My Da Dun Fine Arts Competition entry. 12:19 PM

It's a big competition - with 11 categories - big prize money, and foreigners are encouraged to enter. I've decided to draw a tea house. The theme of the competition is crossing cultures - what better way of doing this than over a cup of tea. Jiufen is the perfect place to gather needed inspiration and reference. I doodled the idea I had in mind, rounded up all materials needed - that in itself is a process - trying to mime brown gummed tape to stretch water color paper with is not that easy - and off I went.
I first did all the color work - traveling with the art board on my scooter - painting in different places, it's great! The tea house close to my house is my favorite spot with just enough going on around me that I can focus. The line work was the bit I enjoyed the most - and added that over the color. Off to the framers and sent off with the entry form. Fingers crossed.

Spirited Away in Jiufen. 2:55 PM

Nestled on a mountain top and decorated with rows of lanterns, Jiufen is a great little town to visit. The crowds are insane over a long weekend though, and we went back again during the week to soak up some more of the magic of this town. This generally includes exploring the maze of alleys of steep steps whilst enjoying delicious snacks bought at the stalls on the way. My favorites was the huge mushrooms - barbecued with butter and spice - served cut up in a little cup and the prawn balls served with pickles - yum!. There are some fantastic tea houses dotted throughout the little town with up to 5 floors of beautiful booths, nooks and crannies to sit in and enjoy some traditional Taiwanese tea.

There are too many things to take in at once and for creative inspirations I decided to focus on one thing at a time. So, Spirited Away it is - Jiufen was part of the inspiration of the film. Apparently Mr. Miyasaki visited the little village on a mountain and was charmed by it. I'm not surprised - it is wonderfully charming! I've compared some of the scenes - have a look for yourself! I've included a quick drawing I did there too.

Taiwan retro. 11:17 AM

Retro is not big here. In this restaurant it's a different story however - the owner is a serious collector so his restaurant is a perfect showcase for his huge collection. There are so many signs, photo's, objects, packaging and toys that you don't really want to sit down and eat your meal. It's fascinating - it's all Taiwanese, with some fantastic Japanese influence from the time Taiwan was still ruled by Japan (1895-1945). I loved the beauty products, the cigarette boxes and prints - the children's toys were pretty damn scary though. I will definitely go back there to take in more detail.

The food was really good too, the spicy cauliflower with black bean, tofu and spring onion was my favorite. You can't have it all though - like most eating places it all still seems quite makeshift and some water ( no idea how retro the water was..) seeped into my boyfriend's loafer while were having lunch. Haha..

Ps: My sketchbook scene is from a street scene (very typical) in the area.

I've started. 12:50 PM

My next exhibition is poking it's head out somewhere in the near future. I'm planning to sell some original artwork
as well and not just digital prints as before. So the planning is completely different.. I can't just redo anything that
I don't like and I need to plan a bit more meticulously before I just start drawing. I've started with a little robin,
a bit of a daily project - drawing a student in each of my classes every day, as well as a peaceful tea scene from
Jiufen. I had to trace the scene on a new page as I do the coloring and line work separately - without a lightbox -
what a pain! I forgot how tedious it is working with tracing paper.. So we went to find the little art alley in Jonghe
in search of a lightbox - and the art material shops is just amazing! It's just huge and filled to the brim of all art
material imaginable. Massive calligraphy brushes and all materials have every brand in every shape and size
available. Anyway, off to work on my new big shiny light box.

Kenting holiday happiness. 12:20 PM

Oolong in Kaohsiung 12:53 PM

(pronounced gao-shong)



On our first day of holiday we accidentally stumbled upon this wonderful tea house. We were actually hungry and looking for a restaurant but couldn't resist having some Oolong served traditional style. A little pot of coals and a kettle with hot water is placed next to the host of the group as well as a tea tray with cups and tea pots and all the utensils needed. The Oolong tea leaves are rolled up and dried and then slowly opens up while soaking in the hot water.

The place was so pretty and oozed character - a no shoe policy combined with low seated areas with wooden partitions was overlooking the sea and was decorated with driftwood, old paintings and Chinese knickknacks. A beautiful aboriginal lady prepared and served the tea and snacks - her son was busy with the fire, he looked, well, modern, as if he came from the city and was visiting for Chinese New Year. Her husband was somewhere in the background having had one too many of something other than tea. Something about it was magical.

The tea, the company and the view was great - but I was so fascinated with the look and feel of the place I barely had a chance to soak up the tea and the whole ceremony behind it. Hopefully next time*!

*As well as more drawings! (PS: The teabag in the sketchbook was from The National Palace museum not the Oolong tea house - they would loose face!)

Happy Chinese New Year! 1:03 PM

I didn't spring clean my house, I didn't get a new haircut and I didn't buy any new clothes - but I did design a new business card - and I am very much ready for new business!



Happy Chinese New Year everybody!

My dad is the coolest. 6:27 PM

I love my dad's photo's. His compositions is always perfectly planned. The top picture was taken in their garden in Kitwe, Zambia in the 70's. The original is crisp clear in focus and on slide film. You might think that some of the elements is accidentally there - oh no - not my dad - I'm sure the whole picture was planned around the blossoming roses in the background, the kruiwa braai placed exactly between the white and red rose bushes. The ridiculously cool outdoor chairs placed with repetition - one of them cropping out of the picture plane. My mom and sister placed with a bit of space between them that they are both clearly visible, perfecting the colour highlights - and then my dad - running back to his spot as the timer count down - to complete this perfect picture with his presence and kapoen shirt. Hehe. I love it. The other pics are golden oldies too - and jip that's me right in the front with our yellow and purple outfits at Gold Reef City.



My sister discovered some of my dad's notebooks that he did at some point - he used to work as an electrician on the mines in Zambia. If there was a job available as an illustrator I'm sure that would've been better suited! How beautiful are these pages!
He even signed the one page (like a true artist). Now I know for sure where my love for illustration comes from. Dankie pa, ek love pa! xx