Patricia Buck

Patricia Buck

Columbia, MD

My artwork emphasizes color and surface texture to create visually energetic, dynamic paintings. Though abstract, they always convey feeling and meaning.

Message
Paintings of the I Ching: Magenta Light with Copper by Patricia Buck Image: This painting on paper is part of a series on paintings of the I Ching which exhibited at Arnold and Porter in 1991. Nineteen of 23 paintings sold. I was unwilling to relinquish this work, which has been in my collection since then. It is finally available for sale. Inventory #1990-001.
This painting on paper is part of a series on paintings of the I Ching which exhibited at Arnold and Porter in 1991. Nineteen of 23 paintings sold. I was unwilling to relinquish this work, which has been in my collection since then. It is finally available for sale. Inventory #1990-001.
  • Patricia Buck
  • Paintings of the I Ching: Magenta Light with Copper, 1990
  • Acrylic and collage on paper
  • 40 x 26 in (101.6 x 66.04 cm)
  • Inv: 1991-001
  • Reserved

Collection: Paintings of the I Ching x

 

Paintings of the I Ching: Ch’ien Magenta Light with Copper

This painting balances stillness and energy, materiality and immateriality, inviting viewers into reflection on hidden structures within existence, time, or consciousness.

Minimalist in its appearance, Ch’ien-Magenta Light with Copper presents six richly textured bars representing the power of the creative cosmos. Dark, tactile rectangles float over a luminous magenta field, symbolic of the immanent power of the Creative in all things.

The contrast between the composition of the hexagram and the light emanating from behind and through it creates a tension that is structured, yet mysterious. The image evokes both a sense of power, and also of serenity.

This painting was part of an exhibition curated by Washington artists Tom Ashcraft and Georgia Deal which exhibited for six weeks at Arnold & Porter Law firm in Washington DC, 1991.

The exhibition was funded, in part, by a Technical Assistance Grant from the District of Columbia Commission on the Arts and Humanities (DCCAH).

This is one of 23 paintings created based upon the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching and their symbolic meanings.
Each hexagram is comprised of two trigrams which are a combination of three lines that can be whole or broken.

Each trigram symbolizes a natural force in the Universe. The background is richly layered in reds, burgundy, and deep purple-black hues, with soft blending and diffused edges. There is a sense of glowing light emanating from within the color field, creating depth and a feeling of quiet intensity. The overall mood is contemplative, powerful, and grounded, with the rectilinear forms appearing as though they are suspended within an energetic, almost cosmic field of red.

The structure evokes associations with:
• Ancient tablets, runes, or ideograms, suggesting coded meaning or universal language.
• I Ching hexagrams (with a visual reference to the lines used in the Chinese Book of Changes), implying philosophical or metaphysical readings.
• Architectural or minimalist formalism, reminiscent of works exploring repetition, order, and meditative presence.

See all artwork from Patricia Buck