The journey of Loman Eng continued Tuesday afternoon at the Levittown Library, as the artist paid a visit to discuss his paintings currently featured in an exhibit.
Eng was born in China and arrived in the United States from Hong Kong with his wife, Petula, in 1975. His oil paintings are a fusion of classic Chinese and Western styles, each having their own character and style.
“I paint almost every subject – depending on what I would like to do at that moment,” Eng said. “Everyday I see something and it registers in my mind.”
Many of the ideas for Eng’s paintings come from things he sees everyday. For example, his flower paintings, the painting of a lime cut in half and a broken eggshell.
“Some of those things really impress you,” he said. “Then when you paint you put all this color together with the subject.”
For the flower paintings, Eng said it takes about three days to complete. He works on about three or four paintings at a time, as he needs to wait until one dries to put a layer on another one. The time to complete them also depends on the size of the painting and how long it takes them to dry, he said.
A couple of his paintings on display at the library are beautiful images of the Hudson Valley, where he currently resides. Others are images of visits he made to the Finger Lakes area in upstate New York where he used to live.
“Painting is like writing a book: some fictional, some non-fictional,” Eng explained. “For some paintings, you cannot catch one moment because that is not enough. But for some still paintings, you catch a moment and it’s non-fiction because you cannot change it.”
The library exhibit featuring the work of Eng is on display until July 31. All of the paintings on display at the library are available to purchase.
For more info., you can contact Eng at 845-809-5585 or call the library at 731-5728.
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