I’ve been feeling really drawn to the water element lately. I may be the only person in New England still enjoying the relentlessly rainy spring we’ve been having! For me, the Water Element carries with it connotations of the subconscious, emotions, healing, and purification. Frog is a great study in the water element. I’ve paired it here with the character for “Transformation.” BUT YOU CAN CUSTOMIZE IT with your own selection from my calligraphy shop. Choose “original art +customization” from the drop down menu below and send me a message to get things started.

In Chinese traditional culture, frog represents the lunar, yin energy – known in the West as the “Divine Feminine,” although it is an energy accessed and used by all, regardless of sex or gender. Whether you are a man or a woman, Yin is the part of our consciousness responsible for nurture, intuition, and empathy. When yin energy is at work, for example, we find collaboration over competition, intuition over intellect, creation over destruction, and nurture over criticism.

Frogs, being amphibians, are comfortable both above and below the surface. The spirit of frog is deeply sensitive and connected to the Water Element. Because frogs also undergo a metamorphosis, they encourage us, too, to embrace change joyfully throughout our lives.

A small and plucky container for all of these wonderful traits, Frog is thought to be a protector and healer, on the physical and metaphysical planes. He will protect your health and wealth (many Chinese homes have a “money frog” statue to attract material success); as well as help you navigate the shadow realms of your own psyche, learning to see and accept even the most “unacceptable” parts of yourself and thus, letting the beauty of your true self shine, like the sun coming out after a good rain.

To me, this frog definitely seems to have emerged from the depths somewhere and now to be ready to see and respond to opportunity! Back to life after a muddy slumber .

This piece is painted to order in original ink. PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL ORIGINAL INK PAINTINGS ARE ONE OF A KIND. The composition will be the same, but details will differ, and that is part of the beauty of having an original piece.

Also available as a fine art print on the ultra luxe velvet Moab paper in 5 x 7 (matted for an 8 x 10 frame) and 8 x 10 (matted for an 11 x 14 frame). Please note that, if ordered as a print, the gold ink used in this piece may not turn out as shiny metallic as shown here.

Painted on “antique sparkle shuen” paper, an elegant cream color with subtle sheen, original artworks will come silicone-backed and matted in a black-core white matte, ready for framing in any standard 11 x 14 inch frame you choose. Basic black is always a nice choice, but so is antique gold, Chinese red, bamboo, etc.