Moon-over-wATER

While in New York, during the summer of 2000, I made the personal acquaintance of Taiwanese artist Huang Chih-Yang. As CrossPathCulture artists in residence, Huang and I shared a studio at the then CPC offices located on Broadway near Canal and White Streets in Manhattan, New York.

While I speak no Chinese and Huang has a limited use of English we where occasionally provided with the generous use of a translator by Huang's dealer, “Ethan Cohen Fine Arts - New York”. Huang and I spent several weeks during the late summer and fall just hanging together in New York, discussing issues of art and our own individual work. Additionally, we also participated in the group exhibition “Echoes of a Countdown - Path3”, at Media & Beyond -- organized by CrossPathCulture, New York, U.S.A. 2000.
The results of our "conversations" and our new friendship were made manifest in our collaborative exhibition “corpoREAL (exchange)” held during the fall-winter of 2001. The exhibition was organized and made possible by CrossPathCulture in association with White Box Gallery, New York.

In November of 2000, just before Huang's return to his home in Taipei City, Taiwan, he gave me a small gift of a painting of Chinese calligraphic text. This text said, “Moon over Water” in Mandarin characters. Somehow, even through the fog of differing languages, Huang realized the significance of these characters and the power of this metaphor to me. “Moon over Water” became an example of what some might consider Huang and me being in touch with each others respective Chi, PaS/Yin—Huang Chih-Yang.

Then, during the summer of 2001, while staying at the summer home of Dr. E. Schneider and Dr. G. Baciewicz on Lake Canandaigua, New York, U.S.A. I had an opportunity to react to Huang's calligraphic text. While staying with my family at the beautiful and tranquil home of my benefactor, over looking the lake -- I had finally had some time to contemplate on my response to Huang's text. During a late August evening while observing the full Moon rise over Lake Canandaigua, nature afforded me the privilege of formulating my response. It would take form in a series of digital photographs of which this photo (seen above) is one. This series has been entitled “Moon over Water”; it is my response to Huang Chih-Yang's beautiful gift. Thanks Huang, I have such a great respect for your individual work and I love your gift very much. I hope you can appreciate my reaction to it. May it bring forth good CHI for us both!

Gerard PaS
New York - 2001