Aliens?

Random sketches of supposed aliens? I wasn't quite thinking when I drew these...nor had I mapped out anything in advance. If anything, I'd say these creatures somewhat resemble ants (minus 2 out of 6 legs). Either way, it would be nice to develop a background story behind the main character (depicted below with the gigantic lollipop). Don't know if that will happen though...

Pencil on paper 11" x 14" (2004 - unfinished)

Who doesn't love violins?

VIOLA (original character design)
Pen on Paper 8.5" x 11" (2003)

What happens when there are too many Ghibli fans?

When I received a text message (last Friday) informing that I had won four free tickets to an advanced screening for Ghibli's latest masterpiece: Ponyo, I thought it was a scam. First of all, I had never entered any contest... Secondly, I was slightly concerned that this venue somehow got my cell phone number. Since the theater housing this event happened to conveniently sit across the street from my office building, I figured it wouldn't hurt to run over quickly and verify the validity of the tickets. It turns out they they were legitimate! The manager recommended getting in line no earlier than an hour before the screening. So I followed his advice (and intentional good will) that later proved to be an unintentional time underestimation. What I later saw was completely unexpected.

Hayao Miyazaki's watercolor concepts for "Ponyo" (Photo source: GhibliWorld.com)

Behold a line spanning more than 400 people that clobbered up the entire floor outside of the theater entrance; a seemingly endless sea of restless adults and children eagerly anticipating admittance. I was surprised that many people could even fit in the room! Doing a rough head estimate, there were probably close to 500 people present...and that was exactly where the problem laid. The screening room could only seat 400. At that moment, my spectacular excitement of arriving an hour earlier (as advised) became a not-so-spectacular disappointment. As you can all guess, we didn't make the cut...

Oh well, lesson learned: it never hurts to be too early. On the plus side, it was nice to see that many individuals appreciate the art and storytelling of Studio Ghibli. Thanks to those who waited in line with me! :-)

Now, if only I can get the Japanese theme song for this movie out of my head. There was one particular store in Tokyo that placed this folksy piece on repeat and I haven't been able to forget it. The U.S. version of Ponyo will be released tomorrow on Aug. 14, 2009 at select theaters.

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)

Six Years Ago...

TRANSPARENCY

Graphite pencil on paper 18" x 24" (2003)

Zoomed in photo of the same still-life (above).

CARICATURE OF JOHN
Graphite pencil on paper 18" x 24" (2003)
(2 minute mandatory exercise. Not a fan of time...)

SELF-CARICATURE (doing the Russian kazatskis aka squat kicks)
Graphite pencil on paper 18" x 24" (2003)

Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse...we were required to draw a caricature of ourselves in 2 minutes. For those who know me, you're probably familiar that the subject I hate drawing/painting the most deals with self-portraits.

(CANNOT RECALL ORIGINAL TITLE OF THE PIECE)
B&W Conté crayons on tan paper 18" x 24" (2003)

This particular assignment involved copying a sketch from an artist from the 1700s to understand his/her drawing methods. For the life of me, I can't remember who I randomly chose from a library book and what this piece was originally called...

Although no guidance or instruction was provided by our professor, I thoroughly enjoyed his presence. He always utilized classroom time to conjure up complex and profound proverbial philosophies about life... Once in awhile, we'd received random art exercises which involved staring at a prearranged piece of still-life for one minute---only to dabble our foot in recreating the image on paper with our eyes closed... One particular assignment involved drawing without lifting our pencils off the page for two hours. Long story short: we didn't really learn anything, but it was a memorable experience that I appreciate.

This was my first and final art course at the University of Washington.

More scraps from the closet...

For as long as I've known, I've always been fearful of the detrimental side-effects excessive pride could play on an individual. As a result, most of my artwork was carefully tucked away and hidden from sight. Since I figured there was nothing particularly special or great about these pieces, it didn't matter anyways.

I personally believed that if an individual truly appreciated art, they would never do it to impress others. In order to convince myself that this conviction purely aligned with my personal ambitions, I made a pact to eliminate any desire to show my artwork to others. Stupid, huh?

Now that those days are over, here are some more pieces during my early to late adolescent years (ages 12-17). Art has and still does represent many things to me.

PASTEL GARDEN
Oil on canvas 10" x 14" (1997)

SHADOW LILY

Color pencils on black paper 16" x 12"(2001)

PIECES OF MAY
Scattered assortment of acrylics on cardboard 15" x 18" (1999)

CAREFREE WALTZ
Watercolor on coldpress paper 10.5" x 13.25" (2002)

SERENITY
watercolor on coldpress paper 16.5" x 12" (2003)

INU-YASHA - SHOGATSU
Acrylics on cardboard 28" x 19.25" (2003 - unfinished)