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Spooky sharks... so begins April.

Spooky sharks to kickstart the week.

Kept myself occupied during a quiet day at work earlier by getting a head-start on things here, and my word it was quiet! Well...ish (towards the end that is).

Back at it! Something, shark...

Ink on paper

Saw this missing cat poster whilse out running errands the other day which started off with the sentence "Answers to Esme", and those words have been circling around in my head ever since. Naturally, the end product here had little to do with the finished artwork!

This time last year I was in the midst of starting off my (then) new sketchbook... And what do I find myself doing tonight? Sticking to the same script with yet another one, that’s what!

I know it’s a little early to start thinking about the next decade, but I needed the inspiration...

This started out as a pen & ink doodle on a napkin at Wendy's. This turned into a mixed media work. It used pen & ink, some ink markers and some acrylic pens.

After yet another afternoon of mind-drifting, I found something I wasn't expecting. One thing over the years, memories are bound to forgotten if I don't recognise its importance in practice. In this case, it was a basic yet very crucial element for my dynamic pieces: curly lines. Continuing from the "spirit" of that character drawing yesterday, I started early today with trying to draw the character in its updated form. Suddenly, I ran into a roadblock: I was unable to bring it to life. Running through nearly a dozen sketches, something felt missing. A bit frustrated, I just lounged around the place and listened to some music played on my phone. Turning it off after a while to prevent the media distraction trap, I just started to let my thoughts wander and looked through different things, asking myself some things... My work felt a little blocky lately. It almost felt like I was focusing too much using certain details as a starting point to improvise from. This results in me struggling to build outwards into a full picture. Often, I find myself losing track of the original concept, which frustrates me. One thought then got into my head. It was something I enjoyed in the past years, which was the concept of "Flow". Suddenly, I felt signs of an answer. The original drawing "White Bird" came into my mind, reminding me of how I started drawing that important piece. I still have a strong impression on how I started it. It started as flowy lines to carve out an outline, vibe, or energy, or whatever my mind finds to describe. Later, I would slowly narrow out the details and sharpen its precision, almost like carving a figure out of nothing. And there it was. Sketching the core or skeleton of an idea, adding the main shape, before narrowing down the to details and precision. A very basic skill in drawing that I have forgotten, as dumb as a nitwit. If I had the core idea there from the start, I wouldn't have lost it right? Putting it into practice, I saw its immediate effects. Curly lines were the only thing I used, and suddenly the White Bird was flying and "alive" again as it should be. Man, I have recorded these for years, within my personal achieve of sketches. Yet, I somehow forgot them like an idiot? I am just speechless. It almost feels like I am back to square one, although there was a takeaway. I have learned the lesson of forgetting this basic practice, which led me astray for all these months. Seriously, I really have to remember how important it is. Putting that aside, I have noticed that I have these 2 styles. One was that "start from a detail and spread out", and the other was the "start from the big picture and narrow down". I had instances of success in both, which gave me a slight dilemma on which to choose. It is obvious that I can't limit myself to either, that would be falling for the stupidity of Duality. My own solution, would be to use either when the situation calls. I can't forget either, I just need to know when is the correct time to use it... ==

Something I started but may never finish it. I wanted to work on space and composition. Its a good start.

Experimenting with Ido, in conceptual design. His concept is actually still very ambiguous in my imagination, unlike his wyvern counterpart. There are still multiple interpretations I have to try out, before narrowing down onto the one which is the most fitting. His elusive character is starting to show (as an ego). A prideful yet aloof character, hiding a very vulnerable and lonely side underneath. Very wise and knowledgeable from an endless search for meaning, but there are some things that he still couldn't understand.

Darth Maul, the Sisyphus of Star Wars. He's also one of my favorite all time Sith. What do you guys think?

I stared and stared at her until I had stared her into little pieces and I thought, you're big and scraggy like a carthorse and nobody can hunt for you in the grass and you couldn't hide anywhere because you can be seen the whole time and you can't surprise anybody and make them feel good! You have completely spoilt our games for no reason because you can't play games yourself! O alas and alack! No one wants your presents. He doesn't want them! You're nobody's surprise, and you can't understand because you're not an artist! And so I went a little closer and humiliated her by saying the most terrible thing of all : amateur! You're an amateur! You're not a real artist! - Sculptor's Daughter by Tove Jansson #dailydrawing #tovejansson

I wanted to try some perspective drawing. But of course I need to make it crazy and shake the lines up. I have some ideas when I start to color it.

Sometimes my dreams give me ideas. But when demons visit, you start to question yourself.

Inktober day 8. Reckless. "You'll tell me", he said, "if I start to talk crazy". Sing to it Amy Hempel

God and the devil were one The split into two To give birth to the sun The stars, the moon, and the seas But who can decide whats more beautiful The mountains or trees So god and the devil made me #embracingnightmares

... is a tease for a dwarf; starvation for a giant. x x x This drawing isn't about cakes or Smurfs. People have different needs in life. People have different perspectives and different thresholds for things like fulfillment and pain. x x x "There is nothing in the world bigger than the tip of an autumn hair, and Mount T'ai is tiny." -Chuang Tzu

Now that I started to draw my photos, I noticed that I started taking different pictures. I am taking fewer "good" pictures - composition, color all went out the window. Instead, I am taking pictures of things that made me happy or just tickled my fancy. A stack of blinis, made from my great-aunt's recipe. A book that I accidentally discovered that is so weird and funny. A secret compartment in the wall in a supermarket.

While working at the GCPD, they haven't really communicated. Or rather, they haven't communicated at all - Edward was courting Kristen Kringle, and if they crossed paths, it was limited to simple "hi-bye." But Amber was starting her "career" as an informant and tried to pay attention to her colleagues, especially if they stood out in some way. And Edward stood out. Not only with his brilliant mind, but also with his good manners, determination, and gentlemanly treatment of women. Therefore, Amber had him in good standing - which, in the context of her character, is a great compliment. But she did not seek friendship or any connection with him, being too busy with her ambitions. But they really got to know each other many years later, when he became the Riddler, and she became the Stalker. She, as always in all her versions, became obsessed with a new, interesting person, like a fan of a character, and wanted to become closer to them. This time, that person was him. She even felt strangely shy about going and confessing her interest to her former colleague. But nevertheless, everything was as usual - Amber, who rarely feels strong emotions, always tries not to miss the opportunity to satisfy her loneliness and sparked passion for someone with this strange agreement: she offers free information to her obsessions in exchange for their company and their personal information (like what subject they liked in school, how they prefer to court their love interest, nothing that could compromise them (She can find it on her own). She also does not enter into sexual relations with them, even if they are not against it). Having lived in the illusion of being showered with their attention, she eventually gets tired of them and silently moves on, ghosting them unless they do something that returns her interest (after all, having free info is worth "forgiving" her for moving on on them). This time, everything was the same. But the Riddler would not be the Riddler if he left her strange puzzle unsolved. Not that previous obsessions all let her go without questions, but they were not the Riddler. And everything became complicated...

A few thumbnails which started from random scribbles.

Doodling of the Day

Pun play to encourage positive body image. Freckles, moles, skin tags. Love them or hate them, they are part of our body. As one who enjoys stargazing, I think that the dots on our body resembles stars in the night sky. Truly beautiful. Sometimes when I’m bored, I play connect the dots on my limbs, and they do resemble constellations.