September 8 - October 27, 2017
“In China, Scholar Rocks are called Gongshi. Naturally formed or ‘sculpted’ stones in surprising shapes and textures, Gongshi have been appreciated by Chinese Literati for more than a thousand years. To the Chinese scholar, these rocks represented a focus for meditation of philosophic principles and served for contemplation prior to writing poems or painting.”
These works are my scholar rocks, formed first in my mind, then realized by the hand.
This work is void of the personal, the political. I am drawn to the monumental, to objects that have consistency in a larger time frame. The mountain, the moon, the meteor, these things feel pure to me. My Gongshi are made for contemplation, to study and lose yourself in the quiet color scheme and intricate line-work. I delight in detailed linear element because it requires the maker to slow down, to reach a place of meditation to execute.
Presented to you are visual definitions of Organic Stoicism. But this is not a bleak stoicism, it is a deep and meaningful philosophy. A way of thinking about the world that has been lost in the digital age. Perhaps it has been stored away in some dusty corner as far back as the Industrial Age. I look to the comfort of natural consistency, to the purity of its existence, and the impassiveness of nature. These are the things that anchor my soul. I hope that you too, will find a quiet moment with this work.
Matthew Cummings
Artist | Matthew Cummings
