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3 min read Postcards

An Artistic Getaway

Photo of large curved space in white wall leading to a garden, with stone and grass mosaic patterns on the ground
A river stone mosaic courtyard opens to a secluded back garden via this spectacular entryway. Lan Su Chinese Garden, Portland, Oregon.

Dear Esteemed Readers,

On this first Saturday in May, when I usually send out my regular, monthly, Art Nun Journal posts, I will be taking a much-deserved vacation away from Tieton to Portland Oregon, where I’ll be celebrating my 25th wedding anniversary! 

I have not taken a “real” getaway since the winter of 2011, when I spent a few weeks in Oaxaca, Mexico, basking in the beauty of artisan-made textiles, paintings, and ceramics, all while speaking Spanish as much as possible to improve my existing language skills.

In Portland, I’ll be exploring many of the same inspirations, only this time from an entirely different culture. One place I'm particularly looking forward to visiting is the Lan Su Chinese Garden.

I’ll be returning to Tieton around May 9. In the meantime, I am providing you with a few behind-the scenes previews of what I will be exploring and enjoying during my trip. And when I return to Tieton, I’ll follow up with a more detailed, bonus Art Nun summary of my adventures. 

Photo of Chinese man in a in red shirt sitting a table with pen in right hand about to write on a vertical strip of red paper
Chinese Master Calligrapher Wang Xing in his on-site studio
Close-up photo of small bowls and glass teapot, with flowers in a black flat circular vase on a wooden table
An afternoon seating in the Yun Shui teahouse
Photo of an older Chinese man in white patterned shirt and glasses, playing the erhu outside under a pavilion in front of a carved screen
Live music in the Lan Su garden, performed by Louis Lim, featuring traditional instruments 
Photo of pink plum blossoms on branches of a tree in front of a sloping Chinese-style roof
Plum blossoms and Chinese architectural detail

To provide some background for my choice of Portland and the Lan Su garden as inspiring destinations, I recommend that you reread two previous posts that highlight the philosophy embodied in the Lan Su Chinese garden:

Garden Sanctuaries
This is the third of three posts that explore my love of gardening.
Art Nun of Central WashingtonSandra Dean
In Search of Tao-chi
In the mid 1970’s, a friend gave me a treasure of a book that featured several extraordinary color brush paintings and exquisite calligraphy by a 17th century Chinese artist. The book was titled The Wilderness Colors of Tao-chi. I was stunned by the minimalist beauty of Tao-chi’s free-floating
Art Nun of Central WashingtonSandra Dean
Most cherished in this mundane world
is a place without traffic.
Truly in the midst of a city,
there can be mountain and forest. 
     — Wen Zhengming, Painter/Scholar, China, 16th Century

With all best wishes for enjoying this gorgeous spring,

Sandra first name signature

Sandra Dean, Visual Artist
Tieton, Washington USA

Additional resources

You can listen to Louis Lim play traditional Chinese instruments on Fridays from noon to 3pm, April 29 to September 26 in the Lan Su Garden.

Music in the Garden | Lan Su Chinese Garden
Lan Su Garden

An audio example of traditional Chinese erhu music:

audio-thumbnail
The Moon Rising
0:00
/148.27102

Published by:

Sandra Dean

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