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Creation

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-06-06T06:33:03-05:00

It's becoming more summery in Japan and with summer comes the hordes of insects of which I spent half the day combating. GET OUT OF MY HOUSE. Rainy season has not started yet...
I did this painting on a nice heavy brown paper. Other than that I haven't much to say about it. The title is "Creation".

"Creation" 63 x 97 cm. (25 x 38 inches) Crayon, Sumi ink, Pastel, Acrylic and Gouache on Japanese Paper.

Twilight Zone

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-05-12T20:26:04-05:00

Just finished this painting titled "Twilight Zone - He Walks Away". It is painted on a gold washi paper. This paper was like painting on material. I originally was going to title this just "He Walks Away" but it reminded me so much of the old Twlight Zone television show. I've also been listening to my Amy Winehouse album "Back To Black" and in the song "Tears Dry On Their Own" she sings; he walks away, the sun goes down, he takes the day but I'm gone. And in your way in this blue shade my tears dry on their own. So we are history, your shadow covers me, The sky above, a blaze that only lovers see... I love her music and that also influenced this image.

Twilight Zone - He Walks Away 63 x 91 cm. (25 x 36 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Oil Pastel on gold Washi.

Peony opening

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-05-06T18:29:33-05:00

From the Peony I took a picture of in my garden I painted this yesterday. I read that the Peony is China's national flower. It is the symbol of good fortune, high honor and the spring season... all good things. As an erotic symbol it symbolizes the female genitalia. When dew, representing semen, drops on a peony flower it opens... REALLY! Well, that produced all kinds of images in my head. I painted on an orange colored washi paper I've had laying around the house for years. When I was younger I hated the color orange but I like it now, it's a powerful color to work with. In the style of American modernists Georgia O'Keefe and Arthur Dove who also used nature as sexual symbolism, for me this symbolizes the female life force.

Peony Opening 96 x 66 cm (38 x 26 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache and Acrylic on Orange Washi

Peony

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-05-03T03:10:41-05:00

Only one flower on my Peony this year but it's hugh!

Walking In Between Sunrise And Sunset

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-05-02T22:57:47-05:00

I finished a painting this morning titled "Walking In Between Sunrise And Sunset". The title comes from the song "Living In Twilight" by The Weepies. I listen to their CD whenever I'm in my car, it reminds me of my daughter.
This painting is about the time my daughter went to the US to go to high school. I returned to Japan because I wasn't sure she would like high school there and I thought I should take care of everything in Japan just in case she returned. Not long after I returned I became sick and was in a lot of pain. I was happy at times my daughter was not there to see me like that and I couldn't have done anything to take care of her (If you've ever been in pain all you can think about is getting rid it). I fought to recover my health by the time my daughter returned for her summer vacation. That summer my daughter's favorite album was The Weepies' which we listened to often in the car.
If you look closely there is a mother and child standing in the landscape. I did wonder when I was laying in bed if I would ever recover and be able to take walks or enjoy life again. The days passed by blending into each other, the sun would rise and set and slowly I recovered.
I think of this as my daughter and I walking in between two countries also, Japan and the US. I am currently in Japan and my daughter is going to university in the US now. I wish there was a way we could magically meet somewhere in between.

Walking In Between Sunrise And Sunset 97 x 66 cm. (38 x 26 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic, Crayon and Pastels on Indigo Washi

This painting is painted on an Indigo colored Japanese paper. This is a close up.

Spring Flowers

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-05-01T09:36:35-05:00

My little dog Emma in the garden. We spend our days together.

Yamanashi Museum Of Art

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-05-01T09:15:40-05:00

Beautiful day today so I went to the Yamanashi Museum Of Art and had a little picnic. There is an impressive sculpture by Maasaki Sato who is from Yamanashi called Big Apple.
There are 365 holes for 365 days in a year, Mr. Sato has said that they represent everyday communication.

It really stands out in the landscape, Mt. Fuji is in the background.

Enlightenment

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-05-01T08:45:12-05:00

Yesterday I finished a new painting which was done on an indigo colored Japanese paper. Indigo is an important color in cotton fabric dyeing in Japan and traditional folk arts which is where I got the idea for this painting. It is a rather stylized composition of a landscape. I was thinking of moonlight reflected on water and also the rock gardens I saw in Kyoto. I like to think it has a Zennnnn feeling. Titled Enlightenment.

"Enlightenment" 92 x 63 cm. (36 x 25 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Pastels on Indigo Washi.

Gihon River Collective

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-04-30T18:08:09-05:00

I'm very excited about the exhibit that is being planned in London this coming September. You can see the venue and read all the details on the site gihonrivercollective.com .

The Gihon River Collective is a group of artist and writers that I had a residency with at the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson Vermont last September and this is where the title of our exhibit comes from COPY0909. Our opening in London is September 09, 2010 one year from the time of our residency.

I'm especially happy that I will be able to meet the friends I made at the Vermont Studio Center and exhibiting with them is a dream for me. We will also have some of the guest artists who came to the center to give talks and advice exhibit with us.

I hope in 2011 I will be able to help bring the exhibit to Japan.

Snake Bite

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-04-22T19:40:18-05:00

Here's a painting just for fun I completed today. I've been doing all of these painting with swirly circular shapes and was thinking about where we find this shape in nature. This is a coiled snake with it's mouth open. Can you see it? I painted this on a very light, transparent white Washi paper. I was surprised that the paper took the paint quite well and is much stronger than it looks. We sometimes get very big snakes that come down from the mountains in my neighborhood.

Snake Bite 66 x 96 cm. (26 x 38 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Pastels on Washi (Japanese paper).

Moment Of Truth.

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-04-22T19:20:58-05:00

Landscape painting of Mt. Fuji completed today. Mt. Fuji often has these saucer like clouds around the summit. I've seen hundreds of Mt. Fuji paintings in Japan, if fact there's a museum in a city at the base of Mt. Fuji that is dedicated to art work of Fuji-san. It's interesting to see each artist's interpretation. It isn't important to be realistic, Mt. Fuji is a powerful symbol. The title is Moment of Truth because in the last week I had such a moment which caused a bit of chaos but truth is power don't you think?

Moment Of Truth 93 x 64 cm. (37 x 25 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Pastels on Washi (Japanese paper).

A few pictures I got off the internet to show you what I'm talking about.

Memory Pond

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-04-22T19:11:01-05:00

This is another version of the koi paintings I did at the Vermont Studio Center. I start to feel hypnotized when I'm looking at this.

Memory Pond 64 x 93 cm. (25 x 37 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Pastels on Washi (Japanese paper).

Countess Olenska

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-04-09T05:01:45-05:00

This painting is a portrait of the fictional character Countess Olenska from the novel "Age Of Innocence". The figure in the background is me. It is a self-portrait. I identify with the Countess, an American who lived abroad and married a foreigner, her attempts at returning to America, her marriage, family and wanting to just find a place to fit in.

Countess Olenska and Me (Self-Portrait) 91 x 61 cm. (36 x 24 inches) Acrylic, Sumi ink, Gouache and Pastels on Washi (Japanese Paper).

Earth Moving

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-04-04T04:49:47-05:00

I finished the last in a series of landscape paintings on paper that I've been working on. I used sumi ink, acrylic, gouache and pastels. To see them in my painting gallery click HERE

"Earth Moving" 100 x 64 cm. ( 39x24 inches) Sumi ink, Acrylic, Gouache and Pastels on Japanese Paper.

April 2010

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-04-04T04:36:37-05:00

April in Japan, what a beautiful time to be here. These pictures are the remains of a castle of a famous shogun where I live.

I love cherry blossom flavored treats. My afternoon snack, cherry blossom cakes.

Climax

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-03-30T20:09:30-05:00

Finished another painting on Japanese handmade paper. Because the paper is so beautiful I think of it as another medium instead of just a base to paint on and want it to show through in the painting. There are actually many layers of paint on the paper which is hard to see in a photo. I've also used metallic paints so depending on the light and where you stand the painting will change. Click here to see in my painting gallery HERE.

"Climax" 62 x 100 cm. (24 x 39 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Pastels on Japanese Paper.

Explosion

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-03-29T16:05:52-05:00

"Explosion (Fuji)" 100 x 62 cm. (39 x 24 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Pastels on Japanese Paper.

Fireworks

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-03-29T05:11:53-05:00

I finally started painting again. I'm doing a series of paintings on handmade Japanese papers. The paper is delicate so I'm painting simple compositions using a variety of media. On this painting I used acrylic, gouache, pastels and sumi ink. I'm starting with landscapes. This is a sight I'm very familiar with here... fireworks over mountains and water.

"Fireworks" 100 x 62 cm. (39 x 24 inches) Sumi ink, Gouache, Acrylic and Pastels on Japanese Paper.

Cherry Blossom Time

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-03-29T04:47:28-05:00

This is cherry blossom week. The cherry blossoms are blooming about 6 days earlier this year because of the mild winter but as is often the case unfortunately, the weather is cold and windy this week so it's difficult to do cherry blossom viewing. People traditionally like to have picnics, when the weather is nice, under the trees and another tradition is to get roaring drunk. We usually have a couple of cases of alcohol poisoning at this time. Something they fail to mention in the travel guides.

Took my dog Emma with me to view the cherry blossoms.

Plum Blossoms

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2010-02-24T06:32:50-06:00

February 24th, It's the beginning of spring in Japan when the Plum Blossoms bloom.

Emma and I go to view the Plum Blossom trees.

Yokohama

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-12-29T06:30:43-06:00

I went on a little trip to the very modern port city of Yokohama next to Tokyo during the holidays.

Rainbow Bridge

Autumn Fuji

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-12-06T06:23:31-06:00

It's December and I'm still in Japan, we're still having some very nice autumn weather. Mt. Fuji on a sunny day.

Thanksgiving

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-11-25T07:07:24-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Amazing how many Americans ask me if they celebrate Thanksgiving in Japan? Of course not, other countries do not celebrate Americans being thankful that the first European settlers were helped by native Americans to survive. I do celebrate Thanksgiving no matter where I am because I'm American and it's my tradition. My Japanese family enjoys the food. This year I made sweet potato pie because I couldn't find any canned pumpkin. I found a really good recipe try it.

Ingredients

1 (1 pound) sweet potato
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust

Directions

Boil sweet potato whole in skin for 40 to 50 minutes, or until done. Run cold water over the sweet potato, and remove the skin.
Break apart sweet potato in a bowl. Add butter, and mix well with mixer. Stir in sugar, milk, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until mixture is smooth. Pour filling into an unbaked pie crust.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 55 to 60 minutes, or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Pie will puff up like a souffle, and then will sink down as it cools.

Autumn In Kyoto

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-11-24T07:33:37-06:00

I have returned to Japan this month and decided to visit the old capitol of Kyoto. I went to Kyoto once 17 years ago, it's always been a place I've wanted to return to. The last time I went there I was pushing a baby cart. Kyoto has many National Treasures and World Heritage Sites. It's the place everyone must visit if they come to Japan. It's such a beautiful city, especially in autumn and spring with its many gardens.

Kiyomizu Temple

Yasaka Shrine

One thing I don't like about the modern world are all these wires.

Scary booby monsters asking for money.

Ryoanji Temple. This is my favorite place, it's a very famous rock garden. Unfortunately the temple was under reconstruction.

Giant Tori in front of the MOMAK (Museum Of Modern Art, Kyoto)

If you saw the movie "Memoirs Of A Geisha" you might remember the little girl running through this pathway of gates.

How not to use a squat toilet.

The bamboo forest.

We stopped to have tea and this cat next to me never moved the whole time I was there.

Nijo Castle. The art work was amazing in this castle, over 3000 painting on the walls, doors and ceilings. No cameras allowed.

In Kyoto station there were some beautiful Christmas decorations.

Pappajohn Sculpture Park

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-10-18T07:11:51-05:00

This month was my birthday. My mother and sister took me out to lunch and after we stopped by a new sculpture park in Des Moines, Iowa, The Pappajohn Sculpture Park.

Bringing art to the masses isn't easy.

T8 Mark di Suvero
This artist worked in construction till he was injured on the job and spent two years in a wheel chair, during this time he practiced his welding skills and started to make huge sculptures like this one after he could walk again. This sculpture was part of a divorce settlement, it sat in storage for several years. The Pappajohns heard about it from a dealer who was a friend of the artist's ex-wife.

Nomade Jaume Plensa

A human form made from scrambled steel letters. The letters are building blocks for words and ideas.

Back Of A Snowman (Black) Back Of A Snowman (White) Gary Hume
I applaud the title alone of this sculpture.

Affectionately know as the salt and pepper shakers.

Cafe Table I & Chairs Scott Burton

This sculpture is meant to be used though it's not very comfortable. My mother and sister tried it out.

Thinker on a Rock Barry Flanagan
.
The artist sculpted bunnies for over thirty years. Next to bunny are two horses sculpted by Deborah Butterfield titled Juno and Ancient Forest.

This artist has sculpted over 1000 horses each one having its own personality. I'm not the only artist who becomes obsessed by one subject like fish.

( Forward ) Moonrise August (Back) air gets into everything even nothing Ugo Rondinone
Both of these sculptures were done by the same artist. The artist created 12 heads, one for each month in the year they represent the man in the moon. The white tree was cast from a 2000 year old olive tree in Naples, Italy, the artist's parent's hometown.

Moonrise January
I rather like these, they grow on you and add a bit of whimsy.

Gymnast III William Tucker

Reclining Figure Williem de Kooning
I really didn't like this sculpture so I was surprised to find out it was made by such a famous artist who's paintings I love.

Order Tony Cragg
Look like pod people to me.

Spider Louise Bourgeois
This is a portrait of the artist's mother, the comparison is supposed to be flattering.

In The Morning Anthony Caro

Post-Balzac Judith Shea

Decoy Martin Puryear

Five Plate Pentagon Richard Serra

Vermont Studio Center

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-09-29T22:19:00-05:00

September was a glorious month for me spent in Vermont at the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vermont.

This is the very first picture I took there on a moonlit night. This is the main building where we would have our meals together with over fifty other visual artist and writers.

This is more what is looked like during the day. A bridge next to the center was being rebuilt creating a big mess and a lot of noise during my stay unfortunately.

It must be quite nice without the construction noise. I thought Vermont was indeed very picturesque. The Vermont Center is located in the very small town of Johnson, Vermont

This is main street. You could walk anywhere in 5 minutes.

This has got to be one of the prettiest elementary schools I've ever seen in spite of the run down condition of the sign. I took this picture because in Iowa where I grew up the state motto is "A Great Place To Grow" what a coincidence!

Absolutely beautiful with the fall colors.

This is the house I lived in.

As you can see it's rather spartan with a combination of homemade and junk yard furniture. These houses were really old.

This was my studio.

This is my second studio. I worked on a series about the carp pond in pastels. I had never used pastels before.

Outside of my second studio named the Wolf Kahn studio.

I did manage to get out on a few hikes with friends to admire the view.

There was a river next to the center we enjoyed. The water was quite clear. Most of the time I was there we had beautiful weather with only a couple of rainy days.

About 30 minutes from the center was The Trapp Family Lodge where the Von Trapp family, made famous in The Sound Of Music, settled.

I had to see it. It's in a very beautiful area in the mountains. I would love to stay here in October when the fall colors are at their peak. I also managed to go to Montreal and saw a wonderful exhibit of a French Canadian artist none of us heard of before named Betty Goodwin. Her work really impressed me. She worked in every medium, it was amazing.

(Left) The Red Sea (Right) So Certain I Was, I Was A Horse
These are two huge works of hers done on paper.

I also managed a trip to Burlington, Vermont and took a ferry boat ride on the 6th largest lake in the USA, Lake Champlain. This was one of the most memorable days I had in Vermont.

I took many pictures of this beautiful lake and a movie. In the movie you'll see a sailboat lesson.

At The Vermont Studio Center. I decided to work outside of my comfort zone and try a new medium. I'm getting tired of oil on canvas. The reason I chose the subject of fish is because I didn't want to think so much about subject matter while I experimented with pastels. Water is also an interesting subject to me. It has movement, shadow, light, color, depth, it can be opaque or translucent. I would like to explore the subject of water more. To see my Koi series please go to my paintings page or click here > Koi series

House In Japan

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-07-11T19:09:43-05:00

I spent most of my time relaxing at home. Here are a few pictures of the house.

This is the tatami room so named after the flooring. Not everyone has a tatami room in their house but we're old fashioned. I painted the sliding doors myself using leaves from my garden, the whole room opens up. This is where I would give English lessons. The picture on my wall was painted by my father and given to my daughter.

Relaxing in my living room.

The front entrance room where we take off our shoes.

I couldn't resist doing a little gardening and potting some flowers.

I miss these simple things. Soon I will return to America.

Summer Vacation In Japan

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-06-15T16:11:43-05:00

I returned to Japan for summer vacation with my daughter.

Full moon above my house takes on a ghostly quality and....

look at this picture of my daughter and her friend doing fireworks on the same night. Totally ghostly... Boo!
What did I do in Japan? Mostly eat great Japanese food. Like this dessert

I had this at the Yamanashi Museum Of Art. This is a favorite of mine it's vanilla ice cream with a sauce made from black sugar (kuromitsu) and kinako powder. Kinako powder is a soybean flour that has a peanut butter like taste. Simple, healthy and delicious.

The Yamanashi Art Museum has quit a large garden that surrounds it with many statues. This silver statue is actually a large apple, you can't see this until you look at it from the other side.

Can you see it?

Lunch... Tamago (egg) sushi and Tempura O Bento (lunchbox). Delicious!

Dessert is a macha (green tea) parfait made with mochi ( rice pounded into a paste and formed into balls), green tea jelly, anko (sweet beans), candied slices of sweet potato and whipped cream. I love it!
Of course I did a little shopping and was handed a face bag when I went in to try on clothes. I didn't know what it was at first and felt a little insulted I was thinking foreigner with swine flu but I guess it's a new thing to keep makeup off the clothes.

I couldn't resist taking a picture of myself. I don't think anyone actually wears it but I could be wrong.

On the bus to the airport we cross the Rainbow Bridge which has a great view of the city. There have been accidents on the bridge blamed on people looking at the view.

The Lake

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-03-04T15:48:41-06:00

Walking at the lake today I see a lot of geese or ducks, some of the ice has melted.

I also see someone has left me a message on the path "I Adore You".

Just Kidding! Actually my sister told me some nut spray painted this message for his wife who jogged here for their anniversary. I'm glad I'm not married to him.

Graduation

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-05-23T15:15:46-05:00

This month something very important happened my daughter graduated high school. Congratulations! I was surprised how noisy everyone was at the graduation ceremony even though the principal asked people to be quiet. I haven't been to an American graduation ceremony since I graduated from college. Things have changed a bit. In Japan we love our ceremonies so much they go on and on for hours till everyone is squirming in their seats dying to leave but this wasn't so long.

Look at the people in the background, it was a zoo afterwards. My daughter was so cute. I blurred her face for privacy reasons but believe me she's cute!
Here's a movie I made of the end of the ceremony where the balloons are suppose to drop on everyone... they had a little trouble with this but happily they did drop and then the traditional throwing of the hats in the air. To see more of my movies go to my YouTube channel at: youtube.com/users/stoneriverart

Iowa State Fair

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-08-25T12:14:30-05:00

I haven't been to the Iowa State Fair for 25 years, a friend asked me to go to see Journey and Heart in concert on the last day.

Usually I would think I was too old or too tired and just stay home but my new motto is to be open to new experiences so I went. It hasn't changed a bit.
The first thing we did was try this year's taste sensation chocolate covered bacon. It was surprisingly good, a nice combination of savory and sweet. Since it was the last day of the fair my friend became very agitated that so many of the new and much desired foods the fair had to offer this year were sold out. The venders miss out on a lot of sales that way... no vision. I'm guessing.

If you're a chocoholic like me you'll try almost anything covered in chocolate.
Of course I also had to see the famous butter cow which is exactly that a cow statue made of butter. You can see this every year at the fair, it's amazing! They also did an astronaut in butter which won out over a butter statue of Michael Jackson. I would of liked to see a butter Michael myself.

Because it's Iowa you must also see the monster hog that weighs thousands of pounds. It doesn't do much besides sleep.

Looking at a fat slob of a pig is not my favorite exhibit but fascinating none the less. How do they get them that big? How much food and what do they feed them? So many questions! It was the last day of the fair so many of the animals were being packed up and taken home, I really wanted to see the horses especially the Clydesdales but alas I couldn't although I did see lots and lots of Lamas.

Why they have so many Lamas in Iowa I'm not sure, they must have them on the farm for some reason, they are very cute and perhaps they make a nice pet. I'm guessing.
After hours of walking around and eating a variety of fair food we sit down for the concert, by this time I'm starting to feel my age.

Most of the people at the concert were middle aged and it also made me feel good to see the performers who are older than me still at it. It's an inspiration for us over fifty. You can see the "midway" in the background. My friend and I thought the double ferris wheel looked a lot bigger when we were kids. We swear it was much bigger.

I shot this movie of Journey, the lead singer is not Steve Perry but a young man named Arnel Pineda who has the energy and talent to be a lead singer but it wasn't the same without Steve of course.

A Walk In The Woods

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-05-22T18:25:58-05:00

I have finally finished my painting "A Walk In The Woods" and it has changed quit a bit from the original painting. It looks like a storybook now, I thought the original looked like a Hallmark card. My daughter and her boyfriend were the models.

A Walk In The Woods 2009 (i went for a walk in the woods i was hoping i would see you on the trail coming towards me)

Butterfly Wings

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-05-05T16:21:20-05:00

I have been working on colorizing my painting "Butterfly Wings". If you compare it to the original painting you can see I took out some of the writing. I felt there was just too much going on down there. The color is making them less gloomy... I think.

Butterfly Wings, Jacko VS. Madge 2009

The before "Butterfly Wings".

Spring arrives to Iowa

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-05-05T16:15:25-05:00

Finally were getting some Spring weather in Iowa. I went to a flower park over the weekend, not far from where I live and took a pretty picture.

Reiman Gardens

Also outside my window at my apartment, much to my surprise, there is a tree in bloom that looks similar to Cherry Blossoms. I miss Japan.

May

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-05-05T15:36:27-05:00

Starting May off not feeling too great, I'm having some kind of stomach problem and have been nauseous and tired for the last four days. I'm pretty sure it's NOT the swine flu. I was expecting a friend from Japan to come for a visit but she cancelled her plans because of concerns about catching the flu. I'm very disappointed but I understand.
The bugs are starting to come out in my small apartment. I saw a house centipede in my bathroom which is the relatively harmless cousin to the Japanese centipede which I've seen in my house in Japan. The Japanese centipede is much scarier and more like a poisonous snake. I didn't actually know what it was when I saw it but googled centipede iowa to see what would come up and this picture from Iowa State University, which is just down the road from me, popped right up. I have not told my daughter about seeing this bug, she would freak out so if she reads this.... sorry sweet potato. I only saw it once.

Midwest House Centipede USA

Japanese Centipede

I will be returning to Japan this summer and am not looking forward to seeing and killing this bug which I most certainly will have to do. It's me or them.

I have had a bug bite on my leg for about a month, it doesn't seem to be going away. I'm assuming it's a spider bite since I have a lot of spiders in my apartment. The red rash around it does seem to be lightening a bit.

Spider bite???

I went out and bought a can of bug spray appropriately called "Spider Killer". I was amused because it also kills Scorpions, thank god we don't have any of those in Iowa. Is that a picture of a dead Spider or Scorpion on the can?

Angel Eyes

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-04-23T13:59:53-05:00

I decided to colorize my Pop Klub series after careful consideration. This might be a good sign for me. When I first moved to America I went through a terrible period of culture shock because my life style changed dramatically and now that my daughter is almost eighteen years old and will graduate high school, we will both be going through another change as she declares her independence and I start to think more about my own life. Angel Eyes is a portrait of a young girl with striking blue eye.

Angel Eyes, Portrait Of A Young Girl 2009

New Gallery

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-02-19T20:03:00-06:00

I have joined a new online French gallery. The name is Artmajeur.
Josianne Ishikawa - http://www.artmajeur.com/josianneishikawa

New Gallery

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-02-10T08:14:08-06:00

NYAXE.COM is a new venue for selling art from MYARTSPACE.COM

Self Portrait
I've been a member of myartspace for a while. You can look me up under the name Stoneriver which is the english translation of Ishikawa. The have started an online site for selling art work.

P-klub

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-02-09T19:54:46-06:00

I have finished three new paintings influenced by Japanese Purikura ( digital photobooth pictures ). I decided to name this series P-klub meaning pop club. They are influenced by Japanese and American pop culture. Using only three colors in these paintings, red, white and black, one of these colors is predominate in each painting. In the first painting titled "Angel Eyes" the dominate color is white. White symbolizing purity, this is a portrait of innocents.

Angel Eyes, 30 x 40 inches, Acrylic and oil on canvas. 2009

In The second painting titled " A Walk In The Woods" the dominate color is red. Red symbolizing love and passion. This is a portrait of two lovers.

A Walk In The Woods, 30 x 40 inches, Acrylic and oil on canvas. 2009

In the third painting black is the dominate color. Black symbolizes emptiness in this painting. It is a portrait of the dark side of pop culture. This painting is a comment on the over use of plastic surgery to attain perfection.

Butterfly Wings, 30 x 40 inches, Acrylic and oil on canvas. 2009

New Gallery

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-02-08T10:40:31-06:00

I have created a new online gallery at:

Ten Masks

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-02-01T21:37:23-06:00

in sunlight and shadows... in moonlight and candles... ten masks

Japanese artists would paint screens to be viewed in different lights.. in sunlight, in shadow, in moonlight and in candlelight. Or so I read in a magazine at the beauty parlor, you never know where the big ideas will come from. All of the mask paintings have the same basic composition, the mask and horizon line is positioned in the same place, the features of the face all measured to the same dimensions. The difference is light and shadow and how it can fall on a face and change the expression. I thought it would be challenging to use a mask to express feelings, hiding behind the mask... our true emotions.

I got the idea for the mask series many years ago. I painted the first mask painting maybe sixteen years ago. Then I had a baby and built a house, I did not paint during this busy time.And then a series of unfortunate events in my life left me feeling lost. I decided to have an exhibit, painting would be my therapy. I never forgot about the mask painting and decided to repaint it. It started with despair where many journeys of discovery begin, rock bottom. As I would finish one painting the next one would appear like a vision. I finished all ten paintings in an eight month period and had an exhibition. I completed other paintings but nothing has meant more to me.I recently dusted them off and decided to make a movie useing my new art tool, the computer, to give them a new life.

The "Mask" series is inspired by the Japanese Noh theater. Noh is a kind of symbolic drama, the actors perform while wearing masks. It's themes concentrate on human destiny rather than events. It is performed on a very simple stage, and it has developed into a highly stylized art.
Rather than explain the meaning of every symbol in the paintings, I like to hear how the viewers interprete them themselves.

I was very surprised when I had an exhibit that two television stations and a newspaper reporter showed up for interviews since I am a complete nobody. During my exhibit, people kept trying to touch my paintings to see if they were really flat...I kid you not! I even caught two middle aged women scratching one to see if it was a pastel, luckily not or it would of been damaged. It was strange, this behavior was most disappointing to me and I felt like I was on guard at a museum during the exhibit. I have been discouraged to have another exhibit since.

I did enter one painting (5 love) in a juried art exhibit at a big important museum in Tokyo and the judge wrote me a lovely note about making the roses more realistic. I did appreciate that he took the time to write me some words of encouragement, even though I felt he missed the point that my paintings are not about realism. Isn't it obvious? My painting was also returned deliberately defaced, in such a way that it could only of been deliberate. Someone put a red dot on the forehead like they do in India, a third eye. Someone's idea of a joke I suppose though I didn't find it very funny and I detest unprofessional behavior. After that I pretty much gave up on exhibits in Japan.

I did try to exhibit in America and thought it would be great to exhibit with a real mask artist. I asked a few and they politely turned me down. Too expensive without a sponsor and they were right , these things should not be entered into lightly and would anyone really show up to make it worth the effort? So I gave up on that too.

I use to have the whole collection hanging on the first floor of my house but Japanese children found them so scary that sometimes they would even burst into tears ( again I'm not kidding ) so I kind of gave up on that and they are now hanging in a secret location.

______________________________________________________________________________
The "Mask" series was inspired by the Japanese Noh Theater. To learn about Noh please try this site:
http://jguide.stanford.edu/site/noh_428.html

Dogwood

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-04-16T21:17:52-05:00

April 16th
Dogwood In Bloom
Now the dogwood tree in front of my house is blooming. There are many dogwood trees where I live in Japan, many streets are lined with dogwoods. The dogwood tree was a present from America in exchange for the cherry blossom trees that are famous in Washington D.C. The problem with Cherry Blossom trees are the annoying black flies that circle around your head if you go anywhere near them when they are in bloom.
Not so with the Dogwood, it's a beautiful tree.

Purikura

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-08-29T21:11:16-05:00

August 29th
Purikura (print club)
I'm painting again and I have started to paint a series of paintings that will be influenced by Japanese pop culture. When my daughter meets her friends they always go to a digital picture sticker booth which is vastly superior to the old photo booths I would go to when I was young. The picture sticker booth was invented in Japan, these pictures are called "purikura" which is derived from the English words "print club". You have the ability to change the lighting, the backdrops, add your own writing or add special effects, this is all decided within a few minutes. My daughter always shows me her new purikura and I'm fascinated by these tiny pictures and the designs and colors that she and her friends make, what a wonderful memory of being young and hanging out with your friends.

This is my interpretation of purikura, it has a very flat, stylized background surrounding the figure with a message written into and part of the design in a innocent child-like manner. I have combined modern with traditional, which I often do, with the waves right out of a Japanese wood block print. This is just the first experiment hopefully they will improve. Titled "His Dream Is My Nightmare"
I love the beach but I have a fear of being in the ocean it's my nightmare. The ocean is deep dark water full of scary creatures that will eat you. When we went to Guam I was walking in water only up to my knees and screaming to get out. I may have permanently damaged my daughter too on this matter hopefully she will overcome her mother's fears and be a far more adventurous person than I am.

Self-Portrait

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-05-13T21:02:28-05:00

May 13th
Disheveled Middle Aged Woman
Another week, another painting. I finished a self-portrait, I haven't done a self-portrait since my college days and I haven't done a portrait of anyone for at least twelve years. The last portrait I painted was of my daughter when she was four years old. I added this painting to the end of my "Ten Masks" movie. I think it looks like me except maybe ten years younger. It's hard to paint all the wrinkles.

I'm wearing my bathrobe and pajamas because I've been wearing them so much do to health problems and I guess they are my favorite clothes. The mask I'm holding is the Noh mask for a disheveled middle aged woman.

Air Of Loneliness

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-05-23T21:01:01-05:00

May 23rd
Air Of Loneliness
I will be changing domain hosts soon so my site may be disrupted for a day. I have also joined a new art gallery site : spraygraphic.com

I also finished the fourth painting in the "Lily Pond" series, the title of this painting is "Air Of Loneliness" . I was only planning to do four paintings in this series, it is inspired by the book "Snow Country" written by the first Japanese writer to win the Nobel Prize, Yasunari Kawabata who is believed to have committed suicide. "Snow Country" explores themes of loneliness and the possibility of love. To learn more go to my paintings-lily pond series page.

Portrait Of Mimi

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-05-30T20:58:31-05:00

May 30th
Daughter's Portrait

Finished a portrait of my daughter today. She became seventeen years old this month. Before my daughter started high school in America she wanted to put some pink strips of color in her hair. She could never do this and go to high school in Japan most schools have very strict rules, no dyed hair, no makeup, no jewelry etc... So I couldn't blame her for wanting to have a little fun. The schools in Japan can go too far like making a student with naturally brown hair dye it black or if the student has naturally wavy hair like my daughter they question her like she committed a crime because perms are against the rules. Conformity is the driving force behind these rules and I think it is stressful for the students sometimes. She likes her American high school better but she misses her Japanese friends.
In the background of this painting you can see a small picture of my daughter when she was seven years old. In Japan there is a special religious ceremony performed at the shrine for girls at this age. They usually wear either a kimono or a party dress. I wanted to compare the difference between the ages of seven and seventeen. Also in the background you can see my eyes and our dog Emma watching Millei grow up. The rose symbolizes my love for my daughter.

Freshly Pealed

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-05-05T20:55:45-05:00

May 5th
Freshly Pealed
I surprise myself today by actually keeping to my plan to finish at least one painting a week. I finished the third painting in the "Lily Pond" series. The first two paintings were very stylized, influenced by an antique kimono design. What I like about this painting is that it has more of a feeling of real water and the reflection of clouds. My daughter likes the fishes' mouths.

Freshly Pealed

Obama and Japan

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2009-01-27T20:07:14-06:00

This month Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States. I found a few clips about President Obama and Japan. Obama is also a name is Japan. In the first clip a man named Obama who has become famous in Japan as the Japanese Obama travels to the USA with very little command of the English language to meet Obama. His never give up attitude comes from Obama's words "Yes We Can". I think this video shows how people in other countries have also been inspired by Obama. Nothing much going on with me this month because the weather has been horrific this winter in Iowa. Every week snow, ice and dangerously cold weather. I’m definitely suffering from cabin fever this month. In Japan I usually feel like this during the long hot humid summer when we have rainy season and then typhoon season.

In this next clip CNN reports about the city of Obama in Japan.

And in the last clip the Obama song. I've never seen the Japanese get this excited about their own elections.

Christmas

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-12-25T16:42:00-06:00

December 25
Merry Christmas to all of my friends in Japan and the USA. Iowa is cold and miserable in winter. It's hard to come back to -12 F (-24 C) temperatures once you've been away I'm asking myself why I ever left beautiful Japan to live in this frozen wasteland but I was able to have fun over the holidays with my friends and family and was even invited to a Christmas party.

This is my friend's Christmas tree not mine. See that painting on the right I did that it's a portrait of my friend we met in high school 34 years ago.

This is my friend's kitchen not mine where we made some Christmas goodies for the party.

This is my friend who's a very talented guy playing the piano. Everyone enjoyed singing Christmas carols at the party.

At the party I met a man who covers his truck with Christmas lights every year. He said It takes him 2 or 3 days to duct tape the lights on.

I also met a man from Mexico who opened his own cake shop in Des Moines named Let Them Eat Cake. He made this Christmas cake for the party. I foolishly didn't eat any because at the time I was stuffed. I think I gained 2 or 3 pounds over the holidays.

This is not a real fireplace but a DVD playing on my sister's big flat screen TV. It gives us the illusion of warmth and coziness. I spent Christmas Day with my family at my sister's.

And now for something from Japan. This is a guy who makes vegetables into musical instruments. In this case a big piece of broccoli. For your listening enjoyment he will play Angels We Have Heard On High.

No painting yet but I'm working on three and next month I'm sure you can see my new work. Happy Holidays!

The end of autumn

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-11-12T19:09:22-06:00

November 12th
The end of autumn, I hate saying the beginning of winter because it's a depressing time especially here in Iowa where we have such a terrible long winter. My home in Japan the weather was milder but we couldn't afford to heat our whole house, at least here every room is warm. Americans complain about their high prices but try living in Japan, it's twice as much.
I dressed up for Halloween this year since I was with my daughter. I'm the ultimate mother so I dressed as my evil twin "Bad MaMa".

I had to borrow some clothes from my daughter. I'm wearing her jr. prom dress. Pretty scary.

Here's a picture of the Iowa State University Campus taken the beginning of this month on one of the last beautiful days we had.

Since this picture was taken we've had our first snow fall. ISU has one of the most beautiful campuses in the USA, at noon there is a little concert when the bells play in the tower.

Still adjusting to being an American again, I am eating more like an American but I cannot eat the large amount of food they give you at the restaurants so my daughter and I usually buy one meal and share.

This is one of my favorite local places to eat, you get homemade vegetable chips instead of potato chips. I do have a weakness for junk food especially chips and chocolates.

I don't have a car so my nephew is letting me borrow his for the time being. He had a little accident but it still purrs like a kitten.

A Buick LeSabre my sweet ride. My daughter calls it our ghetto ride.

I have a new friend. Brazilian artist Claudia Xavier Delima. Here is a link to her site. http://www.claudiaxavierdelima.com/ She has a wonderful site so please visit it and say hello. I belong to a variety of on-line galleries and Claudia and I discussed putting links on our site to our friend's sites which I think is a great idea. I will plan on doing that in the near future.
I have started painting and hopefully my next entry will be my new painting.

Halloween Purikura

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-10-30T08:59:47-05:00

October 30th
Happy Halloween!

Cute Purikura Online

Culture Shock

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-10-23T17:38:04-05:00

October 23rd
Culture shock is the feeling of disorientation by someone who is suddenly subjected to an unfamiliar culture, way of life, or set of attitudes. I am still going through the emotional ups and downs of adjusting to life in a small town in Iowa. Yesterday I was up but today I'm down really down, it's been cold and rainy here all week and this time of year in Japan is always so beautiful, my favorite time of year. Right now I feel like I'm in hell. I've got to start painting again.
On the other hand last weekend we had beautiful weather. My daughter and I went to a park and saw a natural sculpture exhibit. We walked for about 3 hours.

This is the natural sculture exhibit we visited.

We walked around this lake.

This is how bad my culture shock is, when I first saw this I thought it was another sculpture but no it's a bike rack. Duh.
Every time I go to a park here I see someone getting their picture taken. Americans apparently like having their picture taken outside for different occasions such as an engagement announcement, wedding, new baby or a high school senior graduating. I was making fun of this and asked my daughter to take a high school senior picture of me outside but my daughter calls these my senior citizen pictures.

Graduating in life my senior citizen pictures. Somebody please help me.

New Life

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-10-13T21:49:15-05:00

October 13
I returned to America last month and am now living in a small town in Iowa. My life has change completely from the one I had in Japan. In Japan I lived in a city surround by mountains with a view of Mt. Fuji. I had a home, two cars, a cute little dog and a great job as a teacher. In Iowa I live in a city surrounded by flat farmland. I have a small apartment, no car, no dog, no job but I do get to live with my daughter. My daughter wanted to experience high school in America and I came here to be with her. Even though I'm American I lived in Japan for twenty-one years and feel more comfortable in Japan than America. I am suffering from culture shock everytime I try to do something, today I tackled the complexities of grocery shopping. The shopping cart is hugh, the food unfamiliar, the store is too big it takes too long to find anything and how does one check out? Luckily the people here have been kind and helpful on the whole making my transition a little less stressful.

I had my 51st birthday this month and I deserved this slice of double fudge chocolate madness supreme cake.

We Are Best Friends

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-09-11T23:59:13-05:00

September 12th
I'm very happy today because on top of preparing for a long trip to America and getting all my documents together and going to doctors and so on I was able to finish another "purikura" painting ( for explanation click August 2008 in the left hand column) in a fairly short amount of time. I'm not sure when I will be painting again because I will not be able to take anything with me and will be very busy but hopefully soon.

Titled: We Are Best Friends

Picnic By The Lake

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-09-07T01:03:51-05:00

September 7th
Picnic by the lake
Went to Lake Kawaguchi again today, one of the five lakes of Mt. Fuji and I think my favorite. Too cloudy to see Fuji but lots of autumn ornamental grass even though it is still very hot and humid.

I ate lunch by the lake, an onigiri ( rice ball wrapped in dried seaweed ).

I use to hate nori ( dried seaweed ) but I grew to appreciate it. I've been told that onigiri are the "Japanese hamburger" and that nori will give you glossy black hair, so far it hasn't. It's been too hot to do much of anything and I haven't been painting or preparing for my trip to America. My onigiri looks like Mt. Fuji.

Fireworks and Guam

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-08-14T02:33:51-05:00

August 14th
Fireworks and Guam
My daughter went to one of the many fireworks shows we have in Japan in the summer, this is a little bit of the video she took. She went with some friends mom wasn't invited sorry I missed it, the firework shows in Japan are the best. My daughter has returned to America and I will be joining her in September and living in a small town in Iowa, this will be a big adjustment for me even though I grew up in Iowa I haven't lived there for years and am more Japanese than Iowan, I'm sure I will suffer from culture shock for a while. I will miss Japan very much!

This summer we went to Guam for the first and probably last time. Guam was very hot and humid, my hotel room was awful it had a strong smell of mold and everything felt wet but it did have a swimming pool next to the ocean and we could watch the sunset every night which was quite beautiful. I didn't like Guam at first but after a while it started to grow on me, still I don't think I will ever go there again too many Japanese tourist!

It's unfortunate I don't have any pictures of us riding the banana boat because that would have been the funniest picture of me ever. I thought I was going to die!

Lake Kawaguchi

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-06-15T17:43:27-05:00

June 16th
Sunday Afternoon at Lake Kawaguchi
My daughter is home for summer vacation so I will be lucky if I can pick up a paint brush. Sunday I went to the Mt. Fuji five lakes area and took a walk around Lake Kawaguchi, even though it's rainy season in Japan we are having pretty decent weather. This scene reminded me of a George Seurat painting "Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Gande Jatte".

Matsumoto Castle

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-05-05T02:21:14-05:00

May 7th
Magnificent Matsumoto Castle
It was golden week in Japan and I went to Matsumoto Castle yesterday. I wasn't that thrilled about going because I've been there several times before but the weather was perfect and the scent of Wisteria was in the air so I actually had a good time. I tried going to the top of the castle which involves climbing very steep stairs. I was OK until I got to the last set of stairs, which are the hardest to climb, and then I knew I couldn't do it when I watched young healthy people struggling and almost falling to their deaths.

They also have a small museum on the castle grounds with a few interesting items like this collection of large wooden penises.

I also saw a giant straw sandal which could easily pass for modern art.

To see more of my pictures of magnificent Matsumoto Castle please look on the photo page.

Milky Way, Soft Happiness

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-04-16T05:42:59-05:00

I'm finally painting again after many health problems caused by a prescription drug. I will never take a drug without googling it again! I've been dealing with one problem after another for the last seven months and have to go to a pain clinic every week. I think I finally finished this painting, it took me months.

Milky Way
April 28th
Soft Happiness
Finished the second painting in the Lily Pond series in one week. It's my goal to finish one painting a week till my daughter returns for summer vacation in June. I have my doubts I will be able to do this but.. I'll give it a try. I am planning to do four paintings in this series.

Soft Happiness

Spring in Japan

josianneishikawa@gmail.com — 2008-03-18T04:16:13-05:00

March 18th
Spring In Japan
The beginning of Spring in Japan.
Went to view the plum blossom trees...

devoured a strawberry parfait.

March 30th
Cherry blossom trees were in full bloom today. There beauty is short lived and will only last the week.

Cherry blossom flavored sweets can also be enjoyed only at this time of year.

Cherry blossom ice cream.