Illustration / Red Plaid Pearl at Valentino Haute Couture 2013

Valentino Fall 2013 Haute Couture runway illustration and hand-lettering. Gouache and watercolour. 
She's so talllllllll. Is it intimating you? Does it make you want to wear plaid and houndstooth and applique flower motifs altogether?

Valentino Fall 2013 Haute Couture coral and mother of pearl clutch plus a bit of hand-lettering. Gouache and watercolour.

August Inspiration Collage / Soft and Loose like Cy Twombly

I made an collage of art and things I've inspired by this last while, I'm going to print this out and look at it everyday this month and hope all this genius inspiration soaks into what I make by osmosis. I get so lost with my work sometimes and I don't know where I want it to go so let's see if putting up a sort of visual map will help.  Or maybe it'll just make me crazy and I'll end up spending the month screaming at my sketchbook "you can't be ugly, be pretty, be pretty!".

Clockwise from the top.

1. Basquiat. Crazy, free and exagerated like Jean-Michel.
2. Tina Berning's 100 Girls on Cheap Paper project. I like this idea of doing/drawing one thing until you develope your style and find what it is that works best for you.
3. Agnes Martin. I threw this in because I've been reading Art & Fear and they talk about seeing the first piece of art that inspires you to want to make art. When I first saw Martin's work in person a few years ago something about it really resonated with me and it's the first peice I remember feeling so moved by. It drew me in, so pale and full of depth.
4. Walasse Ting. Exaggerated proportions, carefree colours and paint strokes. Walasse Ting forever and ever.
5. Picasso. Exaggerated proportions. Draw from life, draw it so often that the way you put down a line becomes a habit and your habit becomes your style.
6. Matisse. Colour, pattern, sincerity, naivety.
7. Cy Twombly. Loose brush strokes and pencil scribbles.

Drawings / Shoes I Never Wear

Some new drawings I've been working on that I really like, sketched from life all the shoes in my closet that I buy for whatever reason but hardly ever wear. In some ways these feel like a continuation from these other shoe drawings and these portrait experiments. 

This Month I've Been: June Bloom

Well this one is a bit late! I'm just having a really hard time over here wrapping my head around the fact that this month is more than half over and this year is also half way over. But anyways, other than my weekly existential time crisis, here's what I've been doing in June:

Buying little treats for myself at the art supply/stationery store. New equipment and tools always = new inspiration, here I got a felt calligraphy pen (terrible for writing but awesome for sketching!), some charcoal sticks and a grease pencil.

Refilled my portable gouache palette, I get really excited when my art supplies start to get all gunky it's like tangible proof I've been doing my homework and practicing.

It reminds me of this Chinese fable I used to listen to as a kid on cassette tape about a calligraphy student who asked his teacher how he could become a master and the teacher told him to practice until the the pond at the front of his house would turn black from him rinsing out his ink brushes. I definitely attend the school of the black ink pond.

Painting basil leaves, my windowsill planter has been invaded with tiny mealybugs. At first I thought their fuzzy little white bodies were kind of cute but after destroying my jasmine and basil plants I have changed my mind.

Experimenting with drawing styles. I'm always thinking about developing my own drawing style, doing some determined doodles of Grace Kelly.

Henna-ing my nails! My mom bought me a cone of henna from her trip to Singapore and I stained my nails with them, it looks pretty cute I think. I started off a rich brown-red and is now faded to a light bright orange.

Working on my Zig Wisdoms. This is #19 from the series, read more about it on Brianne Garcia's site.

Painting suckling pig and other yummies for a client's wedding invitations. Can't wait to show you guys when the job gets printed in August.

Spent time at my uncle's house when my parents were away in Singapore. They don't have WIFI so I made my own fun by painting in my sketchbook in the evenings. It was amazing, I got so much work done that week, I slept over at their place and used mine as a studio. I loved walking to the 'studio' in the morning and then going 'home' at a set time for dinner, the older I get the more I realize how much I love/need a schedule. Such a fuddy-duddy.

Exploring the flower market in Mong Kong! That place is amazing, I never really walked around there in depth, but they have all the beautiful flowers; peonies, patchouli in pots, lots of luscious basil, everything!

I hope you had a great month! You can follow me on Instagram @kittynwong for daily updates.

Fashion Week Streetstyle Sketches Inspired by Vanessa Jackman

Some sketches I've been doodling over the past few days. I got a 30 pack of really affordable watercolour paper at Hong Kong Art Supplies Professional in Mong Kok last week and since then I've have just been painting with abandon.

I've also been listening to Sam Weber's intimate chatty podcast where he interviews an illustrator or designer each episode, it's called My Dreams, Your Nightmares and if you work or want to work in this industry you should really check it out. The Melinda Beck episode is my favourite so far, she is so charismatic and inspiring, and the music selection for the show is always spot on and educational.

All these sketches were inspired by scrolling through streetstyle photographer Vanessa Jackman's beautiful blog, she captures light and women's faces so beautifully. Enjoy!

Illustrations / Chanel and Lacroix for Schiaparelli Haute Couture Fall 2013

Chanel Haute Couture, 2013. Pencil and Gouache.

It's fashion week again! And it's my favourite time to experiment with new illustrations due to all the new inspiration, I love scrolling through all the shows for my "homework".

I've been fixing up my portfolio these last few weeks and have been spending countless hours looking at other illustrators' portfolios. I especially love Bernadette Pascua's, there's so much beautiful stuff there, I could spend hours there (and I do). And seeing her work has inspired to include more of my handwriting into my drawings.

Party Hat, 2013. Pencil, gouache and collage. 

This pink and black striped drawing is inspired by the Christian Lacroix for Schiaparelli collection. I'm a huge Schiaparelli fan (basically all of my university projects had Surrealism listed in the theme somewhere). I had a really fun time doing this one, it's fairly big almost A3. Painted it with a huge messy brush, exaggerated the features and experimented with some 3D collage elements for her brooch and headpiece.

Both of these prints and iPhone cases are available for sale on my Society6 store. The Lacroix one, and the Chanel one.