaira began to incorporate cut paper into his illustrations, laying it over backgrounds painted in watercolor and India ink. It’s fascinating to watch the progression of his work as he became more and more enamored of the paper and the cutting. In the 1970’s, we can see the amount of detail increasing until it fills the whole page with patterns of flora and the textures of Japanese life. Then, in the 80’s he cut the artwork back down to the basics, with wide swathes of black and simple, powerful compositions. Read the rest of this entry »

This Lightning Won’t Forge Itself (Fūjin Raijin Diptych, l)

(sold)

February 3, 2010 in Art, Art show, Illustration, Illustration Friday, Japan | 4 comments

This Lightning Won’t Forge Itself cut paper art by Patrick Gannonsize: 7 1/4 x 10 3/8”
medium: cut paper on wood

Raijin and Fūjin have always struck me as the odd couple of the Japanese Shinto pantheon. Two ex-demons pressed into service by the powers-that-be, they are forced to work together despite their opposing personalities. If they are The Odd Couple, then Raijin is a moodier version of Felix. Focused, determined, ominous. He doesn’t have time for Fūjin’s playful, needy antics. Or does he? Is that the slightest sliver grin at the corner of his mouth as he dutifully ignores the looping breeze?

This Summoning Wind / This Lightning Won’t Forge Itself diptych cut paper art by Patrick Gannonclick here or the image to see Titans Clash

Raijin and Fūjin are fascinating and awesome (in the traditional sense of the word) as typically depicted raging through a storm. When I sat down to sketch this piece, that was my first approach as well. After a while, I started wondering how they spent the quiet hours between typhoons. What kind of relationship evolves between the people who spend all of their time together; coworkers, best friends, husbands and wives, Gods of thunder and wind.This Summoning Wind / This Lightning Won’t Forge Itself diptych cut paper art by Patrick Gannonclick here or the image for the big frame-up

Cut to the Chase – Discovering and Making Cut Paper Art and Illustration

January 27, 2010 in Art, Art show, Children's, Illustration, Japan, News | 1 comment

Cut to the Chase Event promo with Patrick Gannon Hey everyone, I’m doing a workshop on Friday! It’s reservation only, so if you’d like to see me turn tomato-red while chatting about how cool Cut Paper Art is, and you’re going to be in the Tokyo area, grab a seat. Here’s the description:

For centuries, cut paper has had a place in storytelling and folk art traditions throughout the world. From intricate Chinese cutouts to Mexico’s Papel Picado to European silhouettes, papercutting has been a vibrant part of the craft life of many cultures. Cut paper became a popular technique with childrens’ book illustrators, valued for lively colors and versatility. Recently cut paper has received renewed attention from artists, merging modern creativity and thought with traditional techniques.


In this 90-minute workshop, cut paper artist/illustrator Patrick Gannon will conduct a brief tour of the history of Cut Paper art traditions throughout the world. Modern papercutting art from various artists and illustrators will be introduced. He’ll demonstrate some of his techniques for creating this fascinating and fun art form and lead participants in the creation of their own cut paper illustrations. Participants are encouraged to bring sketches, characters, or story ideas that can be used as a creative starting point for their illustrations.

And the details:

Time:  Friday, January 29, 2010, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Place:  Tokyo Women’s Plaza, Conference Room 2
           5-53-67 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
           (by the Children’s Castle and United Nations University)
For a map see www.scbwi.jp/map.htm
Fee:  SCBWI members 1,000 yen
         Non-members 1,500 yen
Reservations:  Contact info@scbwi.jp by January 28
Materials to Bring:  

  • sketch pad or paper
  • colored paper (optional)
  • pencil or mechanical pencil
  • eraser
  • scissors
  • glue or glue stick (optional)
  • cutting mat (if you have one) or A4 to A3 size sheet(s) of thick cardboard
  • NT design cutter / X-acto knife and blade (if you have one)

This event will be in English;
Japanese interpretation available on request.

Also of note, this is the first time I’ve ever posted a photo of myself on this blog. Try not to let it scare you off from the event.

This Summoning Wind (Fūjin Raijin Diptych, r)

(sold)

January 13, 2010 in Art, Illustration, Illustration Friday, Japan | 7 comments

This Summoning Wind cut paper art by Patrick Gannonsize: 7 1/4 x 10 3/8”
medium: cut paper on wood
click here or the image to let the big wind free.

Confined in a leathery sack, the wind swirls and gusts, waiting to be loosed as a gentle zephyr or a raging hurricane. The keeper of the wind is Fūjin 風神, one of the oldest of the Japanese Shinto gods. All along, I thought it was an amazing coincidence that Fūjin, along with Greek gods of the wind Boreas and Aeolus, carried the wind in a sack over his shoulder. If Wikipedia is to be believed, it is because the Japanese deity evolved from the Greek. Go figure.

Fūjin here is part of a diptych. You can probably guess who is featured on the left half. There’s a whole story to be revealed, both thematically and artistically, when the halves are placed side by side. For the moment though, I think I’ll keep things simple and let the old windbag speak for himself.

Where the Forest Ends and the Flesh Begins

January 6, 2010 in Art, Illustration, Illustration Friday, Japan | 12 comments

Where the Forest Ends and the Flesh Begins cut paper art by Patrick Gannonsize: 38 x 27.2 cm ( about 15 x 10 3/4″ )
medium: cut paper on illustration board
click here or the image for a more titanic tiger

Each new year is a time of renewal, a clean slate where the previous year’s missteps have been scratched out to make way for hopes, plans, schemes and triumphs. Who better to lead us out of the dark than the fearsome tiger.

Of course, the trick with a beastie as temperamental and finicky as the tiger is to know whether it’s leading you into the light or pouncing on you from the inky shadows.

One year ago, I waxed and whined about how weird it was to use cut paper to mimic another medium (in direct opposition to my cardinal rule of paper cuttery). Well, I still feel a little awkward faking sumi-e, but I really liked the result so I decided to try it again. This time, I tried to take it even further, playing around with different shades of grey (and some truly cool new papers) for the bamboo. The tiger’s outside line also got nixed, playing up the natural camouflage /positive/negative aspect that makes this cat so cool. Read the rest of this entry »

Vixen (Inari)

December 21, 2009 in Art, Art show, Illustration, Illustration Friday, Japan | 10 comments

Vixen (Inari) cut paper art by Patrick Gannonsize: 17.2 x 29 cm ( about 6 3/4 x 11 1/2″ )
medium: cut and torn paper on wood
click here or the image for large-scale foxiness

Blinded by cleverness into seeing only cleverness, undone by our own cunning.

The fox makes a great symbol, from Aesop on up ’til now. No other two-legger or four-legger embodies that same complicated and conflicted mix of clever, cunning, hunger, pride, independence and nobility. They serve beautifully as both hero and villain, sage and fool, in just about every culture. Look at Inari, Japanese god…or goddess of…well, just about everything. Plus, they just look awesome.

Like Words of Carrion Comfort, Vixen is a little bit of an experiment with shape and texture. Where I used mostly color combinations to try to bring out a softness in Carrion, here I combined that with a little bit of torn paper and some translucency.

Vixen (Inari) is also part of The Way of Flow running from December 4, 2009 – January 2, 2010 at C.A.V.E. Gallery, Venice, CA.

Words of Carrion Comfort

(sold)

December 16, 2009 in Art, Art show, Illustration, Illustration Friday, Japan | 8 comments

Words of Carrion Comfort cut paper art by Patrick Gannonsize: 17.2 x 29 cm ( about 6 3/4 x 11 1/2″ )
medium: cut paper on wood
click here or the image to crow louder

If there ever was an argument for spontaneous generation, it is the carrion-craving crow. The park near my home is infested with the big-beaked birds and they are eternally carrying out raids on the neighborhood garbage bags. But for all their ever-present…um, presence, I have yet to see a baby crow. As a boy I collected discarded robin’s eggs, without ever finding the slightest evidence that crows hatch. Instead, they seem to come into the world fully formed and filthy.

My theory is that dark and ominous thoughts float out of our heads and congeal in the upper atmosphere. There they take on feathery form before plummeting back down to earth to caw annoyingly and take part time jobs as evil omens.

I’ve been combining cut paper and wood for awhile now, and I really dig the way the natural textures and colors work together. Lately I’ve been thinking about using different shapes and kinds of wood. This is one of the first experiments in that vein. Something about the rounded shape of the wood felt feminine to me so I’ve been exploring ways to get a softer effect from the hard-edged paper, mostly by way of color combinations.

Carrion Comfort is part of The Way of Flow running from December 4, 2009 – January 2, 2010 at C.A.V.E. Gallery, Venice, CA.

2010, a Year in Paper

December 13, 2009 in Art, Illustration, Japan, News | Add your comment

2010 Patrick Gannon Cut Paper Calendar
Click to see a bigger preview

The 2010 Cut Paper Art Calendar, featuring 12 of my favorite (and seasonally appropriate) works is now available. Made entirely of cut and torn paper (and often wood) in his studio in Tokyo, Patrick’s artwork is a collision of American and Japanese pop-culture, mythology and wonderous creatures amid a landscape of jagged edges and amazing textures.

And look, Lulu has this nifty new preview thingy! It might take a minute to load, but you can flip through all the art, including the brand new From the Bamboo Forests of the Night, just for 2010’s Year of the Tigger!

From the Bamboo Forests of the Night

(sold)

December 2, 2009 in Art, Art show, Illustration, Illustration Friday, Japan | 13 comments

From the Bamboo Forests of the Night cut paper art by Patrick Gannonsize: 8 x 10 inches
medium: cut paper on board

Good old William Blake knew what he was talking about. Entangled in the vines and bamboo of the shadowy forest, no other animal has quite the same combination of feline grace and stealthy, coiled threat as the tiger.

虎視眈々 (koshitantan) is a yojijukugo, a Japanese idiom made up of four kanji. In this case, 虎 (ko)=tiger; 視 (shi)=eye or gaze, and 眈々 (tantan; the second character repeats the sound of the first) = to aim with ambition. Together, they mean to wait patiently while ambitiously keeping your eyes peeled for the opportunity to strike. That sure sounds like a tiger to me.

The tiger is the third animal in the Chinese (and Japanese) zodiac. I’m not sure why s/he didn’t just eat the mouse and the cow and grab first place. This particular tiger is also the second preview from The Way of Flow running from December 4, 2009 – January 2, 2010 at C.A.V.E. Gallery, Venice, CA.

The Flow That Will Not Be Stemmed

November 25, 2009 in Art, Illustration, Illustration Friday, Japan | 3 comments

The Flow That Will Not Be Stemmed cut paper art by Patrick Gannonsize: 16 1/2 x 11 3/4 inches ( 42 x 29.7 cm )
medium: cut paper on wood
click here to go with a bigger flow!

Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change – this is the rhythm of living.

~Bruce Barton

Art, music, violence, fear, words, confusion; all things flow into and out of us. Thought is a neverending stream, sometimes cold and deep and logical, sometimes ragged white water. We are the source and we are the mouth and we are an anonymous bend along the way. We may try to dam the path and stem the flow but in time the flow wears all things down. The rhythm continues; the flow will go on.

Catch this flow and more from December 4, 2009 – January 2, 2010 at C.A.V.E. Gallery, Venice, CA

The Flow That Will Not Be Stemmed cut paper art by Patrick Gannon Read the rest of this entry »

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