Late Post

It's been a while since I posted something on this blog. I just have been using a couple different media now, I got an Instagram and Tumblr. I still will be go back to this site from time to time. Beside that it has been, interview, company test, doddle commission here and there, and rejection @_@...interesting cycle, but I guess it's better than nothing.

I did some rendering practice since I'm not that good with it so I'm still figuring things out. I did the "coloring a colorbook page," practice where I take a colorbook page in my case is a lineart of Esmeralda from Disney "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" and color it. In this perspective, I wouldn't need to worry about the lineart and be more focus on how I want to color the character. It was a fun practice, I wouldn't mind doing it again. 

I'm also doing a couple more of personal project and will be showing it soon once I have more of it done. So stay in tune, folks.

First Sailor Scouts

 Wanted to restyle Sailor Moon characters to Momiji dolls 

 

Some gift arts that I have given to my friends

This drawing for a gift to my friend, Kwin on her b-day last year.

This drawing is Nana in her blue dino costume that she wore for Halloween for a couple years now.

This drawing is for my friend Edward. He likes Boba milk tea and girls so I figured I can draw something to combine his interest together.

More Fanart

Hilda from Zelda Link between world 

Female Ranma from Ranma 1/2 anime/manga 

Faye Valentine Fanart

I want to draw more this year and I read somewhere artist like to draw fanart on friday when they would call it #fanartfriday or was it #fridayfanart something like that hehehe. Anyhow I like that idea so I'm going to try to draw some fanart on friday now and then, it help me out of my artist block. So last week I did:

Faye Valentine:

I finished the lineart on friday 

 I finished the coloring on sat.

Cheer for 2014

2013 went by really fast! I can't believe it's 2014, but here we are in 2014.

2013 reflection:

I was unsuccessful landing a company job, but I been freelancing so I got some gig here and there. 2013 was weird for me in the art department, I had more free time than I know what to do with, but there are time where I was having artist block and even reconsider a change in my career path. Some the position I want is soo rare. I did grow impatience, self-doubt and etc. Even with all the barriers I had with my art I still tried to push myself with character designs, coloring, and trying to improve my skills. I got to visit Vietnam this year so I did get inspiration from the culture over there and that did help me rethink about my art and what kind of message I would like to tell with my work. Well that was 2013.

As for 2014, I still plans to have table at convention to sell my artwork and get my artwork out there. I really enjoy CTN 2012, it was really overwhelming, but I felt good there like I was among my peers. I would hope that I can return to CTN in 2014! So hopefully that will happen!

I really like Neil Gaiman wish in 2011 so I will paste that here:

"In 2011, my wish for each of us is small and very simple.

And it’s this.

I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.

 

Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re Doing Something.

 

So that’s my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody’s ever made before. Don’t freeze, don’t stop, don’t worry that it isn’t good enough, or it isn’t perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life."

 

He wrote it in 2011, but I feel like it can apply to any years! SO ONWARD 2014! CHEER! 

 

 

Chun Li Fanart

1One of my favorite character from street fighter has always been Chun Li since I used to know the buttons combo to make her do the spinning bird kick back in the days...oh fun time.

Fortune Teller

A couple year ago I was designing characters for my circus idea line-up. I designed a couple character and then I asked my friend Quin to design a few more. She sketched out some and we basically forget about it or at least I did T_T. Until recently I looked back at some old files and remember the sketch she did for me. I really like the character design and I know I wanted to color it. So here in the result:

(Left side: I did the lineart and rending. Right side: Quin original concept drawing)

Girls Doodle

For the past week/month I been working one some freelance works so I wasn't been able to do anything big personal work. However, I was still able to work on some mini piece. And here there are:

Sci-Fi Chick

Inspired by Sci-Fi movies I been watching and I just wanted to created a badass chick stepping away from girls in dress that I usually draw. This piece took me awhile to complete since metal isn't something I done before. I tried to be as detail as much as possible.

North, Central, and South Ao Dai

Two trips I took in the past year that I felt inspired, influence, and shape me as an artist were CTN 2012 and my Vietnam trip earlier this year.

When I was at CTN, I was obsess with artist artbooks. I spent a couple of hundred on artbooks alone and you know what...YOLO lol. Not sure when will be the next time I will return to CTN so might as well. Among the artbook I also got a Chris Sander's Aloha Figurine because I admire the style of figurine.

 

Chris Sander's Aloha Figurine

 

Earlier this year, when I was in Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City I was at the marketplace went I run across three figurine set that I was really interested in getting for myself. The figurine illustrated the three different Ao Dai (Vietnamese cultural dress) in the three region of Vietnam which are North, Central, and South. I wanted a solid wood type texture to the figurine and my Aunt and I had a hard time finding it. Most of the booth that we went to had alot of the figurine ready painted. We finally found a store that sell it in a solid color, but it was smaller than the other that I saw. I still end up getting that. All the hard work looking for the figurine with the right price was kinda ruin unfortunately during my trip back to USA. We bubble wrap the figurines, but when I unwrap the figurines when I was back one figurine was beheaded, the hands was falling apart @_@...it was just sad. I was able to fix it with glues, but it wasn't strong enough so it still kept falling apart.

(The order in this photo is actually South, Central, and North) 

Anyway, the reason why I bought those stories up is because those figurines been sitting on top of my desk at home where I usually do alot of my drawing so to me it's always a reminder of what's my root and what is my passion in case I lose track. However, it's also a bumper for me to look at broken figurine, so I been working on a new project to replace my broken figurine. I illustrated female Ao Dai from the three region with the inspiration of the figurine of Chris Sander (which is also close to my artistic drawing style). I plan to print it out and add some more personal touch before framing it.

Mako from Pacific Rim

I wanted to work on my personal project, but wasn't able to work on it before flushing some fanart out.  Saw Pacific Rim a couple weeks ago and since then I can't get it out of my mind. I mean that movie wasn't "perfect," but the fighting sequence were just mind blowing and one of my favorite character from the movie is Mako Mori.

 The first one I did was Mako when she was a little girl when a Kaiju attacked her city and killed her parents (I guess).

  The second piece is Mako during the movie when she was fighting with her co-pilot (Love that scene).

Recreating: Notice Me

In preparation for my portfolio for 2013, I looked at my old works from my 2012 portfolio. I looked back at my "Notice Me" piece, I had plans for the characters, but I didn't finish the story development. I guess that was a regret for me, I decided to revisit the design and grounded them a little bit more. For the old story I was thinking way too...fairy tale and this time I wanted to be more realistic and not only did my perspective for the characters change, the finally product I want it to become also changed. I'm not thinking of story development to be like an animation, but more in a line of how these character will be like in a mobile game and what kind of game am I thinking they would be in and etc. It's actually a fun and really frustration process, but to me it's also rewarding to see how much my perspective of art change and just my style evolving within a year (more or less). This recreating project is also my own self indulgent of wedding and I feel like if I work on something I am passion(beside drawing) about I will be more motivated to finish the project.

The Blue Umbrella

Saw some early character concept artwork for The Blue Umbrella and it push me to draw this out.  

Mini Project: Japanese Street Fashion

For the past couple of weeks I been trying to be more creative with my clothes and design on my drawing. I then discover this tumblr of street snap fashion and I have to say most of the of the snap shots are from Japan. I find myself scrolling around looking at the different street fashion, there are some design that I can't help but take a double look at it and want to draw it out. So that is what I did for some couple images I found:

Then my ambition took over and wanted to do something more than copy what I am seeing. For the next two drawing, I still copy the pose and clothes, but mash-up comic characters: Batwoman and Robin base of Carrie Kelley design. 

Reimagine Megaman 2.0

The pro and con at looking at your old works...are how bad it was and how much you improve since then.

In 2011 DAC (design-a-character), posted a challenge to reimagine Megaman. Of course I participated, I had to think out of box to re-imagine  a character that is already so known for he's design.

Now in 2013, I revisit the design and tried something new cause looking back at my old Megamen designs...it's quite flaws.

Since then, I learn more about:
- Proportion
- Shading
- Character design

Bigger ver of Megaman 2013

Feeling Nostalgic

Growing up, one of my favorite anime to watch was "Sailor Moon." I remember how I used to draw the characters, buy the stickers cards and poster. It been ages since I drawn a Sailor Moon character and lately I been feeling a little nostalgic with classic anime so here to fond childhood memories!

Avatar base on Flavia Ceccarelli's style

Need an avi updated on DA, this time base off Flavia Ceccarelli's style.

Vietnamese girl with Lotus flower

Fresh from my trip to Vietnam:

Easter Day

Inspired from from a photo of two special kids in my life during Easter Sunday.