The Spider Cafe - Completed

It all starts with a spider's photo and a lil' thumbnail sketch...I like how my ideas appear, it's as if they are beamed to me or something!

 Amazing what a little idea can transform into given the time and effort! I'm very happy with how this turned out! I like my clouds swirly and my toadstools stripey...

 Detail of the cafe. I added in the flying creatures after my mom commented how there was not enough movement in the skies.

 This was the part giving me so much grief near the end. Soph saw it and commented how everything was blending into one another so I darkened the darks and it all clicked! That was the best feeling ever. It's like scratching an itch between your shoulder blades or something!

The other thing that got me all excited was when I took out my other drawings while taking photos of the Spider Cafe...and I realized I've got 8 drawings!!! 3 A2 sized ones (The Sky Whale, Deep Ocean, The Spider Cafe) and 5 medium sized ones (The Embrace, Lord Nevermore, The Meeting, Telling Tales, The Tree of Dreams). I've got two more ideas, both A2 sized drawings, lined up after this and with 10 pieces complete dare I say...I'll have enough for an exhibition! YEEEAH!

I know I've been saying that for more than a year now but finally it doesn't seem too far away now! Though I've had these drawings up on my online portfolio but especially for the big ones, seeing it in person is a whole different experience :) So yeah, that's what I'm looking forward to next year~

The Spider Cafe - con't

The Spider Cafe has been crawling along for a while now. I begun this piece end of September. I got stuck with the bamboo grove. Once I got over that things began to roll along nicely! :)

 Getting into shape! Still not too sure what the background will be, this is how things usually work. When I get an idea I don't have the full composition in view. Just bits of it. And I'll fill in the blanks as I go :P This is more common for the A2 sized drawings than the smaller ones.

Close-up of the cafe. I love how the different textures turned out! And the pots and pans, various vegetables, that creepy cook and the clouds reflected in the fragmented glass on the top.

The Makings of a Namecard

It began when I started to design a new website for a new identity :) I decided I didn't want to use my name as the domain anymore so my friend and I came up with 'timeless realm' as the new name. I like it a lot! Sort of describes what I draw and create very well. So with a new site I'll need a new namecard...

 To start with I had two designs to choose from! I like this design because it is clean and straightforward.

 This was the second design and true to my style it is filled with lines! I actually liked this a lot, but after asking around at that small size the lines could be too overwhelming. But I still enjoy the feel of it :)

 So I decided to go with the first design and redrew the walking troupe to be more lively and fun! The first time around looks almost like they were walking to work lol

Somehow the girl reading a book on the back of some beast has transformed into a lizard instead. Don't ask me why... Also the big furry one with the horns and goofy smile is back, giving us a peace sign! lol But something was not jelling in this design, I felt the vines didn't work with the walking menagerie at the bottom. Also the text was not as nice arranged like this.

If something doesn't work, keep going at it until it does! :P 

It was a headache for me to reach this stage. Lots of drafts were made before I had a lightbulb moment and drew in a background with mountains instead. Then I decided it would be cool if the design joined up at the edges to form a continuously walking group of creatures! I was quite rushed for time as I had to get the namecars printed the next day, but I'm very satisfied at how it turned out! At the Rainforest Gallery bazaar one of the funnest things was showing people how the namecards linked up :) I know I enjoy it a LOT XD

The Sketchiest of Characters!

 So it all started when I got a new template for this blog and decided the old banner had to go too! So I'd set about drawing a new one and this was the result!

 To make it fit in with the dark background I inverted the colour and gave it a rainbow neon glow...gives it a trippy look, no?

 I did some other random drawings, this one was supposed to be for the background, set to tile. I think it gives a different dimension to the characters but the result when applied was too distracting. If you look closely they are all the same characters from the banner, doing their best glamour shots ;P

 Then I had the idea of drawing them capering about...I really like the big furry one with the horns and the goofiest smile - it even made it to my namecard, which you'll see in the next post!

It turned into an endless electric dance...

I wanted the dance one to be the background for the blog as well but it also turned out too busy. Oh well, I'll figure something out! Until then the default background from the template will stay. This piece however, makes for an infinitely dancing desktop wallpaper! I have it decorating my iMac and it is just luscious. Or ludicrous. Lifts my mood anytime :P Feel free to use it on your desktop too! Heheheh

A bit on the characters: the skating cat is from my blog profile pic. The tentacled dude reminds me of an Ood from Doctor Who now that I look at it again...The unhappy tapir is unhappy (except he looked quite content in the dance), the shy sheep boy is from the banner and the winged worm (try to spot him!) is from this story by Fritz Leiber called 'The Terror from the Depths". It's about this guy who had certain dreams about being a primordial creature resembling gigantic, winged worms. The story  was inspired by the Cthulhu mythos and is a great read if you are into horror :)

Timeless Realm

www.timelessrealm.com is live! Still some bumps and rough patches to smooth over these next few days, but overall I'm quite happy with the new design...especially the colours. I'm looooving the colours :D

The Spider Cafe (W.I.P.)

Hmmm...

HMMM.....

So what is this about? I have no idea :P Suddenly the creaking image of a walking restaurant shaped like a spider came into my head. And it is making Teh Tarik (literally, pulled tea) lol! There is a menu tacked onto the wall of the cafe, some of the food offered are local fare and some are just plain made-up. The spider has some funky designs, that speak of grander days but have been outfitted to serve this purpose now. Not like it minds, it is simply content with preparing the special tea for its customers!

The cafe has stopped in a glade carpeted with low mushrooms that the customers can sit on and enjoy their meal and drink. Some wear bibs to protect their suits from getting food on them. The bowls have a spiral on the as do the bibs, with 8 legs radiating from it. That is the logo of the spider Cafe. On the right is a bamboo grove, and I have not decided what to do for the background yet. Interestingly enough, there are no humans in this piece. Only a snoozing cat :P

The shape of the Spider Cafe was inspired by this cool spider here! There is such an abundance of inspiration from nature :D

The Fable Reader / Telling Tales

This is progressing well! I actually began this one before the Meeting and Tree of Dreams but it got stalled for a while. Didn't get the feel of it until now, but that's the way it is :) I do have a few pieces that are stalled indefinitely (like At the Threshold) mainly because I've lost the story of the drawing. Well, sometimes it comes back, I just have to have patience! :P

Tree of Dreams

The Tree of Dreams grows on a high cliff, dreaming an endless sleep...

I really liked how this piece turned out. It was the better decision to redraw the whole thing again. The hammock creature is more lively, and stands out against the background. Detail getting a bit out of hand in the cliffs, especially after I added the ocean, but overall it pulled together really well! :)

My favourite part of the drawing experience is the final 20%...when a piece is just about done, and I'm tweaking the shadows and focus. That's when you're about the see the results of your hard work haha :D So yeah, happily finished and as soon as it was done another idea came into my head, so stay tuned for... The Spider Cafe! :)

Take Two

Was working on this drawing and rushed it somewhat, all the lines sort of became muddled and I did something I've NEVER done before - redraw the whole thing from scratch! At first it got a little confusing as I was still trying to make the new drawing exactly the same as the old one. That was the first thing to let go. Copying was never my forte so I allowed the new drawing to breathe and evolve. It still retained the feel of the previous piece, but many of the details have been worked over :)

The first drawing. I'll probably use this to test out how to draw the ocean, but won't be a finished piece.

Second drawing - much cleaner and better control of the lines. Really giving it time to grow instead of rushing the process! :)

The Fable Reader (in Progress)

This came out of nowhere...I sat down with a pen one day and just drew. Made up the creatures as I went as well :P

Been reading the Amphigorey books by Edward Gorey, I just love his use of lines! :)

Deep Ocean (formerly Untitled: Big Fish)

It's done!!!! Ended up being more complex than expected - but that's the joy of doing it! The photo doesn't do it much justice...it's hard to capture all those fine lines. Will have to get a better reproduction for the website :)

Detail of the crashed submersible with the gigantic sea snake behind it. At the last minute I added the shadow of the huge fish or otherwise the space behind was quite empty.

Floating jellyfish. My favourite jellyfish out of the whole piece. Buoyancy~~~

Swirling water and swirling fish! The ocean turned out really abundantly filled with imaginary sea life.

I really liked the design of this ocean discus. Originally based off a sunfish but became more discus-like towards the end. It has three eyes. All the better to see you with...

I really tried to give the impression of a vast sea, with a heaving surface seen from below. Did I succeed? Well I'm satisfied with the results :) Can do better, but I thoroughly enjoyed the process!!! Can say that H.P.Lovecraft's stories do play a big influence on this piece. I'd thrown in cyclopean ruins under the ocean and lots of funky sea creatures. Only the huge fish in front with the snaggle-tooth jaw comes from a different influence...I tried to do more of a steampunk creature.

Something always fascinates me with seas and oceans. It's so VAST. And we know so little about it and its inhabitants. So lakes, seas and oceans are always a source of mystery to me. There is a bit of the ominous, a bit of the mysterious and a bit of the light-hearted in this piece. ;)

Blessed Sakura - cont'd

For now I'll be posting more of the progression of this piece on my FB page instead: Yün. The Sakura is coming along very nicely :)

Blessed Sakura (W.I.P.)

My second take on the Sakura theme :) I had another sketch drawn up on my computer last month, then my HD crashed and I did not back it up >.< Thankfully I had the whole system on Time Machine :) That's why I love my iMac...full system and preferences restore took a little more than 3 hours! But anyways the lost sketch made way for a new one to begin! Can say I'm more in tune with the feel of this piece now...so hopefully, an acceleration! :D

Untitled (Big Fish) Work in Progress

Drew this little drawing two years ago on a memo pad paper. Something about happily sitting on a buoyant jellyfish lol :P Now after two years the image comes back again and I set out to draw it on huge paper. Yes, this is another BIG drawing! :D

Vastly different from the original sketch, only thing I kept was the girl on the sea jello :P That is what a difference of two years can do to a piece!

Haven't drawn for a while so feels a bit rusty...

The big picture! Starting to get the hang of all those lines!

The fish is a lot more ornate this time...my attempt to channel steampunk lol. I do love my cyborg/mutant/hybrid creatures. Let's see where this drawing can go!

Misty River

Tranquility.

Abyss

Fear Him.

Drawing has always been an outlet for me and the origin of this piece is an interesting one. Although I'm typing this after it's all blown over so yes, it is interesting in hindsight but while it was actually happening it scared the shit out of me. This is about the anger and fear in me. All of us have it, a darkness inside. I finally took my first steps to address and accept this and to stop consciously feeding it, which is what I have been training myself to do my whole life. As long as I keep it fed, I can go on 'living', that is functioning normally in society. But that was only surviving in the shadow of my ego. It does not give me the freedom to be my higher self!

So I've been reading about ego and painbody from Eckhart Tolle's New Earth. Such a marvelous book. I was having these bouts of depression and I couldn't understand why I could not be appreciative of all I have. What it was is that I was becoming conscious of my ego and the painbody attached to it, and it doesn't like that one bit! Oh nooooo....and all these negativity just suddenly came up attacked me! I blamed everyone and myself, and felt there is no meaning to life anymore etc. I felt suicidal. All my worst fears assaulted me - fear of losing loved ones, fear of not being acknowledged, fear of not being right, fear of becoming nothing.

I wrote all my anger in my journal, and now that I read back on it, I can clearly see the form that my ego takes. Those words in capital letters shouting out from those pages were the screams of the ego losing its power over my being. But what a lot of fear I had to face! The cool thing about fear though, is once you've faced it, you'll realize that fear was nothing more than a mask for a deeper desire - to be loved. I used to equate that with being needed, useful and conforming to others' expectations. All a lot of 'needs' and nothing of 'being'. This little episode with my ego has taught me to finally break free of those expectations, and to face my fears and confront the anger in me; worth it all for the joy and peace I am feeling now!

I am prone to complacency, so I still have an arrogance in me. this is the first test I've passed but by no means the last. Life if the sum of our courage, fears, success and failures. I have learned tremendously on this journey and I couldn't have done it without strong external support from my friends and family! We are never alone so reach out if you can and take that hand offered to you. You will find that it makes all the difference :)

Lord Nevermore & The Girl Who Listens To Animals

A double-feature! Lord Nevermore (finished) and The Girl Who Listens to Animals (line art) both available for viewing at winniecheng.net!

Sparrow

Drew this like, 2 years ago, when I was still working at YP... yesterday sat down and looked at it and well, this will be going further than just a drawing! :)

I'm having this moment where my head is being flooded with ideas for drawings, illustrations, comics...lol. The sucky feeling comes from knowing I probably can't do them all, I'm only one person after all. And I've still got my research thesis to focus on! :P Aaargh a little frustration, imagination overdrive!!!

Also been listening to Bruno Mars ;) Ever since high school, I always needed to listen to music while I draw/paint etc. Last time it was to feed that anger and teen angst. Not like I don't do that anymore, but my song choices is much more varied now! And I don't absolutely NEED to listen to something while drawing anymore. I used to go into the music and it helps me concentrate on my lines. Sometimes feels a bit trippy lol. Music videos too are a source of ideas. When I say music I'm not really talking about Pop, back then I was all about Korn, Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit, Rammstein, System of a Down... those are like my classics now! XD

Haha well, variety is the spice of life! I think my music library has songs from Tiesto, Sonata Artica, Dr Who (ehem), and some Top 10s in there for fun :) Oh yeah, recently a TON of GLEE songs took residence in the library too! L

Lord Nevermore - Sketchalating

Lines lines lines! Blacks blacks blacks! Hehe and lots of clutter, fusty wallpaper pattern...makes me a very happy person :P

The subject of this piece is based on this bird:

It's a not so happy story - my cats caught this black bird, I managed to stop them from killing it, but it had a deep cut on the chest that won't stop bleeding. I put it in a safe place to recover, unfortunately the blood loss was too much for it to handle.

This bird has brilliant ruby eyes. Really awesome, when you look into it you can really see an intelligence there looking back at you. That's where the inspiration for my drawing came from. The finished piece will be black and white but the eyes and the heart pin on its chest will be bright red.

Ongoing, it's A4 sized so shouldn't take long to finish :)

Sakura - Initial Sketch

2 perspectives on a Sakura tree. Nature and mankind. Day and night. Let's see where this sketch will go! :D

The Embrace

Well I finished this in record time - took me 3 days straight...now I need a break because me wrist is achy! :P Not sure how or why, I've stopped searching for reasons an image will suddenly pop up in my mind. This piece has a lot to do with acceptance and unconditional love, whether it is someone else or especially with yourself. To me there will always be a light or dark, no one being is 100% good or 100% evil, we are all shades in between. So yeah, image received (I sometimes feel like a satellite receiver) and I set out to draw this emotion I felt.

1st stage, always happens when doing the main characters; I'll get the most criticisms from my mind. It'll be yabbering in the background how 'this is not good enough', 'that line is crooked' or 'come on be more perfect!'. It is always a challenge in the start of every piece to overcome my personal hurdles...internally lol. :P But I think it started as well as I can manage! :)

I didn't manage to get a 2nd stage work in progress but this is the 3rd stage, half filled in the background. I did have one regret, there was no need for the floating bubbles/spores. Because in the end they made the image too busy. Oh well. Another part I thoroughly enjoy of any drawing is to make things up as I go. Those giant 'mushrooms' (I love mushrooms) were added on the fly. I was staring at that blank space and they just filled themselves in :D

The finished piece! This is a photo, haven't got around to scanning it yet but it should be easier than The Sky Whale, this is almost A3 sized. Had some trouble with the shading...might have gone overboard here with the lines teehee, but I think it turned out well! :) Look forward to have this as a print in the near future!

The Sky Whale - Completed!

It's done!!! :D This is the first time I've done such a large piece for a while now, the size is A2. Back in the years I usually stuck to small or tiny formats...cuz I love my details and I'll fill the whole surface with lines if I could! :P But working big actually feels more liberating - there is more space to breathe, play with lights and darks...This definitely won't be the last A2 sized drawing from me! I've already got 2 more ideas lined up to be drawn :D There is a common theme among all of them - the dynamic contrast between something gigantic and something tiny. :)

A scanned and cleaned copy. It is slightly cropped because A2 is a bugger to scan on an A4 scanner! I'll have to figure out a system somehow. There are some inconsistencies where the edges are warped and don't line up together -.- Well, experimentation time! :D

Hope you've enjoyed this as much as I've enjoyed drawing it!