Homage: Encounters with the East

Foreword by Donald Kuspit and Preface by H. H. Gaj Singh II, Maharaja of Marwar-Jodphur.

In the age of mechanical reproduction, many fail to appreciate intricate drawings made by hand, as hands have been made seemingly obsolete by the speed of the digital camera. Christian Peltenburg-Brechneff recaptures what the camera has lost: the spirit of a place.

Using brush, ink, and color washes, Brechneff takes on the challenge of exploring and translating architectural and spiritual wonders of the "lost" kingdoms of the Himalayas: Laddakh, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, India, Burma, Cambodia, and Laos. Brought to life through imaginative investment, Brechneff's subjects become more mysterious and exciting than ever. They sparkle with subjective life and become rapturously alive in a way that a photograph could never be.

Brechneff's journey is a spiritual one; his intricate drawings form a visual diary of his travels. Additionally, each rendering is dated and its location named, indicating that the collection is documentary as well as personal. Brechneff decodes India's architecture with the hope of grasping the secret of their creative dynamic. Homage is a breathtakingly beautiful spiritual quest.

About the Author:

Born in the former Belgian Congo in 1950, Christian Peltenburg-Brechneff was educated in Switzerland, England, and the United States. In 1975, he received his master of art degree from the Royal College of Art in London. He has exhibited both in Europe and the United States and has won numerous awards, including the Swiss Federal Government Scholarship. "Three Oceans," his 2001 one-man show in New York, was in partnership with Salander-O'Reilly Galleries.

ISBN: 978-0-9765851-7-6 
144 pages; 11 1/4 x 8 3/4"; cloth landscape hardcover;
85 4/c and sepia drawings