| Name: | Blair Shogen Thomson |
| Time creatively active: | since graduation, Glasgow School of Art 2002 |
| Media + expression: | Shodo calligraphy, Zen teaching and practice, Shakyo Sutra copying, Tenkoku stampmaking, drawing, painting, photography, workshops |
| Research: | MPhil Research Candidate in Japanese Monastic Calligraphy University of Bristol Department of Religion and Theology |
Renga: place and time entwined
5th – 25th November 2023
Green Gallery, Dundee Botanics
This exhibition features work by eight artists who spent an August weekend making art in the Botanics this year.
Our work was inspired by the Japanese concept of Renga. Renga is a form of poetry composed by a group of authors: each contributing their part in a dynamic, unfolding process. It encapsulates the experience of being in a specific place and time.
Exhibition in Japan
Blair participated in the ART/X/TOYAMA international exhibition in Japan in May 2022. ART/X/TOYAMA is a contemporary public exhibition showing artworks from Japanese and international invited artists, and has been held every four years. Blair exhibited a series of twelve photographs as well as two abstract paintings.
Zazen practice:
at peace
within the heart
the clear moon
even the smashing waves
reflecting light
(Waka by Master Dogen, trans. Shogen)
temporal voids
of cerulean blue –
ice holes, pulsating –
falling apart rapidly
plummeting