The Purple Tiger was painted as a gift for my mentor/guarantor at my temple. He’s the person who took responsibility for me so that I could become a private ordained Kegon Buddhist monk.
He had sent me a beautiful hand-painted New Year’s card and I wanted to send something extra-special as a thank you in return. What started as a simple digital painting to be done in a few hours took on a life of its own as I kept trying new things with it.
Why a tiger? It was the New Year season in the year of the tiger, 2022. Also my guarantor is in a position of great authority both here and abroad. A cute little kitten just wouldn’t fit.
Why purple? Besides being one of my favorite colors, the more senior highest ranking monks wear purple robes. It was the obvious choice.
It sits on the home page of my website because it was a breakthrough piece for me. It’s the piece where I finally started listening to my Artist inner voice.
I don’t know if such a thing as “spirit animals” exist, but if they do, I’m pretty sure at least one of mine is a powerful purple tiger. 💜
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