Back to the Basics

The paintings I have done earlier this year have tended to be very quick and not deeply planned out.

This painting is more in line with my typical process, iterating until I'm happy with the concept. The result is:

1. This is the paradigm of my style.

2. This aggregates feelings from the past few weeks, as opposed to just one day. It is more balanced but less emotive.

The squares are life building blocks that you keep working to stack.

Technique

I'm pleased that my background gradient blended nicely. The color selection and pattern is random (read: not optimized), but it looks soothing from afar.

I also tried a new technique for the orange box, using twine to stamp. I envisioned using thin yarn for a cleaner look, but this ended up cool too.

Artist's Self-Critique

Overall, I'm surprised it turned out quite appealing. 

It's a smidgen too simple. If the white clouds showed up better and if I could think of something more to add in the empty spaces, that would have been better.

My favorite part is the black box with the chaotic scribbles. My least favorite part is the water bubbles – the border and color of the box are messy.

In spite of that, this might end up being one of my favorite paintings. (Maybe I should rank all my artwork sometime?! I love ranking things.) Looking back at the past few months of posts, I'm really happy that I'm taking the time to paint periodically. These pieces are like journal entries for my creativity, emotions and aesthetic as we go along.

"Building Blocks"

Starting to Put It Together

Happy 2021!

Even though I typically don't make resolutions, one of my key goals nowadays is to appreciate both the negative and positive things in my life. I don't have to like everything, but it's good to recognize the inherent value in experiencing things. This approach should broaden and balance my perspective a bit more.

Moving on, I am very pleased to have made a painting so quickly at the start of this year. The concept was an engaging one, as I challenged myself to take the following elements and find a way to harmonize them: trees, water, fire, moon, stars, wispy clouds and swirling leaves (later changed to abstract specks).

I developed a backstory for how the elements fit together, but it's rather metaphorical and specific, so I don't think it's necessary to explain. As a result, this is one of the more non-literal paintings that I've made. Suffice to say, developing an underlying narrative from a loose theme made for a fun process. 

The painting also presented technical challenges in my key areas of growth, which are composition and nature realism. Overall, I rate the execution a generous 7.5/10.

Development

In making the sketch, the first question was how to depict fire, specifically a non-man-made one. You typically think of fire as a vertical object, but it needed to be horizontal to agree with everything else. Thus wildfire on the plains worked really well.

I didn't want fire to be the focal point, so I kept its footprint small. Instead, I built the point of interest around the coil where the cloudy haze and the swirling specks intersect. With those key points in place, the rest of the elements quickly got sorted out.

Evaluation

Overall, the painting is pleasantly subtle. It could have afforded more brainstorming time to improve the composition and more painting time to improve the natural texture. (More detailed commentary at the bottom.)

On the other hand, I'm very impatient these days. Many an idea has been lost to refinement-purgatory, so I'm glad I was able to manifest a fairly cohesive piece.

In conclusion, though it's lacking in some ways, I made it with care, with the dexterity that I've been developing, with an eye that distinguishes my style, and with an idea that came from my heart. Happy start of a new year and may we have the best year we can!

"Coherency"

Additional commentary and points for improvement:

For better composition, I could have unified the elemental shapes under a stronger rule/pattern. Additionally, the cloud coil should be more natural, the swirling specks should be simpler, the smoke from the fire should be more inspired, and the stream is overall very wonky (complicated by my inexperience with perspective). I'm not entirely sure that the placement of everything is right either.

Interestingly, the top and bottom half of the painting look all right separately.

As for nature-painting technique, the grass and stream are too flat and it only just now occurs to me that the fire should emit a glow onto surrounding grass.

Anyway, I better try to workshop each of these skills separately in the future, and stop analyzing this painting now.

Do Something

With my previous painting, I did the background and left it sitting around for a month before finally finishing it.

To avoid this type of situation, I prefer doing simpler paintings now. I'm also inclined to be more relaxed in order to focus more on conveying feelings and to train my intuitive ability to make things look good without extensive pre-planning.

Having said that, here is a painting that could have used a smidgen more prep work. Somehow, the focal point and angles are slightly off. 

I will try a more balanced approach to preparation next time. On the up side, I think the patchy rays turned out really cool, and the rainbow colors are of course my trademark and my love.

There's a graphic novel feel that I wasn't exactly expecting.

2020 Christmas Cards: Ribbon Collection

It's time that I post my ribbon paintings in full resolution, now that I've decided not to send them out as actual physical cards.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to print them into Christmas cards in a nice and inexpensive way. Additionally, I didn't have a particular message to send to friends during this pandemic year.

Anyway, looking back at these paintings, I surprise myself that I had so much motivation and patience to finish the whole collection. Painting is a very arduous process for me, because I am in nonstop evaluation mode over whether the painting is turning out how I want, when I'm painting. On a random note, this is how I drive too. I subconsciously continuously micro-adjust the wheel, and I've been told that this is not normal.

I'm so glad that I have these paintings to capture my peak skill, back when I was painting frequently.

Holiday Gala

Tiffany's

Water Current

Galaxy

Color Run

Designer

Jelly Donut

Again, Again

The Disney panel was really fun to paint, so I did another one. Because why not.

The character in the green square is based off of this cutie:

I have a few more ideas for small panels and it has been so nice to work on a smaller scale. However, I will want to bring back larger pieces soon. It'll be a nice challenge to try maintaining good composition while adding more detail with the 12x16's.

Good, Clean Fun

Acrylic is considered the most accessible paint. It dries fast and it is easy to cover mistakes, whereas oil takes days for each coat to dry and watercolor goes south very quickly when you work on the same area for too long.

My gripe historically is that acrylic is too translucent. I have to layer over and over, for smooth flat color.

Thus is life, there is never not an element of banality.

In any case, it was fun to try these new paints which are formulated for greater opacity.

They are not truly opaque, *shakes fist*, but the colors are nice and bright. Using a paint marker for outlines, the final effect is quite cool!

Spot the circle theme

Here's the experimental piece, that I used to play with the new medium. It turned out not bad as well.

I always thought artists draw from their mind's eye, but most people use reference photos or objects to build the basic silhouette, as did I with the deer. "Draw what you see," they say.

Honeymoon Phase: Capstone Collection (1 of 2)

This concept of flow, I am very entranced by.

I've noticed for several years that I am the best presenter I can be, when I find a rhythm – a rhythm where my thinking and my speaking are keeping pace with each other, and allows the audience to click in.

What if there's a flow you can sit on, throughout the day. Something that you ideally sync with how fast you walk, how you write, how you react, how you connect with someone new, what deadlines you take on or how you move between activities in the day. There is something to this concept that relates to awkward silences, having "chemistry", the x-factor and feeling in control.

Just an unsubstantiated thought that I've been floating around.

On a completely different topic, I have passed the honeymoon phase of my painting hobby.

Capping off this phase with a milestone project, I created a Christmas card series that is admittedly four months early and not all that Christmas-y. However, with some perseverance and a dash of creativity, it turned out really fun.

The central theme is a girl-wizard who casts ribbons, illustrating flow.

When the holidays get closer, I plan to clean these up digitally to make them print-ready. For now, I will share a preview and some artifacts.

NB: Hopefully, it's not too odd that the characters in this collection don't have eyes. My focus group says it is better not to mess everything up with freaky eyes. So painting eyes is next on the docket of things to learn.

Moonbeams

My new painting, "Moonbeams", is an easygoing project.

Since I learn something new from each painting, today's lesson is that shadows and highlights aren't the chore I thought they were. As an unexpected benefit, shading also helps me agonize less over getting the exact right colors since you have more chances to balance everything out.

Speaking of chores, the biggest one is usually the background. Canvas absorbs a tremendous amount of paint and little patches of translucency has become the bane of my existence. I have to squeeze flat my precious paint tubes to get enough paint for full opacity, and I wince every time!

(I have since bought an economy-sized jar of white, and devised a solution to combat the scarcity mindset. More on that in the next post.)

Moving on to discuss this piece, I am particularly drawn to the straw grass and the shooting stars. They really help convey the vibe of a calm, soothing night in a not-so-distant land. The large, fluffy creature is also terribly cute.

My only complaint is that somehow, the painting feels a little pedestrian. That is to say, it is not as obscure nor a mishmash of concepts as most of my other pieces. A real departure from my style... hah! I love it.

P.S. Comparing to the original sketch, I forgot to put a swing under the lower branch. Is it better without it?

Pet Projects

After a short break from painting, I got back into my painting happy place. I used a smaller canvas, which seems to be easier to paint. This one feels like a classic Faith piece, with the boxes, the animals and the list-like variety of elements.

The design was inspired by my favorite beach towel, and my recent (2-year) infatuation with cheetah-print clothing.

I love this painting. I like having an element of interactiveness, as people can identify the animal patterns and decide on their favorite. If they are so inclined.

Note that none of the animals here overlap with my animal pinball painting. Because we Never Repeat.

As bonus materials, here are two other small panels that I've held onto for several weeks. Both were quick and simple, but rather symbolic, capturing a key lesson from therapy and a tribute to the BLM demonstrations.

Mid-May 2020

Mid-June 2020

A Thousand Flowers

Some people get a sense of satisfaction from solving puzzles. If a puzzle takes too long, I'm perfectly fine with going straight to the internet to find the answer.

Last night, my sister started a puzzle-type video game. She spent an hour clicking around a small chamber, figuring out the rules. I would go bonkers with impatience.

I prefer constrained puzzles where you know the rules and use them creatively. Sudoku, zebra puzzles, syllogisms. Playing Mastermind is my hidden talent.

I view it as: when I look up the answer to unconstrained puzzles, I am simply learning the rules for next time.

On a tenuously related note, our painting today is a garden maze.

Designing and engineering the maze was a big highlight of the process. The painting process itself was quite repetitive. The tricky part was that I couldn't tell if it was good until every section was filled out. Thusly, I had to redo a couple sections repeatedly, though it was worth it in the end.

My mom suggested to add a Pac-Man chomping through the maze. Cute idea, but rejected!

Inspired by a rainbow flower wall that I found in New York City.

If anyone is confused, the grassy green path is the maze and the colorful flowers are hedges. The bottom strip is a watering pool.

Flower inspirations (left to right):
Cherry Blossom, Sweet Pea, Ranunculus, Gerbera Daisy, generic field flower, Pansy, Morning Glory

Animal Motion Machine

Brainstorming for this project kept me up way past my bedtime for a couple nights. In the make-believe world of this painting, live spherical animals continuously roll through a ball run for perpetual fun.

Animals follow a specially-engineered path:
1. Vacuum tube sucks animal to the top

2. Swinging flap holds animal back until the next one bumps them through, thus regulating the pace between animals

3. Animals roll down paths on both sides, ideally at the same speed

4. Animal crosses sides through the drop turnstile, to enjoy both sides alternatingly

5. Bottom platform releases two animals when all six spots are filled, ensuring symmetrical release and throttled pacing

I chose 18 animals from a huge list, looking for variety in color, interesting traits and balanced representation of different ecosystems (safari, forest, sea). It was awesome to include more eclectic animals, like a peacock (which looks more like a robin with a headdress, as you will see).

Row 1: Panda, Hedgehog, Rhino, Giraffe

Row 2: Elephant, Lion, Koala, Alligator

Row 3: Manta Ray, Peacock, Walrus, Dino Egg

Row 4: Whale, Tiger, Bunny

Row 5: Jellyfish, Raccoon, Sheep

Some standouts:

- Best execution: Bunny

- Best idea: Dino egg

- Family's favorite animals: Koala, Lion, Elephant

- My real-life favorite animals: Hedgehog, Manta Ray

This painting took on a baby-nursery vibe, which was not intentional. I'm scared of bold colors, so everything went overly soft. Regardless, coming up with this concept was really fun and I'm happy with how it turned out.

Word Art

Between the more labor-intensive paintings, it's nice to intersperse simpler ones that refresh the creative juices.

The center element of this painting is inspired by Braille. The border is lined with song lyrics. Braille and lyrics are two unrelated ideas smashed into one painting.

Today I Learned: Braille has a short-form that contracts common strings like "th" or "people" into single symbols. Thus, the online translator caveated that truly accurate short-form Braille ("Grade 2") has to be translated by hand.

I actually love how this painting turned out, as I think it looks nice from afar and up close. Super fun!

By the way, this is my second attempt at painting on wood and it worked much better this time.

I hope this painting is not cultural appropriation to the community of people who are blind. I wouldn't think so, but I hope not. The painting is in fact completely flat.

Ideal Reading Room

Last year, I bought a shirt with painted windows.

This shirt comes out of the closet whenever I need to break the monotony of wearing navy, head-to-toe for work. Because I love this shirt, the pattern became the inspiration for my next painting.

The original vision was to show a brick face of an apartment building with six windows peeking into six different-styled apartments. As the idea evolved, six apartments narrowed to three, and the windows themselves were nixed altogether.

In an informal poll, most people liked the top-right pink room the best out of the three.

My real-life room decor best resembles the pink room. However, I'm happier with how the other two rooms are painted, as they're more visually interesting.

Reading Rooms: Boho, Scandinavian, and Cottage Styles

Boho

Scandinavian

Cottage

This painting turned out quite faithful to what I had in mind, which is very satisfying. It is one of my favorites to date!

Eleven-in-One

I make lists for everything. I used to rate every granola bar I ate. I have documented every movie that I've seen since 2014.

On my list of favorite things in the universe, some random items include: golden doodle puppies and unicorn-themed color runs.

Wow, so basic. Let's try again. Some items on the list are: The Good Wife (TV) and Born a Crime (book).

BTW WARNING: Long post.

I painted 11 small vignettes of things I repeatedly enjoy, sadly excluding many TV shows that require drawing faces which I cannot do. As this is the first painting where I did extensive freehand, you can tell the quality improve as I slowly discover the right paintbrush to use. In painted order (click images to expand):

1. Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code
All-time favorite book when I was growing up. I reread it ad nauseum. At one point, if you flipped to any page and started reading me a portion, I could recite back the subsequent sentences either verbatim or close to it.


2. Imagine Dragons: Evolve & Night Visions
Some great songs.

3. Tangled
Not my favorite movie, just a pretty scene.




4. Armchair Expert podcast, by Dax Shepard
This podcast is totally up my alley. Episodes get released at 5am on Monday mornings, right as I leave for the airport every week (pre-COVID). The routine of listening to an episode makes the start of the week feel like a blanket that slowly unwraps instead of a bucket of cold water being dumped on my head.

The podcast thesis is that being famous and successful isn't as fulfilling as people would expect. Dax teases out all sorts of interesting stories and glimpses into the inner lives of interviewees, often famous people. Fantastic.

5. GMK Dots
I recently had a two-week foray into the mechanical keyboard community.

This keycap design is something of a cult classic and resells for $300 on the subreddit. Just for the plastic part with zero functioning components! I did not buy it.

6. The Little Prince
A beautiful piece of literature.

I was shocked and amazed to have recreated the cover art in a recognizable manner. All thanks to my little round brush, which I have finally figured out how to use.

7. Ocean's 8
Honestly, this movie is a bit overworked and disjointed. HOWEVER, it is incredibly easy to rewatch. I find myself playing it in the background when there's nothing else to do, and enjoying the incredible cast of actresses more with each repeat.


8. The Incredibles
Another childhood favorite, my sisters and I were obsessed with this movie. We watched it in multiple languages. We voice acted all the Edna scenes by heart. To this day, I can still recite swathes of Edna monologue, with inflections in all the right places.

9. Contre Jour soundtrack
Contre Jour is an app game that I never played, but I instantly fell in love with its soundtrack. If I really need to focus at work, this is what I put on repeat. It's has an ethereal quality – ethereal like the balloons in Up, not like the new Taylor Swift Lover album. (Note from future Faith: What I meant was 'whimsical'.)

10. Harry Potter and the Methods of Rationality (HPMOR)
Fanfic at it's finest, HPMOR reimagines Harry Potter as a prodigy genius. My mind was actually blown with the ingenuity of it. The plotline has some uncanny links to canon, but diverges quite a bit into intricate plots based in real mathematical / scientific / strategic insanity.

It was still being written when I was in college. When it wrapped, I went to a physical, live wrap party with a bunch of strangers who also followed this fanfic. They were all nerds. It felt safe. But what in the world.

11. Sketch of designer dress with puffy sleeves
I love puffy sleeves. And I love the concept of designer clothing.




Finally, I added my favorite cup of mint tea and (now favorite) paintbrush to complete the illusion of an art studio desk.

When I finished the painting, I considered going back to redo the first few vignettes that were noticeably lower quality than the later ones. I ultimately decided not to, so that I can preserve evidence of my progression in skill. Additionally, I wanted to move on and not get stuck on refining the same piece forever. I think I stand by that approach, but it's hard.

I like the Contre Jour vignette the best. It's so weird and cute.