Breaking the rules- Mike Devries

You are remembered for the rules you break. On today's post I'll be talking about Mike Devries, a tattoo artist known for his colour realism works. Currently one of the world's top tattoo artist, Mike Devries started tattooing professionally in 2003. What is so special about his method of tattooing is that he does not outline the tattoo he is working on. Most artists outline their tattoo works before putting in the colours or shadings, for Mike Devries he go straight to the colours. This generated many criticism from other artists in the trade, they argued that tattoo without outline would not last. Mike Devries strongly believes that using contrasting colours for the subject it creates an invisible outline and also makes his subject more realistic. After proving himself to the trade by winning 130 awards for his work, people starts to acknowledge his style of tattooing. He tattooed many famous people and Slyvester Stallone is one of them. Sometimes breaking the rules is not that bad. 

Alchemy-ism

According to Wikipedia, alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose practitioners have, from antiquity, claimed it to be the precursor to profound powers. Did that just go over your head? Mine too.
Well, the exhibition in our college is not really related to that (I guess not). The articles put up for display vary a great deal. We have prints in one corner and furniture in the other. The best part is that it is not the work of some well-known artist or designer but the work of our very own award-winning college graduates who have an outstanding reputation.
If anyone of you reading this are in Singapore then you should definitely drop by because I believe that this isn't a show that you ought to miss. 
:D

A step closer.

All my WIPs. I started on some of these even before school commenced. I started drawing somewhere around this time of the month in 2012, back then all I could do was to get the outlines right. Without prior knowledge in art I did not have any clue on how and what to draw. I started drawing because I wanted to be a tattoo artist (I still do), thus I started drawing tattoo related art. It started in 2011 where I got my very first tattoo done, like most people I was very intrigued by the whole process of  tattooing. Although it ignited something in me, I never really thought much about it. In 2012, I got my second tattoo. It was then when I knew that I am really into the whole thing about tattoo. I then did some research on how do I go about becoming an artist, I must be able to draw. Honestly I never really know whether I am good in art or not, but I was offered an apprenticeship by the person who tattooed me and it was only after a month of endless practice. Along the way comes other studios/shops that also offered me apprenticeship, I had to declined due to some reasons. But I never stop drawing, now that it has become a part of me. I still find time to draw despite the school work, it is me and this is what I do.

Wires, 3D and much more.

My first time working with wires. our 3D fundamentals module requires us to make a 3D template with wire. The wire may look easy to work with, but in actual case it is one of the hardest thing I ever did. Thick wire provides support but lacks malleability, while soft wire possesses excellent malleability but lack strength. At first it would seems that going with thick wire is a better option since it provides support, stability and looks easy to bend. Needless to say, I only bought the hard wire. Everything seems to worked out perfectly until when I need to bend the wire for tying, all that qualities of the hard wire are used against me! In the end I had to buy a coil of soft wire to compensate for the lack of malleability of the hard wire. Due to the shortage of time my sculpture of a pre-historic shark did not turned out the way it should, sadly. I am pretty sure that with ample time I would have gotten A+ for the grading.

As creative individuals we are always encouraged to be creative and I did. With the amount of wire left unused, I thought it would be cool to restring my guitar with the wire. It does not look possible at first but you never know until you try. Although it is not playable, I am still surprised that it is able to produce sound. After 2 years of not touching my guitar, I gave it a new look.

Forgotten things

 

When was the last time you looked up? Ever since being introduced to smartphones, we have been constantly looking down to the phone screen. Yes, even I am guilty of it. With the advanced features and up to date technology, it is hard to resist using it. This photo was taken on a Sunday evening, using a smartphone of course. I had no idea as to why did I looked up, but I am glad now that I did. This photo made me feel that people have indeed been so obsessed with technology. It seems that we have all forgotten that smartphones are also equipped with high quality camera. Only a very few of us would explore the phone's camera function when we got our phone. I took this photo because I feel that it is totally in sync with my emotion at that moment.

I believe that behind every photo there is something to it, be it memory or story. But first, feel and experience before you rush to take a photo. Do not take a photo for the sake of  taking it, that would defeats the whole purpose. We should pay more attention to our surrounding environment. If we do, we are bound to find beauty in almost everywhere. It is surprising that that we are always surrounded by beautiful things. 

      

Down the memory lane

I have been walking along on the pathway by this stretch of road for as long as I could remember. This pathway contains memories from my secondary school days. During my secondary school days I would have to pass by here everyday to get to school, be it rain or shine. The noisy traffic accompanied by the birds chirping and of course the music playing on my mp3 were the only thing I hear everyday. I am almost certain that friendships and bonds were strengthened mostly before or after curriculum time. Thus,this pathway also serves as a bonding place for me and many others. I think that not only me but every queenswayans( term used for Queensway Secondary School student) would have developed a special kind of attachment to this pathway. I had witnessed traffic accidents as well as school couples arguing while I was walking on the pathway. Footsteps, sweat and eventually cigarette ashes were left behind by students. They said that as you get older you become more sentimental. I believe so, sometime I find myself coming back here to reminisce about the past. Not to forget about the Mcdonalds down the road, the only place to eat other than the school canteen.

Noise SG

Noise Singapore 2013 Showcase Exhibition

Congratulations to one of my buddy Kelvin, for having his artwork featured at the Noise Singapore 2013 Showcase Exhibition. The artwork titled ''My Great Grandma'' was done a year ago prior to the showcase. He definitely has some of the best graphite realism works on this island. Most realism artists either work with charcoal or a mix of both graphite and charcoal. The reason is because by using only graphite pencils/powder ,we cannot achieve certain dark shades, graphite compound also reflects light, making the surface shiny. Therefore, the difficulty of this artwork increased. There are few other works that is also equally appealing at the showcase, but only a very few can be described as expressive.

This was the first drawing I saw which was done by Kelvin. Even looking at it now it still seems unbelievable to me. The details of the splashing water were rendered perfectly. At first glance many would thought of this as a photo in black and white, or at least that is what I thought. It was at then I got influenced to start drawing, despite the fact that I did not have any art background. This very drawing also introduced me to photo realistic art. It is meaningful to me so I took a photo of this piece of work. What might have changed you to who you are now?