Thinking aloud through sketches, words and humour
The Koi was back after a few days. Swimming up to the monk on a cold winter morning, as a blanket of fog hung over the lake. The monk spoke first, with his eyes gently shut, yet sensing Koi was nearby in silence. “You are back Koi. How have you been?” “I am well Monk.... Continue Reading →
The Monk eyes were still shut, but he sensed an aura of restlessness as Koi approached him. “Is everything ok, Koi?” asked the monk with his eyes still closed. The Koi spoke as he neared the banks of the zen garden. “Monk, I am not feeling happy today. I watched you and have been trying... Continue Reading →
The Monk felt the Koi’s presence and opened his eyes “Welcome back my friend.” Koi smiled and said “I have another thought today Monk.” The Monk waited for Koi to continue. “Monk, how do I learn to forgive?” The monk smiled at Koi. “I love your questions Koi” and then closed his eyes in silence... Continue Reading →
I have begun creating some time lapse videos of the monks being sketched. This is an initial exploration of the same. I am going to try and do this regularly and share the process of how the illustrations are created color, ink and all.
Tried playing and exploring working with photographs and creating layers with the monk. Some cool results. Still learning and having fun. Miss the simple joy of pen and ink and the meditative state of drawing them. But also having a blast playing with color. The best of both worlds - who said I need to... Continue Reading →
Tried my hand at some explorations with the Apple iPad pro and the apple pencil. Had some fun with color and textures. Still not got my hand at it fully. Here are the results.
I explored adding more color to the monks. Detailed the buildings and depicted them in concentric circles to symbolise the inner journey to find oneself. Finding your own quiet spot and rejuvenating yourself need not await a vacation but finding balance everyday, all the time.
I am exploring ways to depict meditation and self knowledge. I found a few metaphors that align with my interpretation of the process. I am using building forms to depict the outside world and symbolize the noise of everyday life. The energy lines around the monk attempt to describe the changes and the aura that... Continue Reading →
Meditation is best defined as a state where the mind is silent, completely still and without distraction. The mind is clear, relaxed, and focused inward. We aspire to achieve a state where the mind is silent and no longer distracts. Every individual will have their own process to get to this state of being. It's... Continue Reading →
Imagine a life where everyday is a vacation. Where every single day we wake up smiling with a hop in our step. What are things we do on a holiday? Slow down, hear the birds, feel the wind on our face, let go of all stress, do the things we love, spend quality time with... Continue Reading →
What goes around comes around. Goodwill is the most precious asset to nurture. Networking is helping others achieve their goals without expecting anything in return. The more you become a catalyst to people's dreams and aspirations, the more the power of reciprocity kicks in. The secret is not to expect it and never to make... Continue Reading →
I am managing to take out precious time every day to sketch. Still exploring quotes and concepts that inspire. The addition of using water color pens has allowed a add a dash of color to bring alive these ideas. I am also having a blast with the ribbon style 3D typography that's allowing the words... Continue Reading →
An illustration I made over coffee yesterday where I attempted to depict what meditation is for me. Meditation is to spend time in quiet thought where the mind is an empty vessel. The mind learns to form a ring that keeps external chatter completely away and slowly submerge into a space of complete inner silence. ... Continue Reading →
Leave yesterday. Forget about tomorrow. Just savor how magically Now unfolds.
Decided to try my hand at Arabic calligraphy. The forms are exquisite and flow so smoothly. Wish I could read and know if I am writing the right things. For now enjoying the meditative flow of just writing and seeing forms come alive.
We were at sentosa, Singapore to watch the dolphin show. Suddenly the sky turned grey and heavy rains ensued. Lightning and thunder followed and after an hour of waiting, they called off the show for safety reasons. I pulled out my sketchbook and tried to capture the moment. The rains, the wind and the Dolphins... Continue Reading →
I have been having a blast exploring while attempting to learn hand lettering. Meanwhile, the monk has also been making guest appearances in a few pages and Rumi stays the flavor of the season. Note to self: get more colors than just Blues in the pages. 🙂
Last night I played around with hand drawn type. I was trying to get depth and three dimension using markets and color pencils. After many wasted sheets, an interesting style emerged. I am further going to develop this style later and add layers and depth. This was meditative by the end of it, just these... Continue Reading →
I have recently been bitten by the hand drawn typography bug and trying to wrap my head around this skill. I'm practicing and learning the art of creating visually appealing forms that can inspire. Using quotes and thoughts manifested as hand written type gives them an added allure. Here are a few explorations from my... Continue Reading →
SEEKING ANSARS 