Quick Scribbles

Needed a break from studying past midnight...

GHOULISH WHISPERS

Pen on Paper 8" x 10" (2006)

Tattoos for Stefanie and Ann...

Tattoo design for Stefanie, a wonderful, childhood friend of mine. Her initial request was to create a butterfly concept with a tiger's face embedded within its wings. The butterfly signifies a delicate exterior; whereas the piercing gaze of the tiger represents subtle, inner stregnth.

TIGER BUTTERFLY TATTOO
Mechanical pencil on paper 8.5" x 11" (2006)

Tattoo venue: Laughing Buddha at Captal Hill. (Pictured above and below: Stefanie)

...and the following designs were for her mother, Ann--who has always been fascinated by the stars and moon. The final selection Ann chose was the top right design.

STARS & MOON TATTOO CONCEPTS
Mechanical pencil on paper 8.5" x 11" (2007)

Le loup, L'oiseau et La Marmot

Rough, random sketch done within my temporary lodging quarters near a small midieval village named Embrun. This historic commune is nestled within the southern Alps region (Hautes-Alpes) of France. The scenery there is breathtakingly stunning...with magnificent mountains sprawled out on the terrain. I instantly fell in love with the area, and often find myself pining to relive the experience every now and then. Mediocre attempts of conversing with friendly strangers and going on phenomenal hiking trips with newfound friends consumed most of my days. It's nice not to be able to rely on English (or speak it at all) even though I'm sure I had a horrible French-American accent; nevertheless, everybody I met was extremely patient, amiable and incredibly caring. My awkwardness of feeling like a foreigner (I was the only non-French native /Asian person in the area) was quickly distilled by the warmth and lively spirit of those around me.

LE LOUP, L'OISEAU et LA MARMOT

Pen on scrap paper 5" x 10" (2005)

Our hiking group (where there is a constant flux of participants)

Arduous hike, but definitely worth the trek once we reached the peak.

Possibly one of the sweetest boys I've ever met!

Visiting another nearby village: Briançon

Portland Studios

Inadvertently stumbling upon Cory Godbey's site has led me to Portland Studios. What a dream job!

I am simply in love with Justin Gerard's artwork (another member at the Portland Studios).

"Samurai Hamster" by Justin Gerard

"Where the Wild Things Are"

(Note: orange text = link, so click away!)

Venture into the world of "Terrible Yellow Eyes", a gallery and blog established by Cory Godbey as "a collection of works inspired by the beloved classic, Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak."

This reminds me of the Totoro Forest Project (minus the art auction that supports the preservation of Sayama Forest in Japan). You'll notice that some of the contributing artists involved in the Totoro Forest Project also share their admiration for Sendak's creations at "Terribly Yellow Eyes." These art pieces are currently displayed at the Nucleus Art Gallery in California.

To view all of the work online, please visit: http://www.gallerynucleus.com/gallery/pieces/214?page=all

"Where are they now?" by Pascal Campion (very nice guy by the way...)

"That night, a forest grew" by Jason Caffoe

"Through Night and Day" by Joel Furtado

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)