Peter Samerjan
P & C Fine Art - Catalog
Company: P & C Fine, Inc. - Washington D.C.
Product: Michelle Samerjan Winter 2008 Exhibit & Show
Marketing Strategy: This 16 page booklet spotlighted a selection of individual works for Michelle Samerjan’s Nov. 2008 show.The catalog was mailed out to gallery clients. It was important not only to capture the images, but design each page to feature the story for each original work and its listing on media and materials. A decision was made during the initial consultation to go for this larger booklet size even though it would require extra postage. The greater page size allowed the art to be displayed along with a significant amount of copy and still feel “roomy.”
Usage: Direct mail and hand-out at gallery locations
Agency: Samerjan 743 Art Director: Peter Samerjan Copywriter: Peter Samerjan
Researcher: Peter Samerjan
Front Cover
Michelle Samerjan
NEW ORIGINAL WORKS OF ART – WINTER 2008/2009
Page 2
BRASSICA JUNCEA
(Meaning “brown mustard” in Latin and pronounced, “ bras-i-kuh june-see-ah”)
Brown mustard is thought to have originated in India as early as 3000 B.C. But instead of being used in culinary pursuits, it was believed to have mystic powers and if the seeds were spread around one’s house it would ward off evil spirits. Eventually the plant spread to China, where again instead of being used in food, it became a staple of Chinese medicine. Over time the Romans brought the plant into Europe and specifically in England. By 1814, Colman’s Mustard originated and was one of the many exports of British colonialism, even back to China where its use as a culinary condiment became even more widespread.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic paints on heavy French watercolor paper, bordered with insets of gold leafed wooden
braiding.
• Outside panels wrapped in Japanese oil cloth, over hand-painted Japanese silk.
• Adorned at top right with a fragment from a late 1800’s Japanese raku pot accented with
suspended late 1800’s Chinese silk tassel from a wall hanging.
Page 3
CH’U (Meaning, “to marry” in Chinese and pronounced, “chew”)
Every wedding anniversary, my husband gifts me with an antique Chinese wedding basket with another thoughtful present inside. This year, it was an extraordinary wood basket gilded with Chinese symbols of love and partnership. But this year, it was filled with a bounty of wild flowers from our garden. He said, “No hidden trinket or jewel would surpass the expression of abundance or vibrancy you have embodied in each and every day of our married lives.” I gushed and of course painted my gift for other lovers to enjoy.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic and metallic paints on heavy watercolor paper, bordered with insets of 17th century
Japanese music and poetry composed for the Imperial Court, adorned at each corner with a 16th
century Chinese cash coin.
• Outside panels covered with gilded Yixing plaster with impressions formed using 17th – 18th
century Asian fabric stamps.
Page 4
JADE SPRING
In China, the teas and water that are brewed are viewed much as wine is in the Western world. But back in the 1700s, Emperor Qianlong turned the world of Chinese tea drinking upside-down. China’s most revered tea, Dragon Well was always to be brewed only from the nearby Spring of Running Tigers. But he had grown up drinking from the Jade Spring by the Imperial Palace. He deemed that Dragon Well tea would be brewed at court using water from the Jade Spring. This truly caused a tempest in a teapot. Until the Emperor figured the lightest water would have the least impurities. So revered springs across the Empire had one ounce of their water weighed. The winner – Jade Spring by four one thousandths of an ounce over Dragon Well. Indeed, the Emperor knew his tea!
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic, fluorescent and metallic paints on heavy French watercolor paper, surrounded with gilded
border.
• Insets of royal blue “lotus” brocade woven at the famous religious mills at Varanasi, India.
• Outside gilded border panels of woven Chinese bamboo, adorned with four late 1800s Tibetan
lapis and silver medallions from a woman’s necklace, and accented with one larger one at upper
right with late 1800’s Chinese silk tassel.
Page 5
LAVANDE TOURBILLON
(Meaning, “lavender swirl” in French and pronounced, “lah-vond tour-beel-on”)
In 1387 in France, the king Charles VI decreed that all of the cushions in the palace were to be filled with lavender. The exquisite scent perfumed the royal halls and also helped preserve the rich tapestries and fabrics as lavender also deters moths and other insects. During the first years of using lavender the royal court swirled with romantic intrigue and passionate affairs. Perhaps someone should have informed the king that lavender is also a powerful aphrodisiac. Mon dieu!
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic and fluorescent paints on heavy watercolor paper, bordered with inset of contemporary
purple suede.
• Set into an Artist designed frame with an “altar” motif, gold-leafed and adorned with insets of 16th
century Pali prayer book pages, accented with five contemporary metal flourishes.
Page 6
PADMA KALASHA
(Meaning,“lotus treasure vase” in Sanskrit and pronounced, “pod-mah call-asha”)
In Buddhism, it is said that the dawn following Buddha’s famous night under the tree of Bodh Gaya, marked the beginning of joy and goodness spreading to all the kingdoms of the universe. Eight celestial beings were said to flock to the site with eight gifts for “the enlightened one.” Two of the eight were a padma or lotus flower symbolizing purity, and a kalasha or treasure vase containing spiritual jewels and lustral waters, the nectar of immortality. The memory of the centuries and of mankind has retained some of these presents. “Padma Kalasha”… the gift keeps on giving.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic and fluorescent paints and raised 18kt gold all on heavy watercolor paper.
• Border panels of late 1800’s Indian sari cloth and late 1800’s Chinese altar silk wrapped in red silk.
• Adorned at top right with an early 1800’s Tibetan red tassel from a horse trapping suspended
under a Chinese Ming Dynasty “ghost script” charm with symbolism of snake, stars and moon.
Page 7
SHAN HUA
(Meaning, “mountain flower” in Chinese and pronounced, “shaan who-ah”)
Having nurtured and grown thousands of irises over the years, I must say it is a lasting love for me. As winter descends, they are the first colors of renewal. The leaves are strong and stalwart as nature’s swords protecting the most delicate, translucent petals suspended like a cascade of weightless curls on a gentle face. Here, a recent favorite preens in front of majestic mountains, a fitting backdrop for these exquisite beauties.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic and fluorescent paints on heavy watercolor paper, bordered with insets of mid-1800s
Mongolian Buddhist prayer pages with Sanskrit calligraphy, accented with four 12th - 14th century
Chinese cash coins.
• Outside panels of molded and sculpted linen draped over petrified fern fronds accented with acrylic
paints.
Page 8
SI LING-CHI
(A famous empress of China and pronounced, “See Lee-ang-chee”)
Around 2700 B.C., the Empress of China, Si Ling-chi sat in her garden drinking tea under the mulberry tree. Upon hearing a slight rustle from above a cocoon fell from the tree into her cup. In the hot water, the cocoon began to unravel quickly filling the cup with shimmering strands. In amazement, she began to envision that she would have an exquisite gown woven for her husband, Hoang-ti, “the Yellow Emperor.” Over the years, she led the perfecting of how to create silk and cultivate the silkworm. A secret China treasured for thousands of years, and in so doing became the “Goddess of Silk” to which the word “silk” is how her name was phonetically pronounced in ancient Chinese.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic, metallic and fluorescent paints on heavy 2-ply watercolor paper, bordered with gold leaf
insets.
• Outside border panels of late 1800’s silk Indian sari cloth overprinted using a hand-carved 16th
century Pali wooden prayer book cover.
• Adorned at top right with a late 1800’s Chinese silk tassel suspended from a vintage Tibetan silver,
torquoise and coral gau.
Page 9
THE EMPEROR’S ROSE
As early as 500 B.C., Confucius wrote of the Emperor’s passion for roses. The Emperor was said to have over 600 books in his library on only the cultivation and harvesting of roses. The Imperial Rose Garden was legendary and the roses grown in that garden were harvested for their aromatic oils. Only nobility and the Emperor could be in possession of a rose or this essential oil. A commoner found with either was put to death. By the 18th century, the Chinese rose had been smuggled into Europe, not for their precious oil, but unlike European roses, Chinese roses flowered repeatedly. It is said no rose would ever refuse to bloom for the Son of Heaven.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic, fluorescent and luminescent paints on heavy watercolor paper, bordered with wooden insets
wrapped with Japanese silk.
• Adorned at each corner with a late 1800’s painted silver Buddha from a Tibetan child’s hat.
• Outside panels covered with painted organza over late 1800’s Chinese “infinity” silk and metallic
brocade.
Page 10
CHOU
(Meaning, “friend or comrade” in Chinese and pronounced, “ch-ohh”)
Viewing a koi pond is a glimpse into a world rarely seen. Think of all the animals you have witnessed, dogs, cats, animals at the zoo, etc. In most ways, communities of animals mirror human society. There are leaders, followers, good times, bad times, fights and dust ups. In a koi pond, you witness pure
harmony. The koi exist as friends. There is tranquility, except of course in domestic ponds at feeding time. But the koi are a world of beauty, harmony and friendship. Many koi move as a group, almost becoming one. And for humans we speak of one planet, is it possible? Maybe koi hold the answer.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival wooden panel)
• Acrylic and fluorescent paints on heavy watercolor paper, bordered with insets of actual bamboo,
adorned at each corner with mother of pearl shells.
• All on archival wooden panel covered with sculpted Yixing plaster with impressions formed using
17th – 18th Asian fabric stamps, then painted and gilded.
• Accented at right with an early 1800’s Thai Buddhist amulet formed from ceramic dust from an
ancient Buddhist stupa.
Page 11
STEALING SNOW
The dividing line between immortality and mortality in Chinese mythology is blurred. The first divine human being was known as Pan Gu. As this giant lay dying, his human form was transformed into the parts of the cosmos. His breath became the wind and clouds, his eyes became the sun and moon, and his blood became rivers and rains and his flesh the soil. For me in the hereafter, the form of a wild steed smacking the tundra, wind in mane, “stealing snow” out of the reflection in my eye, would suit my simple existence just fine.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic, fluorescent and metallic paints on heavy 2 ply watercolor paper, bordered with insets of
mid 1800’s Tibetan Sanskrit.
• Outside top, bottom and side panels wrapped in late 1800’s quilted Mongolian, wrapped with vintage
embroidered horse cloth, then wrapped at top and bottom with vintage Miao embroidery from China.
• Sides wrapped with late 1800’s Chinese embroidery from a Miao baby carrier, then wrapped in late
1800’s Turkmenistan embroidery including tassels from a horse trapping.
• Adorned at top with a mid-1800’s Afghanistan belt medallion.
Page 12
BONNET DE PRÊTRE
(Meaning, “priest’s hat” in French and pronounced, “beau-nay de pra-trah”)
The English word “patty pan” as it relates to squash was derived from the French word, “pâtisson” that described a cake that was made in a scalloped mould that was very much a product of Province in France. But many in France had never seen the mold or the cake and so they referred to these scalloped squashes by something they were not only familiar with, saw every day, but also closely resembled, bonnet de prêtre. Or priest’s hat that in the 18th century resembled these squashes, scallops and all.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic paints on heavy French watercolor paper, bordered with insets of mid-1800s Japanese
calligraphy from a grocer’s ledger of accounts, adorned at each corner with a 10th – 12th century
Chinese cash coin.
• Outside border panels wrapped in gilded bamboo threads.
Page 13
BUDDHA’S DELIGHT
Chinese long beans, leaks, baby bok choy, carrot, shitake mushrooms, all coarsely chopped with minced garlic, grated ginger, cilantro, salt and pepper. Sauté in sesame oil until tender. Pulse in a food processor with two egg whites and tablespoon of cornstarch. Then wrap in wonton wrappers and seal with egg whites. Steam for 10 to 12 minutes in bamboo steamer. Remove and dip in your favorite soy sauce (low sodium for me!) and you have experienced the most delicious pot sticker in your life…“Buddha’s delight.” Yours too I hope!
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic and metallic paints accented with raised copper Chinese calligraphy on heavy watercolor
paper, bordered with insets from a mid-1800’s Japanese grocer’sledger of accounts.
• Accented with four Chinese Song Dynasty (10th century) cash coins.
• Outside panels of embossed “cloud” paper from Asia bathed in acrylic paints, then gilded.
Page 14
CHARLIE’S GREEN
Over 100 years ago, the choice of tomatoes was absolutely dazzling. But with corporate farms and the need to produce more food cheaply and consistently, many varieties of tomatoes were lost or only survived on small farms. Today because of the efforts of many small, organic farmers, lost varieties are being nurtured and there may be over 600 available choices. One of my favorites is the juicy, Charlie’s Green. No one seems to know who Charlie is today, but his tomato is still succulent and thriving.
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic and luminescent paints on heavy French watercolor paper, bordered with insets of images of
early 1800s Chinese “thunder and cloud” embroidery on canvas.
• Adorned at each corner with a 14th – 16th century rare Chinese cash coin.
• Outside border panels of painted, gilded and acid-washed canvas.
Page 15
UNBEETABLE
Over millennia, beets have had an amazing journey. In prehistoric times, our beets of today slowly began to migrate from sea beets to a beet that could survive on land. But ancient people didn’t see this vegetable as edible; they saw it primarily for medicinal use. The Greeks used the leafy green leaves as one of the many offerings to Apollo. And it wasn’t until the 16th century having been planted through much of the Mediterranean and Europe that people began to use the beet as a vegetable for eating. Today, there are many varieties colors and shapes of this tasty vegetable and it has many fans in many recipes. But its usefulness continues to evolve. Today, beet juice is mixed with salt and even used to dissolve ice on our nation’s highways, truly a vegetable that after thousands of years continues to evolve. It is simply…unbeetable (I couldn’t resist!).
Notes on Media & Antiquities Used in Original Work (on archival museum board)
• Acrylic and luminescent paints on heavy French watercolor paper, with insets of copper leaf.
• Outside panels of molded and sculpted linen painted then acid-washed, adorned with four
10th – 12th century Chinese cash coins.
Page 16
The timeless art work of Michelle Samerjan
Antique embroidered Chinese fabrics, coins, charms, rare Buddhist manuscript pages…all become another “color” that this creative artist paints with.
Her work is not where east meets west, it is where east and west become one. Using the rich antiquities of the Far East and being enlightened by the teachings and mysticism of various countries and religions, Michelle Samerjan has perfected an art form that is beautiful to gaze at and display in any environment, and can be a portal to the journey of an awakened soul.
Her style of combining antiquities, textures, colors and bold painting into stunning visual landscapes interwoven with mythical threads from stories and cultures millennia ago, has produced art work collected by celebrities, sports heroes, royalty, political giants and collectors who respond to the many layers captured in each work.
To truly appreciate these original works, please take the time to stop by our Tysons Corner Gallery and let your art consultant introduce you to a place where past and present, east and west are exquisitely stopped in time.
Imperial Editions
Also available are Michelle Samerjan’s latest collection of Imperial Editions from the The Year of the Rat.
The Editions feature a tremendous amount of embellishment as applied by the Artist, and in some cases are adorned with coins, charms or talismans similar to the original work on which it is based.
Each of these Editions is on fine art watercolor paper and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity.