Wednesday 31 October 2012

Art Exercise: Animal Shapes

Hullo all!

やった!

I finally got around to doing some art! The past few weeks have been all about adjusting, sight-seeing and just being in a new environment. Now that we've settled down a bit, I can now do a little bit more "work."

This is the first of a few that I've been working on recently. Hopefully I will be putting the rest up soon after this!


Feel free to tilt your head around. Also, this could make you dizzy. Advanced apologies!

A few weeks before leaving the Philippines, I decided that my art was getting rusty. I haven't had that must practice since being at work and my imagination needed to be let loose again. I thought that I needed some type of art exercise to get my brain working again. 

I think I saw this idea somewhere to make random shapes and see what you can doodle out of them. So, I asked my brother to do one shape for me. After I filled out one shape, I asked him to make another one, so on and so forth. I gradually realized that I started to be seeing all animals, so I went with it. This is the result! :) 

Monday 29 October 2012

Let's Go to Manhattan! Part 2

                                                         Disclaimer: Photo Spam ahead.                                                

Hullo All!

The adventure starts in what I think is the most confusing part of being in The City, the Subway!



Consulted the map more than a few times and I had a map with me during our trip!




According to my mom, any "ad" type of Metro Subway card is rare because they rarely do this. I wonder how much The Gap paid for this.


These eyes were everywhere under ground


                                                  The World Trade Center: 9/11 Memorial Pools                                           



This German boy on the left was in the line ahead of me on the way to the pools. He seemed pretty bored by the place. :(






Each of the North and South Pools are nearly an acre in size. These are also the largest man-made waterfalls in North Ameriica.




Carved on the edge of the pools are each of the almost 3,000 names of those that perished in both the North and South Towers of the World Trade Center in September 11, 2001.



This garden/park was so peaceful.


This is one of the seven parts of the new plans for the World Trade Center. I only got to look at the plans but it seems as if it will now be turned into a complex with the North and South pools at the very center.


My photographer brother and his gear. Yes, that is his normal face. I take a mean portrait shot, no? :)


My attire! Finally got to wear my discounted purple J.Crew sweater, Xhilaration jeggings and boots together! The belt, checkered scarf and slouchy bag are all my mom's.


Just some interesting people I saw there!


These guys are English! I heard them speaking as they passed. 



These cute, color/outfit-coordinated grannies were planning their next destination. 


Ninja shot of these ladies with interesting pant colors! I want to know where they bought theirs! I want a pair or two as well!




This is the Survivor Tree. When the towers fell, this tree still continued to stand. 



I love the texture of the older buildings.


A fountain in City Hall park.


Not quite sure if this is City Hall or the Courthouse.


Poor cranky kid. I'm not sure he appreciates the tour.


The walkway going towards Brooklyn bridge is currently in construction. On the wooden and steel walls around it are messages and stickers and names. So cute.



Unique bikes going to and fro the bridge!







Some couple lock/padlocks on the bridge! I know that people do this in Korea and in Paris so it was quite a surprise to discover these!



Guess where we decided to have lunch?


Yep, you guessed it! We walked all the way to Chinatown!


Good 'ol Chinese food combinations!


There were so many choices! I was lucky with how yummy mine were! But everything looked great!


We took a subway ride from Chinatown to Columbus Circle had to walk almost 20 blocks to the American Museum of History! Needless to say, we were exhausted.


Tribute to Teddy Roosevelt! This is also the museum where Night at the Museum supposedly took place!


The iconic yellow schoolbus passing through. It was dismissal time when we got there.




Marine wildlife! These are all in actual size! Pretty interesting!




This is a cross section of the Sequoia, the largest tree in the world! Interestingly enough, this is not the oldest tree (around 1,300 years old). A cross section of a 1,500 pine tree was next to it and it was 1/100th the size of the sequoia.


Actual totem poles at the Native American section. These wood carvings are so interesting!



One of the most interesting animals in the African mammals display: the Greater Kudu! The Lesser Kudu looks similar but a fraction smaller in its adult stage.



Owls!!! My new favorite is the Elf Owl, which is the smallest owl in this display. Right next to it, with its wings spread out is the Pygmy Owl, the type of owl that Sirius gave to Ron as his new pet, Pigwedgeon. :)


Interesting creatures at the Tertiary Age displays! This is called the Irish Elk, an ancestor of the moose.


An ancestor of the armadillo, an inspiration for early armor.

I've come to realize that if you look up the Tertiary Age or the Age of Mammals (especially the Moropus--ancestor of the horse and rhino), these creatures terrify me! Imagine living among them! They're huge!


The best dinosaur skeleton in the Dinosaur Age displays! Along with the triceratops was the Hadrosaurid (duck-billed dinosaur) and the stegosaurus! Don't these sound familiar? *coughlandbeforetimecough*


We were exhausted! Our feet really hurt and we were glad we would be staying in the next day! It was a great day for learning and walking!

- Mishie