Botanicals in Sumi Ink is an ongoing series I have been working on since 2019. This collection of paintings focuses on the interplay between dark and light. High contrast patterns and shapes found in these botanical silhouettes become the primary focus using traditional Japanese Sumi Ink on specialty made antique colored artist paper.

The choice to use Sumi Ink is one I made after learning of its elemental and distinctive qualities. Sumi is very much a living ink, as it is created from the soot of pine branches. There is a rich spectrum of tones found in Sumi that you cannot find with any other ink. The practice of making and using Sumi is over 1,300 years old.