The Earth Manual Project: The Filipino Spirit is Waterproof in Kobe, Japan

Hullo All,

More than a year ago now, a large not-quite-a-storm hit my homeland. I was still living there at the time, so I know the effect that it had on a lot of people. 

However, one of the things that bloomed out of the flood waters was something that not a lot of people had expected. Over Twitter and Facebook came an outpour (pardon the pun) of help and rescue efforts. Social media stirred the nation and really utilized the different networks to help everyone. My bosses at the time, Ros Juan and Tonyo Cruz were major pillars for #RescuePH, the team that would then form a major method of locating and sending help to people during crisis such as the habagat. 

But that wasn't the only movement that formed as a result of the rains. There was also the creation of motivational artwork. The Ayala Museum had asked artists to contribute motivational pieces of art for everyone in the country, following the theme "The Filipino Spirit is Waterproof."

This was unprecedented since there was no reward whatsoever for creating these pieces apart from the major goal of uniting and uplifting the spirits of everyone affected by the heavy, traumatic rains and floods. As a result, hundreds of artworks made their way into the Tumblr account set up by the museum and the Filipino Spirit shone mighty like a tsunami of hope and strength!

I, myself, had submitted a couple of pieces for the effort. I felt that this was the best way for me to utilize my talents during the crisis (days after I made these pieces, I donated a ton of clothing and some toiletries too).

The reason why I say that these (#RescuePH and The Filipino Spirit is Waterproof) are surprising results of the habagat is because both projects have been acknowledge in the best utilization of Social Media during a national crisis. #RescuePH has become recognized in conventions like Social Media for Social Good, while The Filipino Spirit is Waterproof graphic design campaign was recognized nationally in newspapers and several credible news sources.

And recently, the Design and Creative Center (KIITO) in Kobe, Japan recognized and included this project in their Earth Manual Project, an exhibition that featured many creative projects for different efforts for disaster mitigation, relief and response.

The pieces contributed for the showcase of The Filipino Spirit is Waterproof project! It was so wonderful to see the unintentional cohesiveness of all the designs that made it to the exhibit! It makes me feel very patriotic and sentimental!

Check out my two pieces side-by-side near the bottom left of the page! 

Trivia: I came up with the "Keep Your Head Above Water" piece before my own version of "Filipino Spirit is Waterproof." But if you look at the entire collection of pieces, they all have a similar aesthetic, which I love seeing!

Spot my name! ;)

Another trivia, a course-mate of mine from college, Crae Achacoso, is also featured in this exhibit! :)

Overall, I felt very honored to have been asked to participate in this amazing exhibit--one that has a very strong message for people all over the world. I like knowing that, as a fan of the power of Social Media, I was able to contribute in communicating the idea of social media being more than a place to stalk people *cough* and scroll endlessly through Tumblr. :))

I had already forgotten about creating those pieces of mine. So I was very surprised and thrilled to be contacted by the Ayala Museum. And until now, I can't believe that I can say, "My work has been exhibited in Japan." Goodness gracious!

Thank you to Ayala Museum for bringing the country together in such a unique way, and of course for this opportunity to be part of sharing this message to the world! :)

Photos are by and belong to The Ayala Museum.

Check out their website and Facebook page for more of the exciting work that they've been doing!

Seriously, I have so much fun when I go there--and it's not even for school! They have a lot of amazing exhibits all the time!

Inadequacy.

Hullo All,

When I wrote about how Dreams are Hard, one of the things I failed to mention was my fear of inadequacy. 

Sometimes when I hop around the internet looking for inspiration, the most common thought I have in my head is: "Oh, I don't know how to do that. My skill level is way below par."

Most recently, I was scrolling through the blog of Brittney Lee, Griselda Sastrawinata and Mall Lucidine. I love their art styles so much and one trait of their art styles that I have always loved is the texture they have in their work. 

Mermaid Lagoon by Brittney Lee

White Floties by Griselda Sastrawinata

Merrily, Merrily by Mall Licudine

Now, I know for a fact that they (at least, Brittney and Griselda) do this on Photoshop. Yet, for the life of me, I can't figure out how they are able to flawlessly remove outlines from their work--or even what brush they're using to achieve that texture. 

Whenever I see artwork and technique that stumps me, I end up Googling everything-- "How to achieve sketchy look in Photoshop" or whatever ridiculous keywords I think will help me find the answer. And when after hours of searching I still end up with nothing, I slump my head on my keyboard and think, "I am inadequate. I have no talent."

I realize that I beat myself up this way. I try to think so much and so frequently about why artists are able to do things that I can't. I grumble whenever I take four hours to do a piece that seems like it should only take thirty minutes to do. 

This tendency to compare and impatience is a major flaw in my fight for my dreams. 

And now I believe more than ever--and this was obvious to me in the beginning but I refused to believe that there wasn't any shortcuts--that I just have to suck it up and learn it slowly. Maybe I'll stumble into the answers I'm searching for, and develop the skills that I have been dying to attain. 

In the meantime, I am doing Vlogtober on my YouTube channel! Vlogtober is an annual thing that I do where I make videos for every day in October. Most artists are doing Inktober though. 

Anyway, wish me luck,

Mishie

Caught in the Middle

Hullo All!

This is the challenge I chose to face today:

Challenge #21: Make an illustration influenced by your favorite illustrator.

Miss Edith Crawley from Downton Abbey, one of my favorite shows that just cannot come back on air soon enough! Sadly, Edith is one of my least favorite characters. But even though I feel sympathy for her the least, I feel bad that she's just so unlikeable. People are just now making fun of her on Tumblr. I feel awful because she's being cyber bullied, and she isn't even a real person!

I feel that it might be because she's a middle child. Or maybe it's because her attitude about getting what she wants is not to my liking?

Now onto my artspiration.

Truth be told, I have a lot of artspirations! But one of the first that I truly admired is Victoria Ying, who works at Disney Animation, my dream job destination! She did really amazing (understatement) work in Tangled and I could tear my eyes away from her blog when I first found it!

Now, she has many amazing art pieces, but these are probably my favorites. One is an original piece and one is, obviously, tribute art to The Little Mermaid. 

I have no formal training in art whatsoever, but I like how both "stiff" and "flowy" her works are. You can pretty much break the elements down into abstract shapes that flow, but the lines are bordering on being pointed or jagged. I don't know why that makes me like it so much, but I do. 

Case in point, instead of having Ariel's tail as a flowy "S" shape that most mermaid illustrations have (including my own), Victoria makes it like an upside-down L, and or a stiff looking "S." I don't know, by the dynamic is really exciting. It makes the illustration strong, but the subject matter of her drawings make them soft again!

And her coloring is very blocked. Although the colors blend and complement each other, you can still very clearly tell where one color ends and another begins. So her shadows are very clear and crisp. For me, I find that very educational because I learn a lot about lighting just by looking at her work as reference because obviously (as you can tell from my attempt above), I don't do stark shadows very well. I feel very off about it. But that's why looking at these works help. :) 

So, I honestly don't know if I was able to capture the look and feel of Victoria's work, but I was (and always am) surely inspired by her!

Tuttah,

Mishie

Fair Fortune.

Hullo All,

I got really excited about today's challenge!

Challenge #6: Make a children's book spread of a fairy tale

It seemed like a no-brainer to go for Grimm's or Hans Christian Anderson. Both collections are ones that I love, but I got really excited to show off my Potter nerdiness and put a twist to this challenge!

And so, I created a spread for The Fountain of Fair Fortune, from The Tales of Beetle the Bard, a collection of tales for wizarding children!

Click to enlarge and see the excerpt! (Might be a spoiler, though!)

I found this (The Tales) a great insight into the Wizarding World. Recently, it was announced that JK Rowling would be writing a screenplay for Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them! I feel that the Potterverse is so broad that, someday, these takes from Beetle the Bard could be films as well!

As for why I got attracted to this particular tale, I don't know. I just like it the most!

Are you a Potterhead? Please let me know! I loooove meeting fellow fans!

Tuttah,

Mishie

I Live for the Applause.

Hullo All,

Today's challenge is #3: Illustrate a song.

While I was tempted to go with a song with more story into it, I couldn't seem to shake off this image when Lady Gaga's "Applause" came on my Spotify playlist.

For me, this song falls into the same category as Britney Spear's "Lucky." Obviously your head might be screaming "What?!" but if you think about it, Gaga and Britney were talking about some kind of discussion about Hollywood.

What song do you find is powerful? 

Tuttah,

Mishie

The Risk of Weeping

Hullo All,

Determined to get the ball rolling with my path to Visual Development (like spiritual enlightenment), I've decided to take on some art challenges to hone my skills.

So, I turned to the Internet for ideas and came up with these awesome prompts/challenges for artists.

Challenge #1: Make a book cover for your favorite classic novel. 

Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

While not really a classic novel, this novella really means a lot to me. When I first read it in senior year, the story is so meaningful and full of explorations about life, humanity and love.

"One runs the risk of weeping, if one lets himself be tamed."

Back then, we had been given a project to make a project of any sort inspired by The Little Prince.  I had made a journal, sketch, scrap book. I chose my favorite quotes, made illustrations and then essays about why those quotes meant a lot to me. I put a lot of heart and of myself into that work that year. The best works were displayed in the school lobby for the whole school to see. My work was not one of those displayed. But, to my surprise, when we got our works back from our teacher, he had slipped in a little note saying that he had really wanted to display my work in the lobby, but thought that my personal thoughts that I shared with him in my project might not be something I'd be comfortable sharing. I treasured his consideration and it meant more to me than having my work displayed. It just showed how much this book has affected me. 

Since then, I've also come up with a few The Little Prince inspired projects. In college, I used the idea to create a Writer's Manual for my Narrative class. I always get high grades when I am inspired by this, because it always triggers passion from me. 

What books have inspired you?

Tuttah,

Mishie

Dreams are Hard.

Hullo All,

Dreams are Hard.

Actually, let me correct myself. Dreaming is easy. Achieving those dreams is what's hard. 

It's sometimes too easy to dream. Technically and subconsciously speaking, dreams already let you live out what you desperately want in life. You are the person you want to be, doing the things you want to do, or experiencing things that you couldn't even believe you could go through in your waking life. It's an amazingly triumphant and ecstatic feeling--which is what makes waking so painful. That blissful feeling you get in that dream slips away really fast, and you get up in the morning, reeling at what it could be like, and what really is just doesn't hold up in comparison. 

Personally speaking, I don't mean this to apply to every aspect of my life. In many ways, I know that I am happier than I ever was. A few years ago, everything I am living now was figuratively and literally thousands of miles away. I had to live vicariously through the dream fulfillment of other people. 

People I knew, like Rainbowholic, was living in her dream country and working toward doing what she loved doing as her main profession. Other people simply blogged about what made them happy and what they did in their every day life and suddenly that is what they did to earn income. 

Anyone that knows me beyond as an acquaintance probably already knows that I would love to be a Visual Development Artist. But then again, the same people may also know that I want to write, whether for page or screen. To do either or both would be bliss and I realize, that I want to do is to tell stories. 

What made me decide to want to pursue visual development then? 

Well, from childhood to adulthood I have always enjoyed stories. The stories I loved the most are those that let me feel the stories from all the senses imaginable. It wasn't just Disney that taught me to dream; so did Harry Potter, Hey Arnold, anime, Final Fantasy, The Little Prince--and all these wonderful stories that taught me about life through different worlds. They taught me to be happy, sad, frustrated, angry, anxious and scared. I not only experienced these stories, but met so many wonderful people and had many real world experiences through them. 

Harry Potter helped me meet my very best friends. I've had so many laughs and emotional moments with them. Referencing these stories helped make sense of the real life experiences we were having and helped us through different challenges. The same goes with other stories.

What I would like, no, what I would love is to be able to do this for others. Drawing and writing are skills I have been given so that I could really communicate the same magic with many people. This is what I dream to do in my life. 

And now, call it a Quarter Life Crisis or what have you, I am experiencing a frustration. Now more than ever, I want to start reaching my goal. Dreams let you so easily imagine what it is already like to be in that state that you desire, but experiencing the grind to reach the top is the biggest struggle I've ever faced. Lately, it has been stressing me out physically and emotionally--even spiritually. Days go by where I would get up in the morning and think, "Why can't I just be there already?"

I have spent many late nights, wide awake and thinking about how hard it is to be where I am now and what could already be. Every morning, I heave a sigh and suck it up. 

But the hardest thing about dreams is not doing anything about it. The more time I spend heaving sighs and sucking it up, the more time I spend not doing anything to reach my dream, the more time I spend not living it. 

So, for the past few days I have been trying to pick myself up. And as an added spice of destiny, it was another magical wizard from an amazing story that gave me the inspiration to turn my dream into reality. 

I am beginning with the end in mind. That is what the Merlin Method states. 

I can see the end. And now, I'm going to power through to get to it. 

This is the moment where I break out of my routine. Everything from here on end will have a purpose, exactly like everything in storytelling and visual development. 

I am going to get there. Watch me transfigure dreams into reality like BAMF wizard. 

- MishieWishie