Fresh Goji Berries

My grandma grows a goji berry plant in our front yard. There are plenty of fruits every year (the joys of planting!) and the taste is sweet with a punch of bitterness/spice.

I don't think I like fresh goji berries that much (because the spice leaves a funny aftertaste), but it's good for my eyes apparently, so I shall suffer through.

It's interesting how nature opts for complementary colors though, it feels so intentional.

San Jose Municipal Rose Garden

Free things to do are probably one of the best things in life. For my grandma's birthday, I took her to the San Jose Municipal Rose Garden and fell in love with some of the roses with unique colors.

Trying my hand at photoshop...
The roses were originally purple!

I think roses need to be at least two colors to be considered legitimate.

Polka dot roses?! So beautiful

I love my grandma! (:

I think it's definitely worth checking out, although it's not like you can spend hours of your day here, you can still be amazed by how many different kinds of roses there are and enjoy the sunshine.

Art Inspiration: Native American Pottery

I went to Stanford University's Cantor Center for the Arts the other day. Although the exhibition for SFMOMA's Pop Art Collection was still under construction (such a bummer! I really wanted to see it! Hopefully, I will get a chance to see before I leave...but it's difficult to schedule in), the closing gave me a chance to become very inspired by the geometric designs in the Native American pottery exhibition. I love the harsh edges and super modern patterns.

Asymmetrical, minimalist feel. Use of negative space very effective.

Typically, circles don't really work well in an art piece because they draw so much attention, but this somehow manages to complement the other rectangular elements.

Contrast with solid colors, repetitive lines. Varied Textures.

Love how they added a fantastical geometric shape in the center of the animal. You can still tell what it is, but the diamond makes it unique and interesting.

I think I'm often so caught up with modern or post-modern pieces that I forget to appreciate the more rustic roots of where a lot of these artistic ideas come from. I can't wait to add some of these geometric patterns into my future sketches! 

A Self Portrait: Six Months

I dislike drawing self portraits (or collections surrounding self portraits, unless you have an extremely distinctive look) because it either ends up similar to other portraits, or a super cliche way to express how you feel. However, with my baby pictures, I feel a slight detachment to them. I know as common knowledge that it is me, but I don't feel anything when I see the pictures. I have no idea what I was thinking or feeling at that time. I didn't even know the picture was being taken. I think that detachment leaves room for exploration and a good opportunity to draw non-adult proportioned faces.

Sometimes I wish I still had that mohawk! 

Art Inspiration: Anthropologie Window Display

I have basically stopped shopping, but I had to go to Santana Row yesterday because the rest of my family enjoys walking around the area.

What caught my eye was the window display art at Anthropologie! They're so beautiful. 

My mom hiding in the corner! The reflective glass creates a cool effect, but makes the art harder to see.

I love the use of the drip technique that allows the 3D string to flow and continue the unity within the piece. Mix of textures (contrast with thin paint and thick cloth attachment) and bright colors (orange/blue/green) make this piece pop!

J.Crew Diversifies Summer 2014 Catalog!

When I was browsing through the J.Crew Catalog, I was really surprised to see an Asian male model for the Men's section. It's nice to see J.Crew being more progressive about hiring different races and ethnicities, effectively rejecting the unsexy Asian male stereotype.

look at that little eyebrow raise ;)

I was trying to look up who he was, but couldn't find it. So, who is this man? I guess there is a pretty great incentive for stores such as J.Crew to diversify their catalog. With still mostly white models, the brand extends their consumer base while retaining their original customers. With an awareness of this, I looked at LLBean's catalog and literally everyone was white. I saw one African American in the entire catalog and that was it. As an American brand, I would really think that they would try to at least embrace diversity somewhat.

Fashion often runs the fine line between celebrating different ethnicities and cultural appropriation/reinforcing stereotypes, but I think J.Crew does a good job in this instance. I would like to see more Indian or indigenous models in the near future, as they often get even less coverage in fashion and are more stigmatized in society. 

Architecture Inspiration: Stone

Went on a trip to Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan, China last month.

Sedentary rock pattern good for enhancing texture for exteriors (or if you're daring, interiors!)

Pattern of large and small stone bricks on the little house to the left.

Strawberry Smoothie I

Been experimenting with avocados in smoothies.

Ingredients

2 Cups Strawberries

1 Avocado

1 cup Apple Juice

1/2 Banana

The color is a little funky (since mix of complementary colors red of strawberries and green of avocados), and a little too creamy (1 whole avocado is a little intense, I would probably go with some ice or something next time), but the flavor is quite balanced and good! It's not overly sweet and tones down the sourness of the strawberries. 

Architecture Inspiration: Alvar Aalto

Finnish.

Romantic Functionalism.

Aalto.

Curved ceiling design for acoustics. Municipal Library in Viipuri, Russia.

Aalto's own studio in his home. I love exploring how architects design their own houses. 

Aalto's self-designed living room.

Villa Mairea in Noormarkku, Finland. Simple design that is just so appealing. Love the black accents.

Baker Building in MIT. Actually got to live in here when I came to visit! I love the curves of the building, which create ample study/social space. The rooftop views at night are also gorgeous.

Experimental House. Interesting how they actually took the resources to make an experiment. Super avant-garde, but very beautiful. 

Municipal Library in Viipuri, Russia. These door handles are so beautiful! 

Photos taken from book "Aalto" by Louna Lahti. 

Art Inspiration: Satire

I think the best art induces a strong reaction from the viewer. Although most pieces in the Triton Art Museum event were good or fun to look at, they lacked a "shock factor" that drew me in. 

The few works that made me stop and laugh inspired me and made me think of the deeper message behind the image. Although silly, I think these pictures raise larger societal issues that we have.

This is a part of a larger piece by David Canavese (who is awesome and super friendly, by the way) compares the media to a circus. I love the juxtaposition of Osama Bin Laden and blatant sex appeal, as Mother Theresa looks on in the background. Genius. 

Aphrodite and the barbie doll. I keep wondering what caused me to laugh at this image. I guess the absurdity of the contrast between the supposedly epic/culturally significant/historic painting and the everyday awkwardness/cheapness of a naked Barbie was quite amusing. It's funny how our minds react and pick up so much information at the same time, yet we don't even consciously process much of these things. 

I've actually never made satirical art before. Perhaps now it's time to give it a shot?

The Little Things; July Roses

I've been going on runs every other day, and as I pass through the neighborhood, I'm sometimes able to catch a glimpse of my favorite kinds of roses: pink on the outside, with an orangy-peach center. I know that red roses stand for love, yellow for friendship, but how about these? 

About to head off on my run again, hope you have a great day!