Original Art Stories - Xueling Zou

Each piece of artwork tells a story. When we look at one piece, we absorb and interpret the story in our own way to create our own version of it. Time can wash memories away. For me as an artist it is essential to write down a note, story or journal about the work to maintain record of my inspiration or feelings at the time I create them (also practice my English ). I hope this helps my viewers to get a more intimate understanding of my paintings. "Ballerina Dancing With A Fan" original oil painting was created on 18"x 24"x 1" canvas. I was inspired by the ballet Don Quixote, which was a romantic and witty story in 17th century written by Miguel de Cervantes. https://xueling-zou.pixels.com/featured/ballerina-dancing-with-a-fan-xueling-zou.html Please contact me if you are interested in collecting this piece, thank you!

Have you ever experienced a long distance relationship? Or to understand each other heart to heart. Could it really be that distance makes the heart grow fonder? I created this painting to answer those questions. Happy Valentine's Day! O never say that I was false of heart Sonnet 109 by William Shakespeare O, never say that I was false of heart, Though absence seemed my flame to qualify. As easy might I from my self depart As from my soul which in thy breast doth lie. That is my home of love; if I have ranged, Like him that travels I return again, Just to the time, not with the time exchanged, So that myself bring water for my stain. Never believe though in my nature reigned All frailties that besiege all kinds of blood, That it could so preposterously be stained To leave for nothing all thy sum of good; For nothing this wide universe I call Save thou, my rose, in it thou art my all

On this special day, I'd love share my story how I started painting African American portraits, because some viewers are always curious about what inspires me to paint them. I was told by many that the colors I painted were warm and soft, and the facial expressions were so well captured. I was asked why I kept painting them instead of others, or if I had a secret reason to do so... A lot of very interesting questions... First  I don't think that each artist has to have a hidden reason for painting.  I haven't been professionally trained in a real art school.  Painting Asian faces is challenging to me. I don't live in a neighborhood full of African Americans, but I enjoy their music and culture.  Their face expression can tell a story to a visual artist from China like me. One of my favorite novels is "Gone with the Wind".  I read it many times in Chinese, and watched the movie countless times.  In June 2007, I visited Atlanta, Georgia.  Of course the first

An art collector from NYC just sent me this image - He framed one of my sold original paintings. I so appreciate the support and encouragement! My best Christmas gift so far :)! I do not usually frame my original artwork I have created because no one knows the interior of the collector. But this framing job is an excellent choice for sure! I have to share it, thanks! Framing is part of art. A nice frame is the "bridge" for connecting a piece of artwork to the environment. Most contemporary paintings were framed into much wider and simpler style. I love the choice, just because the painting and the wall have complementary colors and the highlight of the gold color on the frame transfers my contemporary painting to this traditional wall color/environment in a very classical and settled way. Does my original art look like it is displayed in a museum ;)? Happy holidays :)! 'Lonely Jazz' -  http://xueling-zou.artistwebsites.com/featured/lonely-jazz-xueling-zou.h

Napa Valley is considered one of the premier wine regions in the world, with hundreds of vineyards set amid rolling hills. I have been there many times, but not every time I could capture the scenes I love, sometimes I was in a rush, other time the weather or lighting wasn't right. Just like wine tasting, not each time you could experience the most delicious taste. Autumn is always my favorite season. It is still warm, colorful everywhere with harvest, and I usually can get the most of inspiration. Once I saw a perfect wine country scenery just in perfect timing during autumn in Napa, but I forgot to charge the battery in my camera. I guess it is one of the reasons I have to go back. Ha ha ha... It wasn't easy for agriculture in California since it hasn't rained enough for years. I saw colors are different this year through the incredible scenery, the layering of lines and patterns in the valley. It had built up more ochre yellow all over, especially in those war

"If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life it stays with you, for Paris is a movable feast." - Ernest Hemingway We traveled to Paris 15 years ago. Captured so little using a Kodak 1st generation digital camera. This trip re-directed my life, I re-picked up my paint brush after my early teens...

Actually this painting was created inside my head for a long time. I really saw the picture with my minds eye. Finally, I painted it on canvas while I was listening Don McLean's "Starry, Starry Night" Vincent (song) over and over. The result that came out was nice, of course it has the Van Gogh feeling for sure. But this was the first time I was stuck with naming my own painting, what should I title it? Glad that I have this artist community to ask.. In such a short time, there were many great ideas suggested. Siesta, Intermezzo, Guitar Break, Melody of Dreams A Perfect Day, All Played Out, Passing Time, dreams of Van Gogh, Perfect Ending , Little Dogie With Shades, Dog Day Melody, While My Guitar Gently Weeps , Six Strings, Four Feet and Sweet Dreams, A Cowboy's Melody, The end of the howling blues, All we need, California Dream Interlude, The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of Howling, The Sun's Comin' Down On Me, On The Road Again, Acoustic Aphasia, Cool

I think I am quite lucky that I have already found my passion in life - painting and creating art. This is the only thing I do not want missing no matter what happens. One day I had this idea in mind, so I used red color to describe the awful pain expanding over my body that I have experienced recently, especially during the time I sleep. Concentrating on painting this piece for hours like normal, I forgot to eat and even drink water. After it was done, the name naturally came to me "Dream Big", Yes, I encourage myself and do not let anything destroy my passion! Suddenly, I discovered that painting helped me forget my pain surprisingly. Really true - my passion has become my most natural pain killer during the time I created this piece! It seems that there are always some obstacles in the course of life. I've always reminded myself that I should believe in myself and I would create a master piece after going through these first. But unlike anything else before,

"Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared." - Buddha (Please click the image to enlarge) This true story really touches me, so I'v decided to share it with the people who create art or love art. Photography is not my main purpose, being an independent artist I've taken many photos for my painting references everywhere I go for owning the copyrights. This was one of photos I took at a temple in San Francisco a couple years ago. Lights are Yang energy in FengShui. I thought it was positive, auspicious, and posted it on my website to share. Two month ago, I received a message from a friend on Facebook: "Hi Xueling, I need some professional advice. Here is the story, My sweet daughter, Alyssa Tabit, lives in LA. Last October she went with her boyfriend to Ohio for a wedding. We received a devastating call on the morning of October 7th. Our daughter

We all know that Greece is home to the first advanced civilizations in Europe and is considered the birthplace of Western civilization. We only spent 10 days in Greece during May, traveled from Athens to Create, Santorini, Mykonos, Delos, and Tinos Islands. It was too short, almost everything we experienced there made us fall love with this beautiful old country. Everywhere we went that we met nice and helpful people. They are proud of their culture and very generous to share with tourists. We love eating at the local restaurants. Once we had a chance to chat with the local people, we found they were not very happy with their current politics and told us in English "We are not poor, our business is doing OK. Most of us have owned more than two or three nice houses, our government is poor". We didn't meet anyone that tried to sell any products to us, instead they helped us find directions, offer to drive us back to hotel after mid-night, introduced their delicious foo