We are fortunate when Wesley passed away, he left us works that span many years. One could trace his development. Although he had not kept his earliest works, he was good at documenting with photographs. The only period that was missing was his “Toronto period”, from 1977 to 1981. This…

Starting in 2009, at age 52, Wesley used his sobriquet, “Mountain Taoist” (Shandou Daoren). When I first came upon these works, it puzzled me. Why did he not sign with his name, what did his sobriquet mean and where did it come from? I asked my parents, they had no…

The title is taken from the meditation workshop, Slow Dancing with Art: Mindfulness and Art. The workshop is being held at my late brother, Wesley Tongson’s exhibit. The instructor teaches techniques that engage the mind and body with the art. This immediately peeked my interest when I first read about…

When one thinks of finger painting, usually children’s finger painting comes to mind. I had no idea painting with fingers, the work could be as strong, and yet, more powerful than painting by brush.

It was the spring of 2009 in Hong Kong, I invited Wesley out to dinner at…

In 2004, while on a trip back home, Wesley asked me to come up to view his recent works. I wondered what new breakthrough he had with his colorful splashed ink paintings. When I arrived at his apartment and saw what he was presenting to me, I was in shock…

When I used to look at art, I never felt much from the works, it was strictly visual. Usually, it was either the composition or the colors that attracted me, I liked what I saw and that was it. There was never any need to look deeper, beyond the surface…

Inspired by the 20th century master Zhang Daqian, Wesley started to explore splashing ink while he lived in Canada (1977–1981). In his active years, from mid 1980’s to late 1990’s, he was best known for these splashed ink works. A technique he perfected from years of practice, well into mid…

In Chinese painting, plants are important subjects. “The Four Gentlemen” refer to the plum, the orchid, the bamboo and the chrysanthemum. Each symbolizing esteemed characters and morals. Other than their refined beauty, they also represent the four seasons. The orchid for spring, the bamboo for summer, the chrysanthemum for autumn…