Weekly Art Assignment

iPad Pro Art 1st Attempt

2016-09-15T08:45:00.001-05:00

Just recently I puffed up my chest after getting some encouragements from my better half and a really good friend at work, and got an iPad Pro 9.7.

I've always liked digital art, but never really got into it because of my firm belief that art shouldn't be expensive, and art can be created with the most primitive tool available. Pencil and paper are easy choice for me, since you can find pencils and paper almost everywhere.

But the on the trip back from Seattle, 2 rows in front of me, there was a teenage girl playing with her iPad. It's a usual sight while you're flying but she wasn't just playing angry bird or candy crush, or watch a movie like most people do, she was creating! In a mere 4 hour flight, she drew a human figure, and a face. From that distance I could see quite a bit of detail as well. And I thought, "That's really neat~!" I could achieve that much with mere pencil and paper, and on a plane too when the trays are usually pretty unstable, with poor lighting. With an iPad, I never have to worry about those.

So I got one as an early birthday+Christment present for myself. My wife got me the Apple Pencil which is by all means, not a a typical pencil, and it's not at all cheap.

My first attempt was a company logo requested by my buddy at work for his custom rifle shop. I sketched it with ProCreate, and vectorized it using Graphic.

And my 2nd attempt was just off a video game which I play a lot. It's a Titan class character, Exo species, anticipating the new Rise of Iron expansion armor gear set.

I must say, it's really fun drawing with iPad Pro. I do find that 9.7 could be a little small, and the 12.9" would be a lot more suitable for drawing full time. But I really like the portability of the 9.7 and it's not heavy at all. I drew both of the images above on my lap, sitting in my couch, while watching TV and listening to musics.

I will continue to experiment with this amazing little device, and hopefully I'll be able to create more from here onward.

Thanks again for visiting, and Happy Drawing!

Angela's Mom

2016-08-26T08:10:00.000-05:00

A portrait I drew for Angela, a great mentor who has taught me what I needed to know about reliability compliance in the power industry, a gift to a really good friend.
Her mom passed away not too long ago, and I could only relate with the recent loss of my aunt in my family.
I didn't want to mail this to her, so I brought it with me to Seattle earlier this week attending a conference Angela and the compliance team organize every 2 years. I handed this drawing to her, tears started rolling. My eyes were wet too thinking about my TuaEe, and I know that this is probably one of the good ways to remember the loved ones that have left us.

(9x11" Strathmore Bristol Vellum 300lb, Graphite. Image taken using iPhone 6s)

I already have a few more projects lined up, so stay tuned. As always, thanks for visiting and for all your lovely comments.

TuaEe

2016-08-15T14:59:00.000-05:00

Tua Ee (大姨) is my mother's oldest sister. She took care of me and my siblings when we were little like her own. I had always enjoyed visiting her when I had the chance during school holidays, and talking to her over the phone was always a joy. I had lots of fun taking worry-free naps in her house, and fixing broken things around her house with just my Swiss army knife. I was often rewarded with a big smile, endless of compliments, and a full stomach.
She always cooked the best meals, baked the best cookies, and I was never complaining about have to finish up so that she didn't have to worry about leftovers.
I called her every year during Chinese New Year, and wished her that she'd be blessed with good health and happiness, and often times, we would be giggling over the phone.
This coming Chinese New Year however, I will no longer be hearing her voice, nor will I be able to make her laugh. She had left us in her sleep, peacefully and quietly. I am sad that I was not able to be at her funeral to tell her goodbye for the last time, and that she has a strong and permanent place in my heart, right next to my cousin Ping See, which I will always revisit.

(Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5x3.5")

Sorry I had not been drawing or posting. I will not promise anything, and I appreciate the thoughts and your time to read.

Guardian Angel

2015-01-27T08:37:00.000-06:00

About a month ago, the daughter of my co-worker and friend of mine got involved in an accident. The road was dark and probably slippery too, and she crashed into a tree. People nearby managed to pull her out of the wreck. She's healing well, and doing better each day, and her injuries were mostly from lacerations, despite the front end of the vehicle was crumpled beyond recognition. She couldn't remember the whole thing, which is probably a blessing, but most of all... the car did what it was supposed to do, protect the driver. When I looked at the picture taken of the wreck, I couldn't imagine how one could have survived it. To me, "someone" was looking after her.

I was also just thinking if I was 16, and if me or my friend got in an accident like that, how would that affect me. Will I ever drive again? Will this be something I can tell my kids and grandkids one day? I don't really know. But one thing that I used to do when I was 16 is drawing greeting cards for friends(because I couldn't afford to buy them gifts, and hand drawn cards are always unique), so I did just that for her eventhough I don't know her.

I got all the management team to sign the card and gave it to my co-worker yesterday. She happily reported to me this morning that they like the card, and found it meaningful. I'd say, mission : Successful :)

Here is the front of the card (9x6"). And this 350Z has gone to Heaven but not forgotten :)

Hollie

2014-12-27T13:20:00.000-06:00

I can't believe it's been a year since my last post. At first it was just moving into this new house and trying to get settled in, and then there were many other things, gaming, work, family, friends, travels... it was just hectic. I thought of it as a year of vacation from drawing anything on my Moleskine, but I do occasionally doodle here and there.

(Update: I misspelled her name, it's actually Hollie and not Holly)

Anyway, here's a quick sketch of my co-worker's granddaughter, Hollie. I thought she has the most serene smile, and she's an angel(because she absolutely loves cats), eventhough I've never met her.

(Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5x3.5")

Wishing everyone a belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Carol

2013-12-27T13:50:00.000-06:00

In February 2009, when this art blog was still dormant, and when I was still active in a joint-blog called Rainbowbox (which is now dormant), I sketched a new friend I had made named Carol. During that time, I was not into portraits yet, and most of my drawings were rather manga style. And then in March 2009, I started experimenting with portraits and drawing faces a little more seriously. I sketched my Carol again, and it was the 3rd time I drew portraits, and they were all in larger sizes (bigger than 8 x 5").

Now in 2013, I thought it'd be fun drawing drawing her again but in miniature sizes with different expressions :)

Pencil and marker on Moleskine Sketchbook (5.5x3.5")

And I just realized that I've been doing portraits for more than 4½ years now.

Happy New Year!

Brilee

2013-12-26T14:43:00.001-06:00

A quick sketch of my wife's friend's baby daughter, Brilee. She just turned 2 not too long ago. I haven't got the chance to meet her yet, but from all the pictures her mom has shared, I can easily tell that she's super adorable and fun to play with ^^

(Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5x3.5")

Thank you for visiting and taking time to leave a comment. I really appreciate it!
I hope everyone's had a fantastic Christmas and spent a lot of quality time with loved ones...next up, HAPPY NEW YEAR :)

Merry Christmas!

2013-12-20T08:59:00.000-06:00

Christmas is almost here, but I am not a very festive people. But that does not stop me for drawing festive subjects right? Take care everyone, and have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! :)

I am attaching the outline, so that you could print it out and have kids to color them if you like.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2013-11-22T13:11:00.001-06:00

I know I have been ignoring my blog, and I actually had not drawn anything for a while now. Being a homeowner, wow...it's not easy and it's robbing what little time I have left for myself to do art work.
It was the combination of flying back and visit my family in Malaysia(it was an awesome 3 weeks vacation for me and my wife, I think my wife would have enjoyed it more if she didn't get sick) and trying to find my routine again.
I am working on it and slowly getting back into it. I just want everyone to know that my blog is not dead, because I won't allow it. I may not be posting as much, but I will post something every once in a while.
Take care everyone, and have a great Thanksgiving! :)
Oh yeah, almost forgot. I am attaching this also, so that you could print it out and have kids to color them if you like.

Doodles 3

2013-08-08T09:51:00.001-05:00

Been busy on weekends. Spending lots of time on the road, packing, get together with old friends, engagement party, forgot my sketchbook at work etc. :)

But I still have time for something random like these :-

I hope you like them. I will find the time to do something a little more serious next round. Thanks again for all your kind comments and encouragements. I really appreciate them.

Ann

2013-07-22T09:50:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine asked me to do a sketch of her niece. I held it back for a while now because so much had happened I couldn't find the time to do it. But I finally did it yesterday, and it took me about 90 minutes total(not too many details).

I don't really know much about her, except that her name is Ann, and the picture my friend gave me was taken when Ann was just 4, she's 7 years old now. I did however drew her older on purpose, but I am not too sure if it worked. I guess we'll see.

Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook (5.5 x 3.5")

Thank you all for your comments, your kind thoughts, and your compassion. It'd be my cousin's 45th birthday today, so I'm wishing my cousin an awesome birthday in heaven :)

Update : Here's the latest photo of Ann taken by my friend(unfortunately she's not smiling). I think I was pretty close, what do you think?

PingSee

2013-06-30T13:59:00.001-05:00

I knew it would take me a while before I could post again, but I never knew that it would take me this long. Apart from moving my wife from Mississippi to Texas, re-adjusting our lifestyles or living together, purchasing and building a new house... we thought that life could not get more exciting. I was so wrong.
In between, my wife's grandma got so sick for weeks she had to be admitted to the ICU, and we have learned that UTI(Urinary Tract Infection) affects elderly very differently than younger people. It's very dangerous so here's the link where you can read more about it and understand it better.

In parallel to that, my cousin was battling acute cancer in ICU 10,000 miles away. We later found out that she had been in pain for over 10-years but didn't really go for a thorough medical check-up and just toughened herself up and dealt with the pain. Just a few months ago she finally decided to get herself treated, only to find out later that her body was failing and shutting down. She battled the disease for about a month, and passed away a month before her 45th birthday.
Until today, I still see her face when I close my eyes. I hear her voice and laughter when I think of her. She's more like a sister to me, and probably the kindest and most hardworking person I've know. She's worked for the same company for over 20 years and had lived a modest lifestyle. She's caring and loving towards people around her and loved by people she surrounded herself with. She will forever be missed, and her absence forever felt, the gap she had left in so many hearts will be filled only memories of her and the comfort of knowing that she's no longer in pain.

This is by far the hardest tribute sketch I had to do, and tears were rolling making it hard for me to see what I was doing. This is for PingSee, my beloved cousin.

Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook (3.5x5.5")

Tiffany 2 - SNSD

2013-05-12T15:21:00.000-05:00

Another post on the same day? Wow! ^____^
Actually I know that I wouldn't be able to post anything next week, or maybe even the week after that, so I just drew more this weekend.

Here's Tiffany again from SNSD, another Korean pop group. I did a compilation of her earlier, but they didn't show her smile, and that wasn't right of me because she's known for her smile. So there ya go.

Moleskine Sketchbook (5.5 x 3.5")

Thought I'd like to show how the spread looks.

Thank you very much for visiting and leaving comments. I really appreciate your support ;)

4Minute - HyunA

2013-05-12T15:13:00.002-05:00

I've watching quite a bit of Korean movie on Netflix lately, so I felt like drawing some Korean pop stars again. =)
This is HyunA from a Korean pop group 4Minute. She also appeared on PSY's Gangnam Style music video.
I must say, it didn't turn out like I wanted, and it doesn't look like her, so I apologize. But if you're interested in knowing how she looks like, here's the link about her on Wikipedia.

Moleskine Sketchbook (5.5 x 3.5")

Thanks and Happy Mother's Day!

Ghost

2013-05-03T17:21:00.000-05:00

I saw a very cool profile picture on DeviantArt, and then it reminded me of the promo poster for the up and coming Call of Duty:Ghost game which would be released on the next gen consoles(which I probably will be taking a long break from).

Anyway, here's a quick sketch of that picture with a minor twist, and here's the link to the original image.

Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook (5.5x3.5")

Thanks again for visiting and leaving comments.

Doodles 2

2013-05-02T07:23:00.002-05:00

I didn't draw too much in April, just didn't have a lot in my head or the motivation to draw something on my sketchbook. I've recently joined the JKPP, but I haven't really got the chance to read through the 'procedures' yet. I'll try to work with that this weekend, and hopefully I'll have my first JKPP portrait to be shown.

As of right now, I only have a few doodles I do almost on a weekly basis on my work log. I find that it's relaxing to do so, and they help me to remember the pages better since I don't draw the same thing over and over again. :) And I think there are a bit more fantasy-dragon-ninja-heroes themed. Enjoy and thanks for visiting.

Random Dragon Pattern Human theme

Golf trophy dude vs Pumpkin and random cracked screen

Random patterns, dragon, hulk and dragon

Bunch of superheroes mash-up

Gavel, and a stylized design of a logo for my cat Meela, if she's a superhero

Ninja leaping off while drawing his sword.

IAH-West Palm Beach FL-Conference

2013-04-16T07:56:00.000-05:00

I was in West Palm Beach, FL last week for a conference. No I didn't get to go to the beach(I am not exactly a salt water and sun person), but it was a great conference, with abundance of delicious food.
I had hours in the IAH(Houston International Airport) to spare, while listening to songs on my iPhone, and after watching several episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" on Netflix, I thought to myself "Hey.... I think I brought my sketchbook with me!" which I did. So here are the results.

I also did a few doodles during the conference(yeah, I pay good attention to the speakers ^^)

I hope you enjoy these, thank you all for visiting and your comments. =)

Kratos

2013-04-01T06:29:00.001-06:00

I was going to continue with the "green" theme, but somehow I was drawn to this one even more, especially after watching this video.
I think most people who follow my blog knew that I play video games, and God of War series on PlayStation, is by far still the best action-adventure game in my opinion. I enjoy the graphics, the gameplay, the storyline, and the soundtracks are amazing too(but bear in mind, there's a lot of violence in this game, definitely not for kids)

So here's my take on Kratos, the God of War himself.

(Pencil and Color Pencils Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5x3.5")

I appreciate all the comments and for your time as always.
Thanks and Happy April Fool's day =)

Green Eye

2013-03-17T09:58:00.002-06:00

It's St. Patrick's day today, and I am not wearing green, and I am not going out as well(eventhough my car needs a wash desperately). I don't think I will get pinched even if I go out, being a 6'2 tall Asian guy can be pretty intimidating, and I always have excuse of being cultural ignorant or something like that :) But I don't want to get cyber-pinched too, so I have decided to draw something green.

Mixed media on Moleskine Sketchbook (5.5 x 3.5")

I've also included some steps of how it got from just outlines to semi-realism state. Hope you like them and HAPPY SAINT PADDY'S DAY.

P.S.: Don't pinch me, or I'll get really angry, and you won't like it when I am angry....- Hulk(before he turns green that is) ^^

Karambit

2013-03-10T16:47:00.002-06:00

Taking a break from drawing faces :)

Pencil on Moleskine sketchbook (5.5 x 3.5")

The karambit or kerambit is a small hand-held, curved blade from Indonesia. Called karambit in the Philippines, it is known as a kerambit in both Indonesia and Malaysia. It is found recently that the karambit to be useful for self-defense. Most of those produced in the West for use as weapons are based on the small Filipino variety, which features a short blade and index finger ring.

Thank you all for your comments and appreciate your time ^^

In memory of Guan Hin Tan

2013-03-03T17:32:00.000-06:00

I grew up knowing that I had a grand uncle who was a famous artist. He was a teacher, and he specialized in Chinese paintings, especially tigers and bamboo trees. No, I didn't have the opportunity to meet him in person, but I only knew him through his paintings when he had passed which he left his paintings to my other grand uncle.
I started drawing even before I knew about him, and I am not sure why I like drawing, but I am glad that at least I share this same passion with my grand uncle. Every once in a while when I draw, I do feel like I am just a child playing in his shadow. This page is dedicated to him, this sketch is for him.

(Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5 x 3.5")

I know it's unusual for me to post 2 drawings in 2 days. I guess I am in the mood to do so (and I am staying away from my PlayStation ^^). Thank you all again for dropping by and leaving comments.

For those who are interested to know a little more about my grand uncle, here are a couple of websites about him and his work.
Tan Guan Hin (Penang)
Virtual Memory of Guan Hin Tan

Kay

2013-03-02T18:07:00.000-06:00

Doodling is fun :) I think my last post said a lot even though I didn't realize it. But I do like to draw faces, especially cute ones. So I browsed around Facebook, looking at my friends' profile pictures. (And we all know people love taking pictures of their kids and use them as their profile pictures, the kids of course haven't the slightest clue what's really going on)

This is Kay. She's one of my friends' baby girl. I haven't met her before but I am sure she's super adorable. I've also decided to show the process(plus the time I took for each process) and hopefully it'll be useful or interesting for those who are wondering how I did this. Total time : 2 hours.

(Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5 x 3.5")

Final product. Background and details on clothing. (30 mins)

Initial drafting with light strokes, working on the right proportion. (15 mins)

Worked on her eyes. Shading from left to right (because I am right-handed). This to me is probably the most delicate step as it determined how the light falls on her. (50 mins)

Worked on her hair. (25 mins)

I hope you guys enjoyed the process. It's definitely fun for me to draw her, and perhaps I'll be lucky enough to meet this adorable girl in person when I return home to visit my family later this year. I'd like to thanks her parents for allowing me to draw her, and everyone else for dropping by and leaving comments.

Doodles

2013-03-01T11:15:00.000-06:00

As promised, I'm posting some of the doodles on my log book at work...just a way to kill time and boredom during meetings and discussions. :)

Boss' leather bag

Handwritten vs Dual monitors

Something for everyone

What a lot of people would like to do.

A wooden duck sculpture in Boss' office.

Pokeball (Ball in Chinese)

Soccerball + GP(Eye)

Padlock and Woody(Wudi = Undefeatable in Chinese)

Thanks again for visiting and leaving comments. ^^

Tiffany SNSD

2013-02-18T16:38:00.002-06:00

I have not been drawing any celebrities for a while now. Since it's holiday today, I thought I should have enough time to do another one on my long neglected Moleskine sketchbook :)

(Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5x3.5")

This is Tiffany. She's one of the 9 girls in SNSD or Girls Generation, a very popular Kpop group in South Korea. It's a compilation of shots taken of her(probably by some paparazzi) while she's in the airport travelling. She's known for her usual sweet smile, but I thought sometimes a person's most natural expressions can tell a lot of stories. I might do another one with her signature smile, someday :) But for now, if you want to know how she looks like when she smiles for the camera, just Google Tiffany SNSD images, you'll have an entire array of pictures with her smiling ^^

Thanks for visiting and your comments means a lot to me.

Yuna

2013-02-17T19:49:00.000-06:00

It's the 7th day of Chinese New Year(Lunar New Year) and I haven't drawn anything that has anything to do with snake....yet(it's the year of the Snake).
Anyway, I had asked my friend's permission to draw her little daughter a while ago, and she said okay. So I did! :)

(Pencil on Moleskine Sketchbook 5.5x3.5")

Her name is Yuna, and she's half Japanese half Chinese. She looks super adorable in pictures(her eyes are so big and pretty!), and I like drawing adorables ^^ I hope her mom approves of this one.

Sorry again for not been able to post things online. It's not that I haven't been drawing, I actually have been doing a lot of drawing on DrawSomething, and doodling on my work log :). Work's been crazy, and too much video gaming. A lot of be planned for this year including moving wife and Meela to Houston, travelling to Malaysia, and house-hunting in Houston.

Thanks you all for reading and for your comments.