NCAC was established in 1972 to serve a multicultural community of artists, teachers, students, and others, who are avid in their appreciation of the centuries-old East Asian art forms of sumi-e and calligraphy. This exhibit features 21 artists presenting 40 beautiful, accomplished paintings.

NCAC artists paint with ink and watercolor, on silk, rice paper, and gold or silver shikishi boards. Specialized brushes for sumi-e are round and made of natural hair, just as they were developed 2,000 years ago. The unique strokes in sumi-e and calligraphy combine to form a lively and endless variety of painting subjects, both traditional and contemporary.

NCAC artists see themselves as bridges between East Asian and Western art. The aesthetics of sumi-e that may differ from Western art include:

• Energetic, beautiful brush strokes
• Compositions that are asymmetrical, yet balanced
• Interesting “negative spaces” (blank areas around the painted objects)
• Clusters of objects in a large grouping (the host), and medium and small groupings (the guests)

For more information about NCAC, sumi-e, artist bios, virtual gallery and membership, please visit: www.SumieNationalCapitalArea.org