Today, some of my good friends are having a show at project:gallery. They do some amazing things. Its a fresh faces show of these four up and coming artists. Really excited for them, while I was in LA, saw them work on those pieces in the studio and it was inspiring to see.

Check em out here.

Here is another piece I am working on right now. Concept is again nature x human interaction and the idea of life and energy giving from our natural environment.

Here is the defined drawing and the first layer of acrylics + colored inks... working a bit differently this time, instead of painting on wood with oils and acrylics like most of the other pieces i've done, I decided to experiment a bit and try painting on paper again..

Fun stuff...I'll post more wip on this piece soon or the final...

Some new work in progress shots of the paintings i've been working on..
more to come..hopefully very soon. Also some retouching...

Amazing event, really glad to have been a part of it.

Lots of people, great music, had a great time there, even though it was short. Never

Here are two pieces that I contributed to the show with my friend Tyrel, it was fun collaborating with him on these 2 pieces. (sorry about the bad photos, i couldn't get a scan of the piece before i sent them out unfortunately..) After i painted the girl, he worked on the airbrushing of the background and texture of the piece. He also painted the red riding hood running away from the octopus monster i painted. Tyrel is now the third artist I've collaborated with.

"Jigsaw" oil on wood - 12x12


"Better run" oil on wood - 12x12


Collaborative art is a really fun part of art creating for me, its really exciting to see how my style fuses with others and how each style compliments each other. Whenever I pass my art to another, I'll tell them to do anything they want, paint over my work a bit, change or add things to what I already have on it...etc. Its a great surprise when I see the result.

As much as I love collaborating with other artists, it might be a little while till I can collaborate with another. We'll see, but I got lots of pieces to finish first before I'll have the chance again.

Unfortunately, that night, I couldn't make it out to the other opening at Whippersnapper Gallery. I will try to make it and post photos of that one later on.

Here are photos of the rest of the show

Heres one of the 3 pieces Whippersnapper gallery selected for their Summer bonanza show this weekend. I finished it a little while back for the grad show at the burroughes building.




Longing Tree - oil on wood 11x17


As for the concept of the piece, its a reflection of the feeling of a song called maple. Originally, it was what the assignment asked for, a reflection of a song for the personal narrative class. It was also how I was feeling at the time. Here is the lyrics of the song for those interested. I wish to create more pieces like this in the future, with more emotional connection. Special thanks to Harvey Chan and Blair Drawson for art directing me through this piece.

Dark clouds cast a shadow over our hearts
I listen intently to the feelings that have long been silenced
Distinct and clear
Just like a beautiful landscape
That can only be clearly seen in one's memories
Can a heart that's been thoroughly wounded continue to love me?
I tried hard to hold (your) cold hands
The tenderness in the past
Is locked in time
All that's left are sadness that cannot be dispersed
Longing is like maple leaves, slowly drifting down
I light a candle to warm this year-end's autumn
The aurora steals across the horizon
The north wind flits across the face that's thinking of you
Ashes from my burning heart falls like leaves
But I can never regain (your) familiar face again
Longing is like maple leaves, slowly drifting down
Why must I try to recover all before winter arrives?
My love for you transcends all time
Two streams of tears that were shed for the autumn's end
Let the love flood through
I just want you by my side
Snowflakes have already covered the ground
Fearing that the maple leaves outside the window are already frozen

These are the other pieces that will be in the show, also for sale.

Innocence (Chaos Series - Collaboration with Elise Trinh)
Framed Print 17x22


People and Places
Pen and ink on paper, Framed 9x12

This weekend is going to be busy. I'll be in contributing a few pieces in these shows this coming Saturday in Toronto..

One is the annual 'squarefoot' show at AWOL gallery, and the other is the summer showcase bonanza show at Whippersnapper Gallery.


Square foot 2008 at AWOL Gallery.
Come check out the annual Square Foot Show at Awol Gallery. 600+ artist works on 12" by 12" panels.
A MUST SEE EVENT!!
This Saturday, August 16th @ 100A Ossington Ave,. 2nd Floor 7PM



Whippersnapper Summer Showcase Bonanza
This Saturday, August 16th @ 587A College Street 8PM

 Heres something I worked on recently for the upcoming Chaos 2 anthology book. More info about it to come soon..

Been interested in ideas of sleep and dreams recently.. dreams is kinda a mysterious thing.

so randomized. Often, they say excess thoughts goes into dreams..so you can relax during your sleep...

Sometimes, dark shadows might just be beneath you...while sleeping..

"Sleep in Sienna" Acrylic and Graphite on BFK - 6x6

We need more of these guys in our society..(and did i ever mention i love drawing turtles?)

Anyways, bought a nice new sketchbook while I was in LA, so i can paint in my sketchbook.. allowing me to play with ink washes, acrylic glazes, etc again.

This is going to be a future painting..but for now gotta finish working on my submission for Chaos 2 and square foot show.

More to update soon. 

 

Here are two paintings I'm working on right now..
Top one is going to be a collab with my friend Tyrel for the Square foot Group show coming up on August 16th at AWOL gallery in Toronto.

Heres a digital painting I did in Photoshop recently. I posted a rougher version few months ago, but recently I had some inspiration to finish it. So here it is.

Its of my childhood...quite nostalgic. I grew up with these characters, as with many of you, probably..

It was fun to do this, also thanks to everyone who bought a print of this at AX 2008 this year.



Here's a little animated gif of the progress from start to finish.