skins

......................................scarred
.

.....................................tainted



......................................shriveled



......................................raw


1.pomegranate 2.clementine 3.apple 4.avocado seed

tamarind bloom

The inner veinery of tamarind pods that Conor @ RedCatBlackCat sent me earlier this year.

Look what else my good old buddy saved for me after eating the sweet sour tamarind pulp:


Tamarind seeds! Click for larger image to see the lovely blue gem among the pebble of seeds. As if everything else isn't enough already. :).

I love it all, Conor. *You* are wonderful. The red dragonflies on the card you sent have also been flying in my head lately...


I have these around me as i am finishing up with my promise spoons. Want to do something with the tamarind veinery afterwards. i wonder what.

hang in there

Today, another horrible printing day. Could not get any of the chine colle pieces to work the way i wanted them to with the thread or the hair. I keep smelling sour dried orange peel under my nose. yuck. Not at all pleasant-smelling like the dried pomelo. Maybe that is why the day isn't going well. too many rotten peels around. bleh. j.k. nothing is rotting here. just in the process of drying and changing.

Ahead for this month:

*take time (!) working on the copper plates!!! no quick fix laziness.

*sketch out the works for the hair, bowls and fruits
(not necessary to mix everything together though)

*trails time :)!

still

dried orange sewn, 2007

Not making much progress. still fumbling, making small things and lost in the head. Thinking of cradles, vessels and wrapping self.


2006/2007 + recently dried

pink avocados

acrylic on dried avocado skin, not halves of each other, work in progress

pomstars and moons

Went home for Chinese New Year's (2.07.08) and helped myself to all the pomelos my parents had in the house. They were so sweet and plump, i ate them all by myself very quickly. so so juicy and not bitter at all. I kept their skin to dry. love the colors.





That big one waiting to be eaten. It is roughly the size of a fat head, i think.



Here it has been devoured and drying quite nicely.





But the smaller ones that were dried earlier don't look too hot right now. Sadly, i had to throw away two other ones because they got rotted by mold from too much moisture on the inside. I tried to salvage what i had left by toasting them in the toaster oven for a quick fix. But i don't think i'll do that again. They look hurt and damaged.

color me a clementine

My little uncle gave me a bag of clementines to take back with me when i was home for the holidays and this here is the last one of the bunch. I took it to work for lunch and noticed how cute it looked sitting on my shelf. It is even cuter in person, not your typical round one. This got a slight slant to it. I had to resist eating it. Made me think of a tiny little breast.



Maybe a series of prints of these? hmmm.

more banana & grapes

For today's Blog Action Day issue on environment, i was thinking to do a post showing the process of using recycled paper to make these papier mache bowls. But right now, feeling too scattered to show more new work-in-progress, SO, more fruit prints instead. More bananas and grapes again:


[fruit series] chine colle woodcut diptych on arches printmaking paper, each woodcut image 6.5 x 9 cm, 1997


[fruits series] drypoint & chine colle on arches printmaking paper (printed from hard cardboard not copper plate), plate image 7 x 8 cm, 1997

This one above is actually a ghost image pulled immediately from the plate after it had already been inked up and printed on a different sheet of paper. So a paler image was produced from the leftover ink on that plate in the successive printing here. (It is the same plate as the one shown in the previous post Grapes.)



During college, in between meals, i was crazy for fruits, eating maybe 4-6 fruits a day at least, more if i am pulling an all-nighter. So that was how these prints got started, and before i knew it, they became connected with pieces of my thoughts, things from the senses, small details of just being.



...i think that is what a lot of my work is about...



Today i drifted off my usual redwing trail and hiked up a really steep incline. Felt really good to be so high up and be so fully aware of all these trees around me. Didn't realized how steep and high the incline was until i got to the top. Saw some broken bottles and cans scattered about that do not belong here. Pissed me off. Will have to remember to bring a garbage bag with me when i go on the trails now.

Also saw two deer with long tails that looked like nice white fur trimming. Did not know deer could have long tails. At first, i thought they were some woodsmen in their tan work jackets hunched over creepily.

Walked around some more and then suddenly came a rally of these turkey-looking birds bustling by like they got an important meeting to attend. Kept running away from me when i tried to take a closer look to see if they were turkeys or not.

But what startled me the most was this little chipmunk running right across my path out of nowhere. Will have to make John come with me to check out more of this wildlife area of the nature preserve next time.

grapes

[fruits series] drypoint & chine colle on arches printmaking paper (printed from hard cardboard not copper plate), image size 7 x 7.5 cm, 1997

peel

[fruit series] drypoint & chine colle on arches printmaking paper, plate image size 8.3 x 7.1 cm, 1997

slice

etching, chine colle on BFK grey printmaking paper, image size 16 x 22 cm, 1997

glued & tagged

pen sketch on white paper scrap, placed on discarded book page, scrap size 15 x 4.5 cm

Okay, it is time to follow up on some tags and awards.

Awhile ago in May, Jade at Spectrescope tagged me, where you're supposed to name 7 random things about yourself, and then tag 7 more people. I just started my blog then so i was tremendously pleased to be mentioned, and by an artist whose work i so was/am crazy for, too. It was there that i broke out and left my very first comment.

Then Uschi at Papierwelt also tagged me. This time, with a list of questions to answer. Again, i was quite delighted, particularly because i am just very fond of Uschi. We never met but right away, i can sense her kindness and thoughfulness, the kind of person you can probably count on for just about anything. That's true, right, Uschi? :).

Not too long ago, i received the Rockin' Girl Blogger from Bridgette at Contemplating the Moon, which is just really sweet because she has already been so generous in linking to me. Bridgette is probably one of the most giving and productive artists out there. I once commented on how i love the blue she used on this painting and how i kept messing up trying to make that same blue. And a couple of minutes later, there was an email from her giving me the recipe for mixing that blue. Is she cool or what?? :).

Finally, very recently, Kim at Something to Say listed me for the Inspirational Blogger Award. Yay! I came across Kim at Flickr and was quite taken by her photographs of flowers. Never really cared for fresh flowers until i saw her pictures. Seriously, i haven't looked at a flower the same way ever since. If you check out her wallpapers, you will know what i mean.

oh boy, this is going to be a long post...



Okay, instead of responding to each individual tag, i will just combine them all together somehow into one happy one:

Random things about myself i've been eager to share...

◙ Hello, World, i just placed an order on a brand-new factory fresh etching press!!! It's just a tiny one but it's real and professional quality (or so that is what i am told). I didn't go for a really cheap one at Dickblick's that i was going to settle for. Instead, i got this one directly from the manufacturer. 20-year warranty, man. yes! but i have to wait two months for it to be made and shipped out to me. I guess i could get cranking on working on those copper plates in the meanwhile...

◙ Intaglio printmaking is my first love that i discovered in college, and could not have asked for a better professor/mentor for it. I actually only got into painting after college because i didn't have access to an etching press and thought it was a more direct approach to putting the image down. But my process is very similar to how i would go about making a print, layer by layer, step by step:

-preparing the canvas [wooden panel] by cutting the panel, then sanding, nailing and bracing it

-creating the image in layers of one color at a time (as how one would prepare each plate of color separately)

-having deeply scratched lines or some kind of texture created on the surface (just like how etching plates are being worked on with the needle tool, burnisher or mezzotint rocker, all very physical).

◙ I probably look like a little kid in the picture above but i just happily turned 30 a few months ago. This is opposed to miserably turning 20 when i was lamenting about how nothing romantically memorable happened in my teenage years, not even a little kiss on my beautiful full awaiting lips. Now i have all that i had wanted and more. FInally! :).

◙ I like to pluck hair. like leg hair and such, especially while talking on the phone or procrastinating. This probably came from when we were little, my dad would have us help him pluck out whiskers that got missed from shaving. I'm not as bad as May who likes to also pop pimples, which extends to grooming other people close to her (picture chimpanzees). Poor Bryan. (Happy Anniversary, btw.)

Okay, i think i should stop now.


banana grapes, etching, drypoint & chine colle on Arches printmaking paper, 1997

Onto people i am anxious to tag (okay, excluding those who have tagged me or you guys would also have been on my list)...every blogger i know probably already has been tagged so i will just ignore that and proceed to mention those who made a difference to my little blogging world (sorry i am totally breaking the rules of the tagging game):

First and foremost, those close to me who do not have a blog (yet) to link to-

◙ Grace and Aliya, for your friendship and constant support right from the beginning when i first started this blog. I don't think i could have gone on so steadily without you guys being there, giving me feedback and making me feel okay about my awkwardness.

I met Grace when we were in AmeriCorps together. I was first struck by her big beautiful poofy hair and her warm smile. And then when i talked to her, she was all goodness, the most non-judgmental person i know.

Aliya, i met in college, also an art major. And she will tell it straight as to how she sees it. Fun, funny, and always genuine. Hoping you and Grace will have your own blog so you can show the world your art and share your crazy thoughts.

◙ And Maisie, for being there even before the blog, someone who i have been sharing my thoughts about where and how i should go about with art and life and just stuff that comes to mind between us. We've been friends since high school and she is the best kind of friend anyone could have. Unpretentious, thoughtful, trustworthy, and also a super talented interior designer. i am hoping we'll be neighbors (just like how we started out) so we can grow old together.

◙ Next, my mom and Ting for your love and believing in me through it all. And Francis (aka "Chuver...") for your craziness and updates of what's going on at home.

My mom, who is creative in many ways: writing, making clothes (including a beautiful wedding dress for May), budgeting finances, making the most out of the smallest space, is probably my biggest fan, as she also checks out all the profiles and websites of every single person who left a comment. So beware. ;).

One of the best things about having this blog is that i can share the process of art-making with people (particularly family and friends) who aren't already into art. Your interest and attention are just as important as any artsy fartsy person, if not more.



And now onto tagging some bloggers...for those who have not been tagged, please consider this an official tag to list some random facts about yourself! And you guys are also tagged with both the Rockin' Girl Blogger and the Inspirational Blogger Award.

◙ dearest Marjojo at My Art Grows Around Me
How do i begin to express how deeply affected i am by your words, your works, your ever perceptive insightful feedback, and the dialogue between us? BTW, i also learn a new word for every post or comment you make. If there was just one art pill to take, i would take yours any time of the day.

◙ crazy (my cousin said it, not me) Anne-Laure at A Path No Wider Than A Pencil Stroke
Did i tell you i love your boxes? and now your recent progression with the tracing paper. My heart is racing for it and i'm waiting to see those images on the big screen before saying more. Right from the beginning when you first left a comment here, i knew we'll be having a good exchange of thoughts and feedback!

◙ Erin, Erin the Sculptress
We have only just recently made contact, yet i already feel some kind of bond with you (sorry if i am imposing myself onto you). I am touched by your thoughts and how you are working through things with your work and what you find around you.

◙ Kruse at Welcome to My Brain
If you go and read through Kruse's blog, i bet you'll come out a little bit different. I think it is really good organic food for the art soul. I'm so looking forward to seeing the new work you'll be posting up, Kruse!

◙ Bobbi at Cobaltika
I love Bobbi's writing and the photographs that she takes to accompany her thoughts. It is like going into a little enchanted world that only she could take you to. Yet, it is all very real how she tells it, her inner thoughts and feelings about things and people close to her. I got hooked right from the first time i came across her blog.

----
Okay, that's it. I think i have babbled on for a year's worth of posts now.

grape stem

woodcut and chine collé on grey BFK printmaking paper (woodcut image size is 8" x 5" on 20.5" x 14" BFK printmaking paper; shown above is not all of the grey BFK paper)

The image of the woodcut was first hand-printed onto the cream color Japanese mulberry paper, which is like thin tissue paper. Then methylcellulose adhesive was applied to the back of the mulberry paper so that it would be glued down onto the heavier BFK paper when running it through the etching press.