Electric Shadows

"Electric Shadows"
5"x7" Oil on Gessoboard
$95 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

This was another Theibaud inspired shophouse. The shadows were just vibrating with color, and I loved painting it. Sometimes you can find so many colors in white, it is amazing. Don't forget to come out to The Fair @ the Hilton Hotel Singapore on Thursday and Friday this week. I'll be there in a smaller booth and would love to see you!

Santa Monica Tower

"Santa Monica Tower"
6x6 Oil on Gessoboard
$95
Click Here to Purchase

This was from my last morning in Southern California. I had just endured an awful week of the June Gloom (it was April). Not exactly inspiring, and pretty impossible to paint when you can't see across the street. But I woke up the last morning at my cousin's house, and the sky was a beautiful California blue. So I walked down to the beach and just enjoyed the solitude. There is something about the ocean that just renews my soul.

Morning View

"Morning View"
5"x7" Oil on Panel
$95 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

This painting took so much longer than I thought it would. But this is the first time I have really tackled people in any way, shape, or form in months. It was kind of an adventure. I found this scene on a Saturday morning down by the Ferry Market in San Francisco. The market has some wonderful food - lots of fresh fruit, jams, popcorn, cheese, you name it! So tasty. But behind the tents and stalls, there are some fantastic people watching opportunities. Plus, when you add in the the view of the Bay Bridge - just amazing!

Light Urple

"Light Urple"
6"x6" Oil on Panel
$120 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

Yes, yes, the title for this one comes from one of the great 90's SNL skits: Celebrity Jeopardy. If you haven't seen the skit before, here is a link, I hope it makes you smile today!

http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/c2c5b0b7a3/snl-celebrity-jeopardy-4-15-00

If this shophouse looks vaguely familiar, well, I've done this one a couple of times. It has sort of been my baseline since it was the first shophouse I ever attempted to paint.

Yeah, so looking back on the last one is kind of a bit embarassing, not going to lie. I kind of miss that point when I thought everything was a wonder and that art supply stores held lots of mystery. Nevertheless, it really helps reinforce that as you get to a certain point in your work, "brush miles" are what really count.

Chinatown MRT

"Chinatown MRT"
6x6 Oil on Gessobord
$120 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

Back to the shophouses! This one is right by the entrance to the Chinatown MRT. If you come up from the MRT, and look up to your right, this house is right there. As for painting the shophouses, it feels good to be back. I really enjoy coming back to them and trying new ideas on them. On this one I really wanted to try and work on painting the details in the architecture. I've done it a little bit, but not in quite as much detail as this one. Man, it was fun.

What's the Catch?

"What's the Catch?"
4"x4" Oil on Gessoboard
$45 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

This painting is of a scene that I have grown up witnessing and always wanted to put to paint. Finally, in the last year, I felt like I could possibly do it justice. Soon I hope that I can maybe paint it bigger than 4x4! This is a shrimp boat that can be seen from Highway 278 as you are leaving Hilton Head Island and crossing onto the mainland, Bluffton. Such a beautiful scene in the Lowcountry that is fast disappearing.

In other news, my husband and I are off for the week to Vietnam. We are headed to Saigon, one of our favorite cities, then we thought we would try a beach in Vietnam - Mui Ne. Supposedly the kite surfing is grand, so we're going to try and catch a wave or two, wish us luck! My husband just finished working 55 days straight (no days off!) so I think he deserves a bit of a break. I'm happy to tag along ;).

Cloud Study III

"Cloud Study III"
4x4 Oil on Panel
$35 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

This is another little 4x4 study that I did. I just love the sailboats on the intracoastal waterway. I didn't get nearly enough time on HHI. I didn't even see the beach there!

Wow, finally back in the saddle at the easel. Well, sort of. I'm very much looking forward to getting life pulled back together here in Singapore. While I was in the US my husband moved us out of temporary housing into our regular apartment. I've decided that having packers pack your things is great, until they unpack. Because they insist on unpacking for damage and insurance purposes. So instead of being able to ignore certain boxes pushed against a wall, I walked into a house that had piles of stuff all over. My husband did a fantastic job of starting the process of getting settled in, but he's been working 7 days a week. So in the meantime, I get to walk in circles putting away piles of things ;)... 

Arches in Blue

Pin It

"Arches in Blue"
5"x7" Oil on Panel
$45 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

This painting is another one from my too-short time in NYC. This was during the day that I got to visit the New York Public Library - what a splendid building. The architecture was so neat, and the people watching was spectacular. I really enjoyed spending time there. This was during one of the days that was very overcast, so I tried to go to place that were inside to find good lighting.

And to continue my discussion from yesterday about exotic food that we had at the wedding, take for example, shark fin soup. (Here is my obligatory link to something about banning shark finning: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shark_finning.) They did serve shark fin soup, which Singapore has finally banned from restaurants. I did try it because 1) the soup had already been made and 2) I didn't want to offend the people that had invited us by staging a moral protest. The soup was okay - basically the part I thought was an onion-y mushroom wound up being the bits of fin. It basically tasted like some mushrooms and onions in a chicken based broth. Not bad, but not exactly something I'd want to spend $100 per bowl on (and yes, that is the price in restaurants for a bowl of shark fin soup!). If we are going to eat something expensive and exotic, Bird's Nest Soup (explanation here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird%27s_nest_soup) is much tastier. And yes, the bird's nest basically consists of bird spit and twigs.

Club St. Chic

Pin It

"Club St. Chic"
6"x16" Oil on Panel
$395 Unframed
Click Here to Purchase

This painting is from Club St. in the Chinatown area. I thought the architecture as well as the colors were just something that I couldn't pass up!

Telok Ayer Street

Pin It

"Telok Ayer"
6x6 Oil on Panel
Click Here to Purchase

This shophouse is on Telok Ayer Street, which is an area I have only recently found. There are all kinds of awesome restaurants in this area, many of them much higher end. It is kind of behind Club Street, while parallel(ish) to it. So unless you know to go down into this area off of Club Street, it is pretty easy to never really know it is there. I recommend going exploring.

One thing that is kind of neat/frustrating over here about life is that there is no big box store. If you want a widget, then you can get that widget (maybe not brand specific), you just have to find the specific widget store. There is some guy, somewhere, that sells that widget. You just have to find him. In some instances, it leads to things like an entire 7 story shopping mall that sells various electronic doodads and such. Sometimes I think Best Buy and Radio Shack are more efficient, but when you walk into the little tiny cubby-hole where they can custom build you a rocketship (well, if rockets weren't illegal here), you walk out with a story. Just musing today...

Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 17

"Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 17"
6x6 Oil on Panel
Click Here to Purchase

Happy Monday! This is another re-work. It's been brightened and tightened. Kind of sounds like a bad advertisement for plastic surgery, doesn't it? Ha. In any case, this was the original version...

Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 24

"Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 24"
6x6 Oil on Panel
Click Here to Purchase

Well, it has been one hell of a week. TGIF, right? Have you ever had one of those weeks where everything just seems to not go right? Well, rather than act like Eeyore (I really have felt like I keep losing my dang tail this week), I'm going to count 5 good things that I can think of that happened this week:

1. It is Friday

2. It is 5 o'clock somwhere HERE! (I have a margarite in front of me as I type....)

3. I met a new artist this week! He's another DPW artist - Tilen Tin

4. I found out that I've been mailing things wrong. There is a MUCH cheaper way to do it. That means exciting news I'll announce in another couple of weeks.

5. I sold my first print this week! Go check out my Etsy store!

6. I got two days in the studio this week.

Okay, so I found 6 good things. Normally, I'd be frustrated I only got two days in the studio. But, I get to paint full time. How lucky am I? And being in the studio for a full day today really put me in a much better place. So, I'm not going to dwell on the time I didn't get t spend in the studio, I'm just going to be thankful for the time I did get.

Life. Is. Good. HAPPY FRIDAY!

All that Glitters - SOLD

Pin It

"All that Glitters"
SOLD
Click Here to see other Available artwork

This was a wonderful little break from the norm. One of my good collectors in the states wanted a fun painting, so this is for her!

Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 100

Pin It

"Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 100"
6x16 Oil on Panel
SOLD
Click Here to see other available artwork

Ahhh... the end feels so sweet. This, my friends, is the last of my 100 shophouses. Like I mentioned earlier, one of my favorite collectors has already purchased this guy. She got the first one and the last one, which makes me super happy. I've had so much fun with this series, and I will continue, but not quite the same way. Firstly, I'm still re-working some of my favorites from earlier in the series. Not all of them could be saved, but some of them are coming out really awesome, which makes me very excited. As for completely new shophouses - I still want to keep pushing the cropping and perspective angles that I've been working with. But as for the title - well, it's a little cumbersome. Can I just mention how tired I am of typing "Singapore Heritage Shophouse?" :)

Plus, one of my other collector's had a fantastic request. He wanted to know where the shophouses were, so from now on, the title will more or less be the address of the house. Maybe if I really know the right address I can even tag it in PaintMap or Blogger Location settings. It'll be a nice little chronicle of Singapore and how things change over time.

Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 49

"Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 49"
6x6 Oil on Panel
Available at Chan Hampe Gallery

I thought this house was really interesting.  Also nestled right outside of Little India, this is about three houses down from the incredibly ornate Rococo houses.  I really loved this one because against the bright blue sky, it almost looked a bit like something out of the southwest.  Sort of like a mesa rising out of the jungle - ha!  The really interesting part is that the bottom 2/3 of the house (which aren't in the painting) are just as elaborate as the rest of the street.  This guys is having a bit of an identity crisis!

Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 41

"Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 41"
6x8 Oil on Panel
Available at Chan Hampe Gallery

'Twas the night before opening, and all through the gallery, not a creature was stirring, not even a... Um yeah.  So, forgive me for not being a poet.  All of my paintings are hung, over 70 of them!  It has taken so much work to get this finished and ready for a show.  I painted about 79 shophouses, framed 72 of them, have scanned, emailed, hung, etc, etc, etc... Keep your fingers crossed for a good turnout tomorrow night!

Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 28

"Singapore Heritage Shophouse No. 28"
6in x 6in Oil on Panel
Click Here to Purchase

Whoops.  I accidentally posted a couple of these in the wrong order.  Look at me go!  The hubby and I just got back last night, so now comes the post-vacation hangover.  Unpacking, settling back into reality, schoolwork... and my first show, ever.  I am super excited, but being checked out for two weeks was just soooo nice.  Only 25 more pieces to paint in the next week!  

I'm sorry I didn't post sooner, but we had much less internet access than anticipated.  We had a blast, and it really was the trip of a lifetime.  Part of me wishes that I got more painting in, but a very nasty case of beautiful spring weather fever (you mean I can sit in the sun without sweating like a stuck pig?!?! Yes please!) coupled with many lunches that had an accompanying glass of wine... well, yeah.  You know what they say - don't drink and draw!  

Ivory Tower - Daily Painting #11

"Ivory Tower" 6x6 Original Oil Painting on Canvas click here to Purchase

Doesn't the coffee mug look quite the smug one, looking down from its tower of peons? I really enjoyed painting all of the reflected colors from the background. Between the incandescent light and the background, these objects were anything but white.

On another note, I think I figured out my photography problem. The side patio where I was taking the photographs is surrounded by white buildings. Well, this creates some horrendous reflected light, even in places I thought were shaded! Kind of crazy. So I took the advice of Layne Cook, (who has a fantastic daioypainting blog of her own), set my ISO to 200, the white balance to cloudy, with vibrant color. Then I parked myself on the back side of the building, which is completely in shadow, and viola! Better pictures. Much less glare and color correction needed. Finding that completely shaded spot was key. I'll probably put up a tutorial on how to do this later in the week once I get my (formerly dead) computer back up and running.


- Posted from my iPad