How Do You Share Distance?

The Zhuangzi text (莊子) is a humanist collection of humorous and irreverent fables and allegories from ancient China. Rooted in Daoism, its stories promote carefree wandering in the name of The Dao, or “nature’s way” (道). Rather than spelling out a set of rules or moral guidelines, the Zhuangzi challenges mankind’s tendency to latch onto absolutes. The parables mock the man who takes anything too seriously, turns conventional reasoning on its head, and depicts death as a natural transformation.

Chan Buddhism, the original form of Zen Buddhism, also seeks to challenge practitioners’ paradigms by praising the seemingly mundane and replacing rituals and doctrines with one’s own spiritual practice/journey, usually under the guidance of a Master.

The man in this parable, destined down the road to meet the Esden boy in the “Start Talking Again'' parable, finds himself piecing together an understanding of the world from scratch after fleeing his failures in Tek to wander Runea. As he tries to impose his withstanding assumptions and expectations on his environment, he is taught absurd lessons in nonaction “wuwei” (無爲) and self-state “ziran” (自然) by the Runean landscape, the Esden boy, and the small villages along the way.

There are four versions of this artwork, which represent dawn to dusk on Irish terrain.
You can find excerpts to the parables and behind-the-scenes progress to this book on my Patreon blog, patreon.com/LiannShannon

SONG CREDITS
"Grey Skies Blue" - Cover by Pat Byrne (IG: @pat.byrne)
Original by Miles Zuniga (IG: @mileszuniga)

CANVAS PRINTS:
Pink: https://www.liannshannon.com/store/art_posters/PadZ/grey-skies-blue
Tan: https://www.liannshannon.com/store/art_posters/la5B/grey-skies-blue-tan
Blue: https://www.liannshannon.com/store/art_posters/zoER/grey-skies-blue-blue
Night: https://www.liannshannon.com/store/art_posters/9lxR/grey-skies-blue-night

SUPPLIES
Pencil: Pilot Multifunction Pen Dr. Grip 4+1, 0.5mm Acro Ink Ballpoint Pen, 0.5mm Mechanical Pencil, Ice Blue (BKHDF1SEF-IL)
iPad: iPad Pro 11-inch 2nd Generation (2017)
Procreate App
True Grit Stipple Studio Brush Pack: https://www.truegrittexturesupply.com/collections/stipple-studio-collection
Fine Tip Brush (Basic Procreate Inking Brush)
The Mr. Legit Brush from The Rusty Nib Brush Pack: https://www.truegrittexturesupply.com/collections/the-rusty-nib-collection
True Grit Beat Tones Brush Pack: https://www.truegrittexturesupply.com/search?q=beat+tones
Syrup Brush (Basic Procreate Inking Brush)

PINTEREST BOARDS
Reference: https://www.pinterest.com/liannshannon/reference-grey-skies-blue/
Inspiration: https://www.pinterest.com/liannshannon/a-new-digital-art-style/