Five starships drawn last night! And I retired earlier than usually. An hour earlier! Whee!

Four starships drawn on Monday night and five last night.

Focus focus. I have lots to do. I need to make a list and get the things done.

Then, after work, I can read and draw.

Group visibility

Oooh, the Facebook interface has changed. I'm looking to change group visibility again. Moving the Science Fiction Singapore group up to the forefront. Moving the First World War group up. Moving Singapore Wargamers up. Rearranging a few others and changing prioritisations. Moving the urban sketchers group to a much less visible position (probably out of sight) and much lower priority now. Ditto for a subsidiary music group, 80s Music Discussion Group.

A weekend of talk

A nice weekend, mostly of talk and meeting people. On Friday night, I was drawing spaceships at the Food Republic at 313. Later, Siu Hean dropped by, then Mitchell, then, Koi Hin

We were discussing about solar sail mechanics and the design of such a vessel, beam weapons ranging and the random walk needed for evasion (much like First World War hit prediction between two battle lines of dreadnoughts!), electromagnetic railguns shooting clouds of particle and counter fire in a cloud form, biological space vessels, the design of it, photosynthesis, flying cabbages, cauliflowers, sketching spaceships, 2-dimensional worlds and more. Highly enjoyable.

Amelia and Leos came and joined us later.

It is really just too bad that the main Sketchwalks are held on Saturday mornings with an afternoon sideshow. At this rate, I would probably miss the rest of the year or perhaps for the foreseeable future. I had already missed the majority last year. I wish sketchwalks are on Saturday afternoons or Sunday mornings. I am but one person and it would not be proper otherwise.

Earlier in the year, it was fortunate that the two polling days had fallen on the Sketchwalk days and after I had voted and I was then able to attend.

Well, I doubt if I would have much of an opportunity in the future. Sketchwalks look like a dead event for me now. Circumstances beyond my control. Fading away. It would be Portrait After Dark and Figure Drawing sessions only from now on from the looks of it.

Then, I spent a late afternoon and night drawing with Mitchell and Kit Mun joining me on Saturday.

I had decided against going to figure drawing on Sunday evening as I was drained.

I think in future I will start a new movement and organise sessions for sketching imaginary things if there are people who would join me.

Entrenched positions

A person I know often has fixed positions. What this person often does is to construct explanations around his or her fixed positions. The person would also find bad analogies and examples to support them.

It is not that the positions are wrong but rather than the examples used to illustrate the positions are often poor ones, akin to a reversal of creating positions to tear down.

Warehousing demand

It does appear that warehousing demand has gone down. It would be reflective of something.

It is finally Friday. I can devote more time to drawing my starships now.

Possessed by emotions

I have got a few friends who seem to act according to their emotions. They are not rash per se but more unthinking at times, governed by sentiment, often jumping into what they feel, rather than think, is the right course. A cursory examination, coloured by prejudices. As a result, their actions and statements often seem thoughtless and rash. I have seen it too many times before.

Still, it is how they had chosen to conduct their lives, I respect it. It is entirely their ship to steer.

Sketching

Sketching from 3 pm to 11 pm last Saturday was enormously satisfying. I shall do that more often.

Comment of the Day

Comment of the Day (not mine): "He looked like some deformed cabbage patch doll!!"

Names of target and utterer withheld to protect the innocent and not so innocent.

Rainy days

What a nice rainy morning. The dream I had two nights ago was that of powered armoured. A unit of 'Soviet Reference Powered Armoured' disappearing after being sent in. Strange.

Whee! It is time to switch to drawing spaceships. This time, it will be warships. Nuclear missile launchers, particle beam weapons, lasers, projectile weapons, hangers and more. Enough freighters, mining vessels and such for now. I did a sketch of a large cruiser and two three fast outlines.

I also inked a man-at-arms and did a wash of a knight. I also did a cityscape of an imaginary city in an alternate universe.

Wrongs

If you wrong me, I will remember your deed. I will not forget.

I am not a vengeful person. However, I will remember.

For a long time.

If you apologise and ask for forgiveness. I will forgive. I do not expect penance from you.

Figure drawing sessions

From the looks of it, two upcoming figure drawing sessions are going to be on the same Sunday with slightly different timings. Since one of them is free and in an air-conditioned environment, I think the other will have a surfeit of attendees.

A pity about the sketchwalks

Sketchwalks (the official ones) on Saturday mornings are usually hit and miss affairs as it is within my office hours. I missed the majority of them last year.

This year, I have attended a few. I find some of the locations awkward as well. Oh well. Hopefully, things will change but I suspect it will not. After all, I am but one person.

Starship sketches

Two starship sketches completed last night as well a host of outlines.

Groupthink and strength in numbers

There are people in a group that I know of that is supposedly capable of critical thinking. I think some of them are. However, I do get the impression that a number of them are simply followers and have a sense of insecurity. That the group can provide strength in numbers and the numbers of agreeable people? Surely. Groupthink? Possibly.

Two others that I know of also had this impression.

There are also a few in that group who watched television and youtube video presentations of their favourite topics as discussed within. What level of understanding and thinking do they hope to achieve through these soundbites? By repeating soundbites of their own and appearing witty? Have they thought through matters deeply? How have they discussed?

Who knows?

The thing is that when you have a group of people mostly of the same opinions and directions, you are not really going to get a diversity of opinions or ones that challenge you.

And some of them are going to conventions of similar worldwide groups. Heh.

Next stop

Next stop, smaller star craft. Fighters, bombers, shuttles, small and medium freighters, space stations, probes and vehicles.

Herd mentality

Do you find that the people here often follow each other mindlessly? Whenever people gushed about something, they would all embrace it?

Whatever happened to individuality? Whatever happened to independence of mind? Whatever happened to critical thinking?

A week of drawing starships and vehicles

I drew over forty starships in a week. Pencils. Concepts of starships. I also drew over sixteen vehicles all within a week.

Then, there was a wonderful weekend of drawing.

CivWorld

We started playing CivWorld recently. This is our third game.

Alistair pulled off the final era economic victory with the wonder which effectively boosted our 640,000 gold to 800,000 gold.

Our four person civilisation (effectively four since Yen Lyn is inactive) has managed to win this in the face of at least four or five other larger civilisations of which three have 16 or more people.

We had four persons. Siu Hean, Brian, Alistair and I. Two economic victories secured in the face of great odds.

I had managed to amassed 565,739 gold by the end. Of course, the objective was to amass fame and not gold. The usual means would be to join a large civilisation and win numerous medals, some of which can be self-serving to say the least.

FRIDAY! Finally!

I had a nice dinner with Zenn and Teck Loong at the Ma Maison Tonkatsu at the Mandarin Gallery last night. Eve joined us later.

It has been a while since Zenn left to do missionary work. Now, she is back for a short while.

Twenty-two spaceships and vehicles of various types drawn this week. More sketches to come!

One house drawn and another not far from completion.

Dinner and drawing with Leos and Amelia

Dinner and drawing tomorrow with Leos and Amelia! Whee! Are Kun Rong and Jerry going?

The Reckless

I think people who are reckless often do not recognise that they are reckless. Otherwise, they wouldn't be. Risk-takers, on the other hand, are another type altogether.

Dinner with Big Monkey and Lao Hobo

Woo! Dinner with Big Monkey and Lao Hobo this evening! Urm, Zenn and Teck Loong... Whee! It has been a while since Big Monkey swung off into the jungles of Cambodia.

To work to work! Focus focus! Then, I will go run and also draw this evening. I will also write my diary.

Open Figure Drawing at the NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia - September 2011

I was there at the Open Figure Drawing session at 3 Kay Siang Road organised by Patrick Smith of the NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia. Zhu Chuan, Eric, Isaacs, Don, Joy, Tia, Claude, Oyo, Tony and quite a few others were there. There were at least fifty people who turned up ultimately.

It was a fast-paced session of two hours, beginning at 7 pm and ending at 9 pm.  Furious non-stop gesture drawings of 1-minute, 2-minute, 3-minutes followed. Then, there were a few 5-minute poses, 10-minute poses and a final 15-minute pose. 

Wonderful session. I must thank Patrick for organising these sessions and opening to everyone.

Where the Wild Things were

I just got back from buying food for my mother at Junction 8 at Bishan. I was also at the library there and I borrowed 'Where the Wild Things were: Life, Death, and Ecological Wreckage in a Land of Vanishing Predators' by Jason Stolzenburg.

It is about a dearth of predators and how these causes imbalances, herds of elks invading, unchecked deers and cats and ants and more...

Intriguing looking volume. There should be predators out there eating up greenies actually.

The weekend was too short!

The weekend was too short! First, it was Portrait Day with JF, Jerry, Wai Hong, Ray, Kun Rong, Amelia, Rafa, Richard, Eve and many many more. It was an enjoyable evening of drawing.

I spent a happy Saturday afternoon and evening drawing with Kun Rong and Amelia at Cedele at United Square. Then, we had dinner at Waraku at Square 2.

I slept most of Sunday and I also drew four vehicles and five spaceships.

Posts

Looking at the number of posts so far...

► 2011 (146)
► 2010 (425)
► 2009 (175)
► 2008 (707)
► 2007 (1038)
► 2006 (900)
► 2005 (281)

Alphabet Rescue

Introducing Alphabet Rescue on Facebook!

The new Word game from Jerry and his gang from Rat Pack Studio. If you can, do give it a try.

Burke Commodities

VMR Corporation, Target Research Group. Now, it is another lady with an American accent calling from Burke Commodities from Boston.

Oh yes, add babes to that equation!

The ultimate cool movie: Pirates versus ninjas versus robots versus zombies!

Petulance...

Angst and the world

The angst-filled types bemoaning that 'the world sucks' and that 'the world should end because it sucks' seem to be a norm among the younger set these days. It would appear that the world revolves around them. It is a 'Me Me Me'world when they don't look beyond themselves.

Not a determinant of ability

I am laughing at the presumptions that some people have. Seriously funny.

The thing is that seniority is not a determinant of ability.

It is finally Friday! HURRAH! HURRAH! Meanwhile, Siu Hean and Alistair have started a new game of CivWorld. Hopefully, we can get Yen Lyn to join us.

Now. To focus!

Dreary day. I shall endeavour to sleep earlier in future. No more sketching in bed till 1 am.

Time to go! Yes!

Sketching at the Botanic Gardens with Leos, Kun Rong, Amelia, and many others on Saturday was great fun! Then, I was at Kelvin and Hsu Chern's wedding at the Birkhill hall and also meeting old friends like Tien Huan, Rex, Regina, Gene, Sharon and Florence.

I slept most of yesterday.

I will go painting in the Botanic Gardens tomorrow!

Friday! The watercolour society's exhibition is this evening. I will go see. Marvin and Madhu should be there.

So much done today and it is a Friday! Whee!

Sketchwalk at the Malay Village, 28th August 2011

Sketchwalk at the Malay Village, 28th August 2011

Sketchwalk at Joo Chiat Street

Sketchwalk at Joo Chiat Street

Sketchwalk at the Malay Village

I went sketching with my friends at the Malay Village on Saturday morning after I had cast my vote.

Listless listless.. I need to focus.