「もののあはれ」

I know a lot of people praising me for my works whenever I share them online. While I do enjoy flattery, I always keep in mind that somehow, my piece could still have gotten better. My father, who's also a visual artist, taught me to never be satisfied with your work until you think you've achieved perfection. While it is impossible to achieve it, it is how an artist should work.

It is also good to keep trying new things. One thing I've learned too is that sticking to a certain medium for too long can easily burn the artist out. While we all know there really is that one medium we're really attached to, doing the same thing all over again can bore the artist out. It's one of the major factors when an artist ceases to pick up a pencil or brush. So, I say, keep trying new things, new techniques, new styles, and new medium. I

So for now, this has been my cycle for maintaining and improving my skills. I hope it could bring some help to those who are experience the same phase. 

I have had many names and nom de plumes that I have failed to live up to. It's been two years since I've written here, and here's me coming back with a  bang.

I grew up very visual. TV was such a heavy influence during the 90′s, and cartoons and anime were rampant on air. My dad was an artist, and I was heavily exposed with his craft, as well as his materials. I was also introduced to a plethora of colors thanks to my mom’s eye shadow collection, and later on the 64-box of Crayola crayons; hence my fascination of colors. It was how I was molded into this, into being a person in to art. I’m always nifty of using the word ‘artist’ on myself, since I’m quite idealistic about the term. Anyway, here I will enlist some pieces of artwork that have greatly influenced my life, and hopefully you people will draw inspiration from.

x. Books - like i said, I grew up very visual. I love to look at things, be they letters or pictures. Literature has been very much influential to my own perspective of aesthetics. Unfortunately, I no longer have my picture/children’s books. I remember my mom giving them out to charity.

x. Poetry

x. Movies/Films - I find it hard to filter my watch list. I have too many favorite movies, but here are the best ones that really moved/wow-ed me:

animated films:

Non-animated:

x. TV Shows

- like movies, I watch too many of them, too.

animated (lots of anime here, be warned!):

Non-animated:

x. Music

- here are the most frequent songs I listen to get in the mood of artsy-ing

instrumental/orchestral (apparently all of the composers are Japanese): 

vocal: 

So there you go, a masterpost of things to inspire the artist in you. Happy artsy-ing!

Lately I've been indulging myself with Japanese literature. There's more for me to know before I can state my claims to be legitimate, but I myself am curious why I'm interested on such.

While translations will never have the ability to fully deliver what the vernacular can, and while I do admit I'm missing out numbers of perspectives because I am not Japanese, nor do I speak Japanese -- I have figured out two things: One, the introspective nature of Japanese literature had drawn me to think more about myself, my feelings and my philosophies; two, Japanese literature values loneliness and solitude.

Characters in Japanese literature are more detached from each other and from their reality, and their trains of thoughts transcend to the otherworldly. Protagonists and/or central characters battle on their own demons. I like it that they are so self-absorbent that they reach such unique and fresh thoughts. The characters love to be vague and talk about abstracts. It makes me assume that the ideal Japanese person should be pensive. It also amuses me that  most of the contemporary ones I have read gave me swatches of sadness. There's just so much to be sad for.

I wonder now if it's just rightful for me to compare it to Western literature. I can see some traits of Chuck Palahniuk fitting in, but I'm not really sure.

Although these are merely observations, and I have only read few of its kind, I'm enjoying what I've been finding out so far.

I joined the publication of my college (The Flame) as an artist. In truth, I'm not satisfied with my efforts, but I guess they're not bad for an amateur like me.

There's still room for improvement. :-)