初學 (OtrC00001)

Note: Please read together with 平正 (OtrC00002)
 
Alice Fu 傅凱兒 
初學, 2016 
壓克力 畫布 acrylic on canvas,  300mm dia.
 
These two paintings represent the different period of the artist, Alice Fu. 「初學」(OtrC00001) was made in 2016, when the artist first started to learn Chinese ink painting and indigo dyeing. Chinese ink painting focuses on dyeing, which is similar to Japanese bingata ( stencil dyeing on cloth or paper by using natural pigments). It was then that she became fascinated by natural pigments and dyeing and began to study them.
 
It wasn't until 2023 that she saw Mr Brian Kam Ka, whom she had known for almost a decade and who was also a mentor and friend, collecting Japanese soy sauce bottles and making progress in his pottery journey in recent years, which inspired the artist greatly. Now in her seventh year of learning, and having gone through the pandemic, the artist has been thinking more deeply about how the craft can be put into practice in contemporary Hong Kong. One of these is to raise the awareness of the importance of using local materials and to communicate with the community and raise public awareness of community issues through crafts such as pattern dyeing and tie dyeing. Therefore, for the work「平正」in 2023, the artist used all natural materials and traditional Japanese Yuzen dyeing technique as well as local rice bran to make the rice paste for dyeing.
 
這兩幅作品代表創作者傅凱兒不同年代的閱歷。「初學」是2016年剛開始學習中國工筆水墨畫及做藍染而創作。工筆畫著重渲染，有點像日本紅型染在布或紙上刷色，當時創作者用最傳統的天然顏料創作。就是那時候讓她迷上天然顏料及染色，並開始研究起來。
 
直到2023年，看見認識了接近十年、亦師亦友的陶藝課甘家偉老師正醉心研究日本豉油樽，這幾年在建立自己陶藝之路上不斷進步，給創作者很多啟發。學天然染藝踏入第七個年頭，並經過新冠病毒大流行的洗禮，創作者對工藝在當代實踐上有更深入思考。其一是如何透過把日本糯米糊型染本地化去思考使用本地物料的重要性，透過手藝，如型染和紮染去跟社群交流及引發大眾對社區議題的關注。因此這個2023年的作品，創作者用了全天然物料及傳統日本型友禪及本地米糠做的糠米型染糊去製作。
 
創作者曾為日本研究系出版的刊物《希哲》做的藍染作品命名「平正」時，提到來自唐代的大書法家孫過庭《書譜》的詩句「初學分布，但求平正；既知平正，務追險絕；既能險絕，復歸平正。初謂未及，中則過之，後乃通會，通會之際，人書俱老。」