Water Striders

Water striders are able to walk on water. They use the surface tension of water and their long, hydrophobic legs to help them stay above. This method of keeping the majority of the body above the surface is called an epipleustonic position, which is a defining characteristic of water striders. In a way they are born artists doing their drawings on water, while enjoying the ride along the way! They are the best Zen-artists so far; as they do not show off or cling to their drawings and it is done in one of the best transient mediums of all, water!

In India there are morning rituals of drawing temporary diagrams with rice flour at the entrances of the houses for welcoming the goddess of prosperity. It’s meaning is more related to Mandalas and Yantras I guess. They are memory rituals from historic traditions. Sometimes these drawings are also done on water surface, which I found essentially similar to that of water strider drawings.

Similarly one can imagine a dancer is an artist who does invisible drawings in the space. If we extent this view to anyone who does an action skillfully, can also be called an artist. The only difference is that there is no by product as a result. It is only in the memory of the viewer. This will not be acceptable as an artwork to someone who insists upon the presence of a tactile object as a proof to call the maker, an artist. This is a vague demarcation, if we look at art history arriving at a point where conceptual art is now. Every art form, whether it is representational or subtle and abstract in styles, tries to convey something.

An artist’s journey in a way, is similar to that of a water strider’s. He or she is not in a mindset that will cling on to the past or worry too much about the future, ideally. It’s all about the journey and the process. It’s a forward path where each step is a dance. It is enjoyable and sometimes hard work but the process is worth going through.

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Watercolor on rice paper - 30 x 40 inches. Sebastian Varghese©2015