Dissecting Valentine
This year’s Valentine’s card was inspired by treadmill. If you’ve ever used a treadmill, one of the options you’ve played around with is the speed button. Either you want to run to eight or ten miles per hour or to a walking pace of three MPH or slower pace. Looking at this everyday, I happened to play what’s a “perfect” pace to walk while having a conversation with someone. I figured 1.5 MPH was good, but slowing it to 1.3 would gives a slower pace that would enable anyone to half-walk while able to listen and have a conversation with someone. 1.3 also gives two people freedom to play around and be animated with walking and at the same time, its not too fast and be out of breath after a few minutes in the walk. To take it up a notch and be riskier, slowing it down and taking away two-tenth MPH would slow the mood to holding hands pace. A good pace for both parties while enjoying the physical connection still able to maintain the great conversation. The speed pace can bi played around with, but those are the numbers I’ve played around with in my lab using my treadmill.
My past Valentine’s card from previous years (link)
Here are the line drawings from my sketchbook.
Some 2011 stuff
Some illustrations I did last year that I haven’t blogged yet.
Character and cover design of the card
Sketch of the character
I was also assigned to do some pre-production/concepts for a comic around September. My assignment was to help on some characters of the comics.
Crafting and Showing
End of last month (Nov.) and beginning of this month, I was busy putting together a small charity art show. It was also for my birthday, but that’s for a different blog. In this blog, I wanted to show some of the works I displayed/sold that are non-digital work.
Markers and watercolor
Marker and watercolor
These two pieces are roughs from a school project years ago using gouache paint. These roughs was a selection process in choosing either a cool color scheme or warm color scheme. Inspirational sources was also included. The final piece I chose was the warm color scheme, so I made that final piece bigger and painted it using gouache too. I thought these roughs looked good enough to put in the show and I really like how they are presented under a glass, framed.
Roughs and inspirational board
Framed
This is just a picture of my work station when I was framing a whole bunch of art works.
Doodle Tuesday
The last two days, My playlist only consist of one song, and that is “Home” by Jay Sean. I like it so much that I started doodling my mug as a house, and of course, it can’t be complete without adding some monsters in the piece. These are baby URBSTERS monsters.
Here’s the awesome song: Jay Sean – “Home”
The doodle from my handy-dandy-sketchbook.
Mug:
Monsters:
Unique Views of Life – Exhibit (1st show)
With the first set of my Exhibit finished, I’d like to show the pieces from it. The other Artist, Richard Chapman’s work were the top six, and mines was the bottom six. The second show is currently running now, and will be up in display till the end of 2011. This time, Richard and I switched with me having the top six spaces for my art.
A closer look.
Here are the pieces from the first show:
-Loveshack- (Originally for a V-Card, but only displayed the cover art in the exhibit)
-Irony-
-Sharing: Movie Night-
-Sharing: BBQ Steak-
-Music in Her Ear-
-Woman Got Culture-
I eat your food (Sharing)
Characters sharing food with each other in a shocking way. I might just turn this as a series with the same concept as below.
Here’s the sketch and outlines from the BBQ Steak image.
Warmp up: Just another quick one
A quick digital painting before I do some traditional work with markers and paper. Drawing and painting on PS is still super hard for me, but I think I’ve improve slightly.I still don’t get how its automatic to some people, I guess all about practice and doing it consistently. I kinda didn’t want to upload this in a blog, but after thinking about it…this is the perfect place for it. I can look back at this later and see the growth in me in creating these digital painting.
I have a few files on my desktop that I’ve started work on, but never finish. I think some can relate to with this. There’s a few I want to finish, but I always want to just doodle on a new pad. I’d put some time on it, then you just want to save it– hoping you’ll go back to it and finish it.
Keep Moving Forward
Here’s a painting in PS today.
I was reading about Frederic Back and how he lost his eye due to a chemical accident. His work and story inspired me to keep working on my art even more. Despite only having one eye, and having very low vision to my current one, I should continue what I love to do like Frederic did. He was already an award winner animator before he lost his eye, but that didn’t stop him to continue his love for illustrating and art and still create beautiful work.
Here’s a video of Daisuke Tsutsumi (one of my fave artist at Pixar) interviewing Frederic and his submission to the Sketchtravel project (such an awesome project!).
SketchTravel – Frederic Back from Curio on Vimeo.
These two artist is such an inspiration to me, especially relating to Frederic’s case. Reading and watching them makes you just want to create more art and continue to grow. As Cornelius/Lewis Robinson said, “Keep moving Forward”, no matter the struggle and adversity you face.
Bake Girl
Country songs and a sketch book on a Sunday afternoon. This should be a tradition. FUN!
Also, summertime is here! Lets all enjoy the sun and creativity!
My analog tumblr
I carry my my 5×7 doodle book (aka analog tumblr) around with me everywhere. It used to be the same for my DSLR cam, but ever since I got my smart phone last year I only carry it when I need to. I’m not a fan of huge sketchbooks because its a space eater in my bag. I do have bigger sketchbooks at home that I use here and there, but forget carrying that around. I think its the idea of taking something huge out constrain me from doing more doodle because I think of it as “the bigger it is, the more hassle it is.” Not like this small one, its just in and out. I really believe everyone should carry a pocket notebook with them at all times. Not just for sketching, just for note taking, expressing yourself way. Yes, I guess a phone can do that now, but I just prefer to just have one. Where all you need is a note book and a simple writing device. It also helps, because Im on the computer a lot, and having this lets my eye(s) rest and still be creative.
Here’s a practice warmup painting from yesterday. I need to warmup too just like all athlete, don’t want to pull a muscles. Wasn’t really thinking when I was doing this, but I guess I was thinking about Ang from Avatar: The Last Air Bender. Haha, wow! All of Ang’s features.
It Ain’t Sounds, It’s Shapes
Had an idea of Shapes off my ear, instead of Sounds off my ear. Just a random idea I think of during bus rides in SF. The Process are Below. Did the shapes from the ears through illustrator and imported them to photoshop.
Greendude
Was sick this past week, but Im glad that didn’t last long. After two days, I was feeling my old self again. Practice run from photoshop painting while listening to pandora.
URBSTERS
Kissing for one min…
I was inspired to do this type design from this fact: http://www.learnsomethingeveryday.co.uk/
A dope guy who puts words/type into mini illustration everyday.
And of course, this image was done while listening to “Kiss” by Prince. It just make sense combining the two.
One for the Urbsters team
Background outline
Characters outline
I put one of my doodle tusday into illustrator. (original) This took me about two days, on and off. Its all happy, joyful colors because i was listening to: Lindsey Ray – You make me happy (below)
Zombie
Just a quick painting before I finish an illustration work in illustrator. Gotta practice more on painting characters cause clearly, I NEED IT! Painting values with colors is extremely hard. Hopefully I get to finish what I’ve been doing in illustrator this week by today. Its one of the doodle tuesday, put onto vector.
My Valentine Collection
As a personal project, I create Valentine’s card every year to see where my creativity for “love” takes me. I’ve never printed any of these, but hopefully one day I will, and eventually address it to someone. The latest one, 2011, is on the bottom
Yup, about my vision condition.
My Question Mark
I really don’t know who she is but I already know I love her. Always thinking this in my head, I can’t picture who she is, all I can see is a question mark, but not just a regular one, but a beautiful question mark. hahaha that was lame. Playing with question mark characters, I decided to use it as a heart-shaped when using two characters in a mirror image. Then I took it a little further, and decided to create it as a “mystery girl.” Yes, my imagination is dorky! No, Im not a hopeless romantic like I’ve been labeled a lot (thanks friends), it something I have faith in and something I pray about. I don’t pray about anybody just to be in a relationship but for the right person, the one and only. I want a complimentary relationship, like orange and blue…green and red…..oh another idea color wheel/scheme of love. hahaha Dang, this blog thing is gonna bite me later, I got to stop putting some personal stuff cause its out in public. Maybe little by little and I should stop now. Here’s the process…enjoy
URBSTERS
Outline
Doodle Tuesday
Just started this 40 mins ago. I’m on the last hour of Doodle Tuesday and I’m glad the streak continues. 
Urbsters Love
I’ve been wanting to show two monsters (urbsters) in love in an image, but in a real simple way. I created this two Urbsters in a shape of a heart when the two are combined. I’ve always believed that when someone has found their true love, they’ve found their missing piece in their life. I think there’s only one person that can fill that void and it has to be that perfect right piece to the puzzle or else it wont work. In this image, it represent two Urbsters in love that has filled each others missing piece. I was thinking of making a puzzle pieces that connects with each other but thats to obvious and it seemed too dorky for me. Yes, I know I’m already dorky but that idea was even too much for me. hehe. Well here’s the process of creating the final piece, from sketch, outline, to final color.
URBSTERS
Promotional Gifts
I wanted to give a little gift to my friends at The Lighthouse for The Blind, but I couldn’t think of what to get them. I know that I wanted to give food and somehow put my websites/contact info in it. I was thinking of buying a cake and just sharing it with everyone but I wanted something more individually packed and personal.
After going to an eye-appointment last week, I ate lunch with my Aunt Bonnie at Red Ribbon. Red Ribbon is a Filipino Bakery/Restaurant, and it was a perfect place to look for a cake, but then I found individually packed mamon (sponge cakes). I know it was a good start so I bought 12 pieces. They were individually packed but I didn’t want to just give it in its own plastic (ugly presentation) and I still wanted to put my infos.
Later that day, my assistant, Sokhon, took me to Michael’s craft store to look for nice individual packaging. There, we found the perfect size boxes that fits the mamon and it also came with a sticker sealer. Since they were white boxes, I was thinking on just writing down my infos. When production was going on to put everything together, I tried to put one of my Urbsters promo and it was perfect, since the box had a clear plastic on top to show my logo. With my Urbsters promo in, I didn’t have to write all my info in each one of them anymore (that would’ve took so much time).
All of the people I gave one to liked it and they thought it was such a cute little gift. With positive feedbacks like that, I couldn’t stop thinking to give them out to clients as a thank you promotional gifts.
URBSTERS
