This was painted at the time my first Zen teacher, Roshi Philip Kapleau was dying quietly in the Rochester Zen Center garden, surrounded by his students and loved ones. I wanted to capture the moment of absolute freedom, of returning to oneness – an energy that emanated from his passing and was felt by some of his senior students far away. Roshi Kapleau, who looked totally unlike the person in the painting, changed the face of Zen in the West with his writings and teachings. For an actual portrait of Roshi Kapleau, please go to the portrait gallery