By Colleen Cullison
Pine Rest Christian Metal Health Services
A new exhibit titled, “Zen and Human Relationships,” by local artist Stone Peng, opens at the Leep Art Gallery on Jan. 9 at the Postma Center on the Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services campus in Grand Rapids.
Born in Taiwan, taking photos since the early 1980’s, Stone Peng is a self-taught photographer. Peng has lived in Michigan for more than 30 years. He is a Grand Rapids-based national and international award winning photographer.
“Through photos I try to express a message of peace and calm. Every landscape has its own life and meaning, depending on the viewer’s mood. I try to catch that emotional feeling at specific moments in landscapes, using the Chinese philosophy of life and the aesthetic principles ‘less is more’ and ‘empty is full’ in creating my images,” says Peng. “Using primarily white tones in the background lends a simplicity and ethereal purity to a subject that gives you a calm, peaceful, infinitely deep and immeasurable feeling. The empty space offers the viewer a chance to focus on what it really takes to find balance in life and capture a little piece of it for our self.”
Tranquility, simplicity and beauty are the essence of Peng’s photos. His work has been presented in numerous publications throughout the United States. Peng’s photos are in public and private collections throughout West Michigan, the United States and beyond. He has won numerous awards over the years as well.
The Pine Rest Leep Art Gallery exhibit will be on display at the Postma Center located at 300 68th Street, SE., from Jan. 9 to April 6. The Leep Art Gallery is open Monday through Friday 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. and is free and open to the public. For more information, please call 616-222-4530 or go to www.pinerest.org/leep-art-gallery.
