Original Art Stories - Xueling Zou

I didn't paint for almost half a year, not sure what kind of mood blocked me... Actually, I wanted to do it, still had a lot of great ideas, but felt it not easy to focus, or might have been there was some interruption going on... I was told that some artists went through this kind of period, could be shorter or longer... So, I did not worry too much, and waited until I finally finished this still life painting. It really took me for a longer time to finish the painting, but I am glad that I could paint again! At the same time, I found my most earliest still life painting which I did when I was a child without any art instruction... It still surprised me that I painted it purely, directly from what I saw, not from how I felt. I really believe now that II have grown up and older... LOL...

I had this opportunity to create a booklet by using mixed media for a Japanese Twin Sister's story. This was the design for the cover and the intruction page. The story is about Japanese twin sisters who were separated since they were born, one lived in the east and other one lived in the west. Finally, they found each other after 20 years, but their destiny could not make their joyful reunion easy, or stay for long... Additional changes were required for adding the cherry blossom to the design. It was just the right timing as they were blooming in our location in April. So, I took a perfect "Twin blossom" and added to it.  Cherry trees and their blossoms in Japan go by the name of sakura and carry a great cultural meaning and significance for the people of Japan. The word sakura would translate as the Japanese flowering cherry tree in English whereas the blossoms are referred to as cherry blossoms. Originally, the purpose of hanami excursions was to ponder the tra