if a house can talk, what stories will it tell of the people living in it?

Paper on paper - on trying to look sophisticated. This shall be my new theme this rainy Sunday which will commerce once the house is empty. (the above is the result which kinda remind me of a decapitated lamb's head, which in fact is a crushed tissue paper sitting on a kitchen floor)

2011 Chinese New Year Paintings

你？好。就这样吧

Drew this from a wonderful photo by the Sartorialist from the recent NY fashion show. The drapery, dress was what attracted me initially but I got distracted by the bare back.

After seeing a photo of the marble sculpture The Ecstacy of Saint Theresa by Gian Lorenzo Bernini, I had the urge to fly to Rome. Again I was attracted by the drapery but this time it was so complicated with shadows and folds that I ended up not drawing it haha... I wonder how the artist sculped it, it's totally awesome!! Btw my drawing is totally off from the original work haha, I changed the angel to a demon and the lady to a heap with a face:p

what does the future holds for you?

刚巧

阿弥陀佛

 Virgin Colours, gouache, A4

My first attempt at painting, super excited!! about having colours at looong last. I always feel that colours are like having music during a party. Surprisingly, painting turns out to be so much less messy than charcoal. But trying to control the colours is just like outdoor photo-taking, you can only pray for good weather. I got the image reference from make it easy and is supposedly from Them Thangs, though I can't find it on the site. Drew it off my iPhone.

sketch on a sunday

Why does it always rain when you feel like going out?

Sketch: Bag

2B

Couldn't sleep last night, and attempted to draw a street scene off a photo. Didn't realise it's actually so difficult, now I have a deeper appreciation for all the sketches I see on Urban Sketchers. Ended up "colouring" with my pencils (above). It's really fun especially after I have pen-knife sharpen my pencils. And also realise drawing is not a good alternative when you can't get to sleep, coz you get more awake as you draw...

Sketch: 瑞恩

Rui en is one of my more preferred TCS actress, having a strong style of her own. Decided on drawing this poster of her as she look so unlike her (the image of her in my mind lah) except for the characteristic frown. Had much trouble with this 2nd charcoal drawing, as I couldn't capture her frown and slightly angry and distance eyes. Ended up correcting and re-correcting. Also, must get a fixative soon, the charcoal seems to have a life of it's own. I wonder if anyone has tried collecting the charcoal powder scattered around after drawing? Think that can be used as an interesting medium too.

Sketch: Potato

The title reminds me of couch potato which should be more interesting to sketch haha... (ok not funny at all)

Pick up a good technique for improving my drawing today, which is sharpening my pencils with pen-knife. Haha... yea saying something so simple makes me pai-sei. But it's a really useful technique and it helps to expose the pencil lead more so it's easier for shading. Notice how you can shape it accordingly to better suit your drawing technique (see my pen-knife sharpen pencils below?), like sharpening it more chisel-like so that shading can be enhanced.

I finally got my hands on charcoal, been wanting to try it for quite a while. This is my first sketch using charcoal of various sizes, stump and kneading eraser. Super excited! as this is also my first time using all these materials. Using charcoal is messy but that adds to the freedom and therapeutic feel of doodling with it. Think I'm in love with charcoal :)

The photo reference I got was from "L'Autre" by Jean Baudrillard, which I picked up from the library only because it has many potraits that I can use. But upon returning home and reading the write up in the book, it turn out to be a hidden gem.  

"I stole these photographs between '95 and '97 in the Paris metro. 'Stole' because it is against the law to take them, it's forbidden. The law states that everyone owns their own image. But our image, the worthless alias of ourselves, is everywhere without us knowing it. How and why can it be said to belong to us? But, more importantly, there's another rule, that non-agression pact we all subscribe to: the prohibition against looking at others. Apart from the odd illicit glance, you keep staring at the wall. We are very much alone in these public places and there's violence in this calm acceptance of a closed world. I am sitting in front of someone to record his image, the form of evidence, but just like him I too stare into the distance and feign absence. I try to be like him. It's all a sham, a necessary lie lasting long enough to take a picture. If to look is to be free, the same holds true for photographing: I hold my breath and let the shutter go."

Jean Baudrillard, L'Autre
Taking the train is a shared experience of city dwellers and we actually spend so much time in these small contained world where, as strangers, we are so close yet so far apart. Aptly portrayed in Postmodern Singapore that I'm currently reading:

"Why do you not look at each other's Faces? Is the scenery that arresting, One housing estate giving birth To yet another copy? Or the advertisements, read and re-read, As if behind a slogan's promise lay Hidden promises? Answer me:Is that consciousness rising in you, Dissolving your fatigue like a plastic sheet Warping in heat, or is that simply  Sleep, draining away from you Down to your soles, to the invisible tracks Where the dew is drying? Where electricity Is what pushes you to the borders Of your own loneliness, against The vulgar loneliness of crowds."

Alfian Bin Sa'at, Morning Train, Postmodern Singapore

Sketch: Kitchen Appliances

wth!!

Sketch: Cup

Drawn with 6B pencils and still suck at shading. One of the cups was done while I'm lying on my bed. Can you guess which one? The hatching of a good idea is really more difficult than drawing. At least to me. Recently, I'm intrigued by how and where artist gets their creative ideas? How do they know if that's a good idea and which path to tread down before deciding that is a dead end?