Biomorphic Landscapes
“The painter’s business thus is not just to copy or imitate, but to give to the object something living in its own right.” —D.T. Suzuki,
Zen and Japanese Culture
Painting watercolors entails a collaboration between the artist and a living medium that cannot be completely controlled, or erased.
Water moves, colors mix, and forms take shape unexpectedly, sparking mystery and curiosity.
As in zen practice, the act delicately clings to the right state of mind that can allow for this collaboration to happen: one requiring psychological introspection.
Though seemingly abstract, these biomorphic landscapes – animal, insect, bacteria, human, forest, field, flower, plant –
are influenced by an attraction to the natural world, and as such, appear very familiar.
The hues – bright, intense, descriptive – come from daily observations which have been processed and reassembled.
This is meditative painting.
Watercolor Painting
Self-directed explorations, since 1995
EXHIBITS
- + “Landscapes & Personalities: What Do You See?” (Solo), Frances Howard Goldwyn Hollywood Library, CA, 10/2009
- + “Postcards from the Edge” AIDS Benefit, ZieherSmith Gallery, NYC, NY, 1/2010
- + Salonul International Artis 2010, Bucharest, Romania, 10/2010
- + “Right Side / Left Side” (Solo), Blankspaces, LA, CA, 10/2010 – 6/2011
- + “Postcards from the Edge” AIDS Benefit, CRG Gallery, NYC, NY, 1/2011
- + “Ligne et Couleur”, Paris, France, 4/2012
PUBLIC ART
Santa Clarita Art Stop Project, Soledad & Sierra Bus Transit Station, Santa Clarita, CA, 10/2010
ON TV – COMMERCIALS
- + iPhone, 6/2010
- + Charter Cable, 7/2010
- + Chef Boyardee, 8/2010
- + Epson, 6/2011
- + BMW UK, 11/2011
- + Direct TV, 1/2012
PRINTS
Available for purchase
“The painter’s business thus is not just to copy or imitate, but to give to the object something living in its own right.” —D.T. Suzuki,
Zen and Japanese Culture
Hollywood Library Interactive Exhibit (visitors named paintings)
Oil over Watercolor (trying to transition to a new medium)
Ioana started painting watercolors in college after discovering the medium in an architectural sketching class in Denmark.
She was initially drawn to it because it was very affordable (a little pigment can cover a lot of ground + she bought her first professional set,
Russian paints which lasted many years, for almost nothing, on a trip to Latvia).
Painting watercolors entails a collaboration between the artist and a living medium that cannot be completely controlled, or erased.
Water moves, colors mix, and forms take shape unexpectedly, sparking mystery and curiosity.
As in zen practice, the act delicately clings to the right state of mind that can allow for this collaboration to occur, one requiring psychological introspection.
Santa Clarita (Public) Art Stop
Hollywood Library Interactive Exhibit (visitors named paintings)
Though seemingly abstract, these biomorphic landscapes – animal, insect, bacteria, human, forest, field, flower, plant –
are influenced by an attraction to the natural world, and as such, appear very familiar.
The hues – bright, intense, descriptive – come from daily observations which have been processed and reassembled.
This is meditative painting.
Her early paintings are very vertical because she would cut larger sheets in half to save money.
Ioana started painting watercolors in college after discovering the medium in an architectural sketching class in Denmark.
She was initially drawn to it because it was very affordable (a little pigment can cover a lot of ground + she bought her first professional set,
Russian paints which lasted many years, for almost nothing, on a trip to Latvia).
Hollywood Library Interactive Exhibit (visitors named paintings)
As Ioana started painting exploratively, she became excited by the unpredictability of the medium, its living nature, and the speed (watercolors dry fast).
Invented worlds, by which to escape defined reality, could be created quickly.
Her early paintings are very vertical because she would cut larger sheets in half to save money.
As Ioana started painting exploratively, she became excited by the unpredictability of the medium, its living nature, and the speed (watercolors dry fast).
Invented worlds, by which to escape defined reality, could be created quickly.
Names Given to a Watercolor by Visitors at Hollywood Library Interactive Exhibit
Work/Credits
Paintings & Hollywood Library Exhibit Design: Ioana Urma.
Hollywood Library Exhibit Installation: Ioana Urma & Sorin Constantin.
Photos: Sorin Constantin (Hollywood Library), Ioana Urma (participatory names detail, Santa Clarita Art Stop).
Hollywood Library Exhibit Video: LA Cityview Channel 35.
