Sunset Wave (Canvas Panel 11X14", Jan.6.2016)

I had so much fun doing this one, and I love the way it turned out. I took the whale tail from a photo, but innovated the color a bit. I made the sky orange and red and also reflected some of that orange and red into the water. It was really fun to experiment with colors that isn't usually associated with water, but I realized halfway that water really tend to take on any color that it reflects. In hindsight I wish I added even more red. It's an idea I'd like to try out in another painting. I felt so protective of this one that while it dried I had a dream where I accidently scraped and ruined it, only to wake up to find that it wasn't a dream, but that it was in fact ruined! And then to wake up again, realizing both those times were all dreams and that the painting was fine! Oh the nerve of me~

Rain Princess - from Leonid Afremov (canvas panel 6X6", Jan. 2016)

(my attempt)

(original)

This is an imitation of the painting "Rain Princess" By Leonid Afremov. I was a big fan of his for a little while and was curious how he produced the strokes with painting knife, so I decided to try it out. I painted it the way I imagined he would have done. It didn't come out too badly! Although it really pales to his in comparison, and I am still amazed by his creativity and technique. I learned that it's important to plan each stroke and keep the colors clean, rather than randomly scrape my knife assuming it would create the effect, also to not be stingy with paint.

Hare -study of light and shade (canvas panel 5X7'', Dec. 2015)

After playing around with different ideas and styles, this was the first painting which I seriously sat down and tried to study and imitate the value of a subject from photo. Just as in music where I often encourage my students to clarify their Fortes and Pianos by going for more extreme contrast, I tried to notice the same contrast in the light and dark areas of the photo as well. This long-eared little guy was a good subject since he camouflaged well into his background, and the color is rather monotonous throughout. I liked the way he turned out, although I am slightly worried that what he is doing isn't as obvious due to his rather obese appearance, which I should have addressed better when I started sketching him in.

City Lights (canvas sheet 9X12'', December 2015)

After several weeks of not painting and inability to decide what to paint, I finally got tired of waiting around and just decided to wing it. I wanted to do something that looked busy with buildings and lights, and I wanted to use knives instead of brushes. I thought about copying something but I was curious what I would produce allowing purely my brain and "instinct" to guide me. Turns out, I like it and is embarrassed by it all at the same time. Embarassed because I was hoping it would take on a more sophisticated look, but fondness because it captured a certain warmth and sense of coziness that I was going for. Can you spot the people? :)

Fall Trail (canvas sheet, 9X12", November 2015)

I think it was the Thanksgiving season and I really wanted to paint something that had lots of fall color. This was also a paint-along with YouTube tutorial. The guy was speaking Russian so I couldn't really understand what he was saying, but was able to follow along with what he was doing. From him I learned a lot in terms of using the painting-knife. It was another one of those itch-reliefs. It also only took about 2 hours, and I was pleased to have a decent looking picture by the end of a short session.

Autumn Dance with Snoopy (canvas panel 6X6'', 11.26.2015, Gifted)

I was visiting a dear friend in NYC for Thanksgiving, and couldn't resist bringing my art stuff along. I liked the idea of me being a "traveling artist" even though I just started not too long ago (ehehe). There was a small block of time in the morning before I left which we had not planned anything, and so wanting to bless her with something special and hand-made, I chose Snoopy as my subject choice. It turned out Snoopy WAS one of her favorite cartoon characters, so I was really glad. Art-wise? I woulda thought a bit more about my color choices. Perhaps a lighter background and different choice of color for the sky. There was an atmosphere that I was trying to go for when I chose the colors I did, but I think I was only semi-successful. This was also mostly knife-painted. I don't remember using my brush at all. Also this made me miss my bus back to Boston. But thankfully I was able to get a stand-by not too long after for free. Brings back good memories :)

Winter Moon (canvas sheet, 9X12, November 2015)

I was painting along with Bob Ross's "Winter Sun" on YouTube, but because I didn't prepare the canvas right as well as being inexperienced with mixing paint, it came out more like a night scene than morning. I like the way it turned out though, so kept it anyways. Let me know what you think!

Rose Bush (canvas sheet, 9X12, November 2015)

Another style of painting roses with the knife :) I like how each stroke is so simple, yet depending on the way you place them, come together to look like convincing petals. Definitely a more figurative way to express the petals rather than the more literal approach taken in the previous painting. I also tried scraping off the paint to make leaves instead of painting them in layers as in the last painting. This was my roommate's favorite.

Impasto Roses (canvas sheet, 9X12, November 2015)

This was my first attempt at floral subjects, also inspired by YouTube tutorials, particularly one in which the artist painted consistently throughout with a painting knife and his fingers. This one really makes me smile, it was one of those rare painting process in which the more I fussed over it, the better it actually got! (If you don't like it, you can imagine how bad it was before) One of those works that I was initially unhappy with, but ended up growing on me, and now I am so impressed with myself for actually having come up with this it's totally one of my favorite! I like how each flower is of a different color, especially the contrast between the bright red rose on the bottom (which I used ivory black as the shadowy parts) and the greyish blue one on the very top. They each seem to have different personalities as well, which are suggested through their color as well as through the various shapes of the petals. The background color I thought could use some further experimenting, but who cares about that when the roses look so great! (total amateur part of me speaking). What I especially enjoyed about this process was the big role that spontaneity and chance played in complement to my own decision-making. Even though I chose to put down every petal a certain way, I was not in control of every little detail, and I enjoyed the little surprises that came with that. It's kind of funny that I struggled so much with trying to get my name on there. That horrendous red half of my first name at the bottom left corner is probably by far the ugliest thing on this painting. (in my opinion :))   

Flaminco Dancer (canvas sheet, 9X12, October 2015)

This dancer I had attempted a few months back, a week after my first painting. Admittedly it was rather a bold choice of subject for my level, but I was so excited to try it after watching a YouTube tutorial which an artist painted the same dancer from its original photo. It took me 15 hours over 3 days to finish it as I decided to give up on polishing the shoes. From this experience I learned the importance of focusing on the development of the big picture before filling in details. Even though I was to some degree trying to be fair to all the parts and mapping out the overall structure as well as proportions, my chronic drive of detail-itis still got the best of me, and it was painful trying to fix the proportions afterwards. This was also evident in my lack of thought for the background, which lacks a sense of depth and makes the dance look 2D rather than 3D as in the photo. However I did like the intuitive golden yellow brush strokes to the top right corner. It was what I imagined to be an abstract sun or a vague source of sunlight. Overall it was a precious experience of learning, and I look forward to doing more paintings of this type perhaps experimenting with loser brush strokes.     

My First Oil Painting Ever!!!

After watching numerous Bob Ross "Joy of Painting" series, I itched to try some of the techniques he demonstrated, including the use of paint knife, and tapping a brush into the shape of trees. Here, I was fascinated with the oil medium, for allowing the application of light colors over dark ones, an aspect that wasn't as forgiving in watercolor and pencil sketching in my past experiences with art. This scene came straight out of my imagination and I had to make some changes since I was pretty clumsy with applying the knife to canvas. The highlighted area to the very left I must've fussed over for almost an hour before I really was able to get it close to the result I had hoped. The little bunnies near the bottom I just couldn't resist, although I had a little trouble making them fit into the atmosphere of the painting. They kind of look a bit popped out, like real bunny silhouettes standing in front of a movie screen. With the least of expectations, the whole process was just a super fun and fascinating experience. :)