Alki Beach

Little girl overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

Panoramic view of Seattle overlooking Puget Sound (can you spot the Space Needle?)

My good friend, Sophia. Her warm-hearted spirit and enthusiasm is contagious!

1997-2003: LOST AND FOUND - ATTEMPTING TO ESCAPE UNORIGINALITY

Unfortunately, I have either recycled most of my past sketches or lost them somehow. A number were given to my friends... The remaining few are the lucky ones that survived all these years. I happened to find them while rummaging through a stack of old papers in my closet. Posted below are some more childhood/adolescent drawings and sketches. These were drawn during a period when I was still trying to find my own style. Clearly, I was nowhere near yet...but then again, I wasn't really trying and never had much time to draw. School was draining and inhibited my creativity...so I mainly relied on references. Only boring lectures seemed to send me on doodle rampages.

Oh those anime/manga years!

There are a plethora of qualities from this art form that I find captivating: the wide eyes, crazy hair, sharp features... Be prepared to throw tomatoes at my face, but I'm not necessarily immersed in the anime or manga world. For instance, out of all the anime drawings below, I haven't seen any episodes or games in which these characters derived from (except for Inu-Yasha, The Legend of Zelda, and three episodes of Evangelion-which proved too depressing for my taste). That doesn't stop one from appreciating this art style though!

LUNAR SILVER STAR STORY: ALEX (referenced)
Mechanical Pencil on Paper 8.5" x 11" (1999)

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION: REI AYANAMI (referenced)
Color Pencils & Black Ink on Paper 8.5" x 11" (1999)

SENTIMENTAL GRAFFITI: NAGAKURA EMIRU (referenced)
Mechanical Pencil on Paper 8.5" x 11" (2000)

INU-YASHA (referenced)
15 min. sketch: Mechanical Pencil on Paper 6" x 6" (2000)

THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: YOUNG LINK (referenced & unfinished)
Mechanical Pencil & Black-ink Pen on Paper 6" x 6" (2000)

PEACH GIRL: TOJI TOUJIGAMORI (referenced)
Mechanical Pencil on Paper 11" x 14" (2004)

All that could be retrieved from the Disney phase:

I wish I could find more disney sketches. My childhood dream was to work as a Disney animator...

JESSICA & ROGER RABBIT
Pencil on Paper 11" x 14" (1997)
...while hospitalized.

ETERNAL YOUTH: PETER PAN (referenced & unfinished)
Mechanical Pencil on Paper 6" x 6" (2003)

"THEY CALL ME THUMPER!" (referenced)
Mechanical Pencil on Paper 6" x 6" (2003)

2003 was finally the year I stopped relying on references but now, I faced another problem: my artwork seemed to be display a fusion of "anime" and"disney" influence.

If there was anything I wish I could've drawn better six years ago, it would've been male humans. For the life of me, any attempt of drawing men or boys leaned towards the feminine side (unless I'm looking at a reference of a male figure). In other words, I tend to draw girly men--a true let down to all men around the world. Sorry guys!

ORIGINAL CHARACTER CONCEPT SKETCH
Pencil on Paper 11" x 14" (2001)

ORIGINAL CHARACTER CONCEPT SKETCH
Pencil on Paper 11" x 14" (2001)

ORIGINAL CHARACTER CONCEPT SKETCH
Pencil on Paper 8" x 10" (2004)
Drawn at a restaurant in Vancouver B.C while waiting for food

ORIGINAL CHARACTER CONCEPT SKETCH
Pencil on Paper 8.5" x 10" (2003)
...during AP Biology

ORIGINAL CHARACTER CONCEPT DESIGN
Pencil on Paper 11" x 14" (2001)

ORIGINAL CHARACTER CONCEPT SKETCH
Pencil on Paper 11" x 14" (2001)

Family Portraits (except for the last two)...

DELIA: GOD DAUGHTER (HONDURAS)

Colored pencils on paper 8" x 10" (2004)

CHARLOTTE: FIRST COUSIN ONCE REMOVED (FRANCE)

Colored pencils on paper 8" x 10" (2004)

Question: Would I call my cousin's daughter my first cousin once removed?
I've heard some people refer to this relationship as "niece" but from my understanding, niece refers to a sibling's daughter...which definitely does not apply here.

STAR-DAZED

Colored pencils on paper 6" x 6" (2001)

QUICK ROUGH SKETCH OF---guess who?

Mechanical pencil on paper 8.5" x 11" (2005)

Sleepless in Seattle

Cradled by the Puget Sound with Mt. Rainier and the magnificent Olympic Mountain range reigning in the distance, Seattle is irrefutably beautiful! Here's a snapshot taken during Scott's birthday party from his apartment rooftop. We were all fortunate enough to catch a breathtaking view of the sunset afterward.

Pictured above: Lake Union, Mt Rainier, Downtown Seattle

The Wondrous Beauty of Nature

A scenic road trip down to the Olympic National Park on July 4, 2009 ending with a phenomenal fireworks display at the Kingston Ferry Terminal. I don't think I could've asked for a better Independence Day!

The following slideshow is a compilation of select photos that were taken during the trip. Locations displayed include Hurricane Ridge, Lake Crescent, the Hoh Rainforest, La Push and Rialto Beach. (Camera: Nikon D60)



Posted below are a few favorites. To view the entire gallery, please click here.

Tucked away and hidden from sight...until now.

MAI CHARACTER CONCEPT

Sketch: Mechanical pencil on paper 6" x 6" (2001)

GAZING
Sketch: Graphite pencil on paper 6" x 6" (2001)

LOTUS CONTRAST: ORIGINAL DESIGN

Black & White paper cut out using an X-Acto knife & glue 8.5" x 11" (2003)

Childhood Aspirations...

When you draw back upon childhood aspirations, what did you want to be? An astronaut, a teacher, an environmentalist, a philanthropist, etc? Did your ambitions fluctuate or did they remain constant throughout your life? One of my dreams happened to revolve around Disney and animation./concept design.. In a way, it still does; but with less emphasis on the Disney part. These sketches served as a personal exercise to learn and understand diverse character designs, styles and techniques by reproducing existing characters from animated films. The fun and challenging part involved creating original concepts which imitated the same artistic style. Back in the age where DVD players were nonexistent and VCRs prevailed, the pause function only lasted for 5 minutes before resuming the "play" mode (which was unfortunate). If one exceeded 5 minutes, it was difficult to find the exact moment where the pause button was originally pressed. I had problems freezing frames where I needed them to remain stationary...so the characters' facial expressions were never quite the same during each session. I guess that provides more incentive and pressure to finish the sketches within the given time frame.

CHARACTER SKETCHES FROM DISNEY'S HERCULES
(Hades, Melpomene, Aphrodite)
Mechanical pencil on paper 8.5" x 11" (1999)

MORE CHARACTER SKETCHES FROM DISNEY'S HERCULES
& ORIGINAL CONCEPT DESIGN
(Hestia, Zeus, Hermes & my original concept for Persephone)
Mechanical pencil on paper 8.5" x 11" (1999)