Original modern painting of an archway and the moon made with wild grape, black walnut, and porcelain berry ink.

Size | 16x20 inches | 41 cm x 51 cm

Paper  |  Arches Aquarelle Watercolour - Acuarela | Cold Pressed. 300 g/m - 140 lb

Inspired by the massive stone arches of the Hell Gate Bridge approach in Astoria Park. A black walnut ink archway frames a moon in gray wild grape, set against a porcelain berry sky. The painting is about the portals we move through in life — accessing the shadow self and finding the light and truth that allow healing within it. Not fearing the darker passages, but making them beautiful, accessible, and a place of transformation.

STYLE

MODERN NATURE | Being outside, feeling the wind on the face, hearing water rushing, gurgling, roaring, smelling pine trees, and feeling cold, wet sand followed by soft, squishy moss are both intoxicating and calming. When painting, the circles mirror the sun and the moon, and the brush strokes imitate rushing wind, water lapping, the strength of mountains, or the silent paths we take. These are friendly reminders to seek shelter in the beauty where there are none.

INK 

BLACK WALNUT INK | Sunrise run, a craggy old tree silhouetted against the backdrop of the East River. Yellowy green globes with brown-black spots, gently bobbing at the ends of finger-like branches, smashing them open with a hammer, taking the desecrated fruit, boiling, mashing, straining until a beautiful, rich black-brown color glides across the paper.

WILD GRAPE INK | Back and forth, pushing a stroller, cheering on a scooter, traveling the same paths, you notice your surroundings in more detail. A beautiful old house, a for-sale sign in front, old grape vines wrap around an iron fence—muffled music from a white sedan, a man in a tracksuit on the phone talking excitedly. Casually talking to my Mom on the phone, I take out a gallon bag, parting leaves, gently plucking them, sticky hands, careful not to get stung by the buzzing bees.  Rinsing with cold water, removing city grime, stainless steel bowl, and potato masher, straining and funneling into a delicate, syrupy sweet smelling, lavender ink.

PORCELAIN BERRY INK | Varying shades of robins egg blue, small berries speckle a backdrop of dark green leaves along the brick walls by the Con Ed facility. People pass by, asking, staring; one woman said she had eaten them before daily. Don't let the dazzling blue color fool you, though. These berries as ink are traitors! On the inside, a soft cream color, an ethereal peachy beige emerges triumphant upon mashing, boiling, and straining.

PACKAGING | Each painting is stamped with archival ink, with the artist's Japanese last name on the front and a Funabashi studio stamp on the back. The types of ink used, where they were found, the approximate date of creation, and an ID number are all meticulously inscribed by hand and signed with a fountain pen, ensuring the accuracy and authenticity of each piece.

SHIPPING | The painting will be carefully sealed in a cellophane bag and loosely rolled into a USPS Priority Mail Small Tube. Please remove it carefully from the tube, unroll it, and give it time to rest and flatten after its journey. We send all packages within 48 hours and sooner when possible. You will receive an email with tracking information after it ships. If you have any shipping questions or want to use a different carrier, please email kelly@funabashi.studio. We only ship in the US, but please reach out & email kelly@funabashi.studio if you're interested, and in another country, we'd love to make it work.

We accept the following forms of payment: 

Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, Diner's Club, JCB, and Apple Pay

*The actual colors of the painting may vary slightly. The color difference is due to computer monitors displaying colors differently, and we all see colors slightly differently. We try extremely hard to ensure our photos are as close to real life as possible, but please understand that the actual color may vary slightly from your monitor. We cannot guarantee that the color you see on the website will accurately portray the product's color in person.