Here's a pic of my work desk 3-4 years ago in the States.

Looking through my collection of photos on Flickr, I was pleased to find this picture of my work desk when I was in the States. Most materials were bought in the flea market or during those times when the art suppliers were having clearance sales. It's students' heaven! My best buy was an electric sharpener which I carried back when I returned to Singapore. It is hard to find one here, and if you could, it is really expensive. I am so glad I could live in a foreign country for a good amount of time to explore the place and to explore and learn art too. I found myself growing so fast with the right exposure and guidance. If there is another chance, I would do it again. This time I would major in painting.

And I thought we just celebrated Christmas not long ago.
The world is chaotic, economy is not doing very well but we would always find out place in Christmas when everyone stops to find that badly needed peace in our lives. Whatever happens around me, I find my peace in my all loving God in heaven and in the LOVE and COMPANY I find in my wife, Kat.

Blessed Christmas everyone!!

[caption id="attachment_1924" align="alignnone" width="662" caption="Self Portrait Christmas Theme"][/caption]

Click to enlarge.

 

11" X 15" 4B Pencil
Backside of Strathmore Watercolor Cold Press

A pencil drawing that is waiting to be filled with color. I drew this with the reference to an photo I took of the ice-cream peddler parked along the river bank at Clarke Quay. I tried drawing this with a long continuous line so I could save out on the details and would eventually rely on the painting process to suggest details. The dilemma is, I like this pencil sketch so much I have second thoughts about adding color.

Going back to Kampong Buangkok brought back lotsa memories. I was there first time last year and was astonished to find the last surviving kampong in Singapore. Noone would imagine that such a place exist at all. It was well hidden among the big trees, while driving there, you would see towering state housings along the way. Who would think urban Singapore could tolerate such a rustic place like this. A friend of mine wanted to paint the kampong too so we set off with our gears just to find that the weather was wet and raining. We weren't detered and settled underneath a shelter while the rain pattered away. I did a few sketches before I decided which composition to paint. I painted to the sound of rain and to the sound of hindi movies playing in the background. The feeling was out of this world. I took about 1.5 hours for this.

I have also been trying to paint without the pen lines. This would be my third or fourth attempt to do just that. While still trying to get use to painting without the lines, I have also been trying to be more experimental with watercolors. For this I was a little nervous at first but got better and loose with the painting as I progressed. The outcome, I am quite satisfied but I could be more bold with the shadows and to be less literal with the details.

Strathmore Watercolor Cold Pressed, 11" X 15"