30 Day Drawing Challenge

Yesterday, I (together with Victor) embarked on the 30 Day Drawing Challenge, which quite a few of my future CalArts classmates are also doing. In fact, they started quite a while ago, and are probably on their 10th day or something. Nevertheless, its never too late to start and here is my drawings for Day 1 and 2.

*for those interested in checking out calarts' friends' works, http://ca2016.blogspot.com/. Its really worth a look, lots of beautiful artwork over there!

For those unfamiliar with this challenge, you can check it out on its Facebook group here (https://www.facebook.com/pages/30-Day-Drawing-Challenge). In a nutshell, one draws for 30 continuous days, with a new theme/subject for each day. I really like its philosophy - Draw. It doesn't have to be good, it just has to be drawn. Something like this :

 DAY 1: Self Portrait                                                     DAY 2: Your favorite animal

And out of nowhere, pops a random drawing which was kept in my sketchbook all this while. I wonder what was going through my head when I was drawing this one.

CalArts Portfolio 2012

My CalArts Portfolio 2012 (Accepted :)

This is the first time I'm properly posting up my CalArts Portfolio (which I submitted for my application last year). This was my second application to CalArts (I submitted one earlier in 2010) and I must say, after the first attempt, I learnt a lot more about how to improve, what to include and how to better present my works. More importantly, this whole process helped develop me further as an artist. 

Just 2 years ago, when I looked at all the past accepted portfolios by current/past CalArts students online, I thought to myself: what an impossible task this is. But I'm glad I tried (my best) and I'm really happy with the results. What I've discovered, is that no matter how impossible it seems at that time, all you have to do is set it as a goal, keep striving towards it and never look back. You will be surprised by how much one can achieve with passion and desire, and a bit of help along the way.

“And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.” 

― Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

Special thanks and gratitude go to all those who helped me along this artistic journey:

- Friends, Victor, Matthew, Jeremy, Isaac, Zhu Chuan, etc who made those life drawings sessions at Tisch/Goodman so much more enjoyable, and who inspired me with their equally awesome drawings.

- Tisch and Goodman Arts Centre (and all the models too, of course) for those figure drawing sessions.

- Past/current CalArts students, whose portfolios and artworks never failed to inspire me and spur me forward.

- and lastly Jiaying, for giving me every single bit of advice you could give, for motivating me every stretch of the way and letting me know that there's beauty in life. I would not have been able to reach this point without you.

Faces

A couple of faces (Jeremy Teo, Ziyuan and Ashton) drawn within 5 mins or so. I used to suck at drawing faces, and after much practice, they at least bear some resemblance to faces now. I tried a bit of caricature here for some of them.

                Pastel                                                                 Watercolor

Are we to paint what's on the face, what's inside the face, or what's behind it?

 -- Pablo Picasso

Maiden Post

Here are a couple of watercolor paintings (done at recent Sketchwalks) to mark my maiden post. I will be updating this art blog with my latest drawings, and art in general. And here's a quote (one of my favourite) for you to enjoy:

To see a world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower
And hold infinity in the palms of your hand and eternity in an hour.

-- William Blake