Immovable

This week's topic on Illustration Friday.

Imagine...then do it!

I attended an intensive figure drawing workshop for 5 days. I wish I had time to draw like this more regularly. Maybe I should say "my painting skill" since I have come to the conclusion that I feel more comfortable with a brush than a pencil. Drawing with a brush forces me to forget what the books say and listen to my instinct. Every sketch is a struggle to push my limit a tiny bit further.
It was painful (maybe my sketch looks like I was having fun but I wasn't). But after 5 days, I'm actually improved a lot. It is amazing to be able to imagine how to draw/paint things in front of my eyes.
"If my mind can conceive it, and my heart can believe it, I know I can achieve it." _Jesse Jackson

Far far away

A page from my Moleskine.
Today I decided to go back to watercolor. After ruining two Arches sheets, I grabbed my sketchbook. I had no idea what I would paint, which was unusual since most of the time I choose the subject matter, stretch the paper and plan the paintings step by step carefully. So I did a few quick strokes and developed from them. 4 small paintings in total shared the theme solitude. This is my favorite. It is peaceful and adventurous at the same time.

Tea time

I'm always fascinated moss and mushrooms. I enjoy taking close-up photos of tiny plants (with a telephoto lens though), imagining fairy tales about their world. I've never written any thing down but I remember most of them in the form of what if questions, "What if this moss-covered rock is the backyard of the little people who live among the mushrooms?" for example. I don't think I've ever answered my own questions and finished the stories. I just let my imagination wandering around from stories to stories...

Blue Lavender

Leaving my Moleskine at home, I went to Blue Lavender farm with the camera. Unfortunately, it was raining in the early morning and cloudy most of the day. Hoping to quickly take some photos of the violet field before the rain, I managed to fix the camera setting to compensate the poor lighting condition. Soon I found out the blooming season was over. 12$ for the entry fee was a waste. I ended up spending most of my time outside of the farm. To my surprise, I discovered plenty of interesting things to photograph. It was great walking in a peaceful countryside feeling the fresh air against my face.

Rainbow dream

 

         When I finished The Adventure of Big Claw, I was so terrified by the intensity of the workload that I wouldn't want to do anything like that again. But I knew I'll eventually go back and develop the mixed media more since I haven't considered my technique refined enough.

         I love the vibrant yet dreamy colors, and especially satisfied with the flexibility of the media. It mixes well with either wet or dry media traditionally and digitally. There are a few disadvantages working with detailed illustrations but in overall, I'm happy with it.