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IVAN S. CHOW ARCHITECT
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ART
"Stormy Seas" 16"x20" acrylic, February 2010
"Crucified" 24"x48" graphite, charcoal, acrylic, fixative, January 2010
"No Evil" (triptych) 16"x 20" acrylic, October 2009
"Square Grids" (triptych) 16"x20" acrylic, December 2009
"Olive Branch" 36"x48" acrylic, December 2009
"Joy Falling" 24"x36" acrylic, November 2009
"Salt Flats" 36"x48" acrylic, October 2009
"Brothers" 24"x48" acrylic, September 2009
"Shrimp Between Heaven and Hell" 20"x30" acrylic, August 2009
"Heart of Hearts" 36"x48" acrylic, June 2009
"Dove-over-Lynn," 36"x48" acrylic, October 2008
"Eyes on Oasis," 48"x36" acrylic, 2007
"Pies & Graphs," 36"x48" acrylic, 2007
"Lion's Den," 24"x20" acrylic, 2007
"Lu Chou" (oasis), pair of 24"x48" acrylic, 2006
"Dove Falling - Dove Rising," pair of 24"x36" acrylic, 2006
"49 + 1 set apart," 36"x24" acrylic, 2006
"The Creatures of Proverbs 30" which characterize a valuable employee: diligence, adaptability, teamwork and usefulness. 48"x36" original acrylic, used as the cover for the 2007 Oasis corporate Christmas card.
Proverbs 30:24-28 Four things on earth are small, yet they are extremely wise: Ants are creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer Coneys (rock badger) are creatures of little power, yet they make their home in the crags Locusts have no king, yet they advance together in ranks Lizards can be caught with the hand, yet they are found in kings' palaces
Spirit over 27 Fearing 36"x24" original watercolor
This is the first watercolor painting I ever attempted, circa July 1989, sitting across from a boathouse in Rockport, Massachusetts. 18"x12" original watercolor
These four pieces were painted during my time at Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary in South Hamilton, Massachusetts. From left to right: Chronology was designed to track parallel journeys in time and purity, each moving diagonally across the painting; Baptism of Jesus was a class assignment to communicate Mark 1:9-11 in non-textual forms; Doorway to Heaven was loosely based on Revelation 21; Internal Conflict was a reflection on some of the struggles facing seminarians, even at GCTS.
For a while, I experimented with acrylics, different brush types and layering, producing these abstract pieces which were part of an art exhibition in the foyer of the Gordon Conwell library in 1991. Some were better than others, most were less than satisfying.
More (or less) acrylics
Back to Watercolor
While the acrylic medium has some interesting qualities, I found it somewhat limiting and wooden. (my artist cousin would frown deeply at this revelation) Instead, I kept being drawn back to the transparency and wash-effects of watercolors.
After completing my seminary studies in 1991, I drove a U-Haul truck from Massachusetts to California with my cousin in the middle of winter, towing the family van, navigating snowstorms and truckstops. We did some painting along the way.
Both these were painted after a summer trip to a farm near Portland, Oregon in 1992. The old abandoned red truck as a reflection of the aging process, and a truck departing the scene of a dismantled, empty cross, with a fence keeping them apart.
Between 1992 and 1993, while setting up a new business in California, raising a young family, wrestling with homeownership and the marriage between missiology and architecture, there were some downtimes during which these watercolors emerged.
Anguish Skeletons
Red Nude
Tearstained City Scenes
The last painting I did was in 1994, when a short resurgence of that conflict between culture and Christianity coincided with some available time. This one had no title, but eventually took on the obvious Dove Over Chinatown.
Here the Holy Spirit of God, in the form of a dove, hovers above the gates to San Francisco's Chinatown. The road leads past dark storefront evils to a distant, vibrant, urban destination. The question asked is: who are you and where lies your allegiance?
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Falling Crosses 
