Painting a dog at the cultural fair

The day of reckoning is finally here.  The cultural fair is here.  Time to put all the hype and theory into practice.

The event was preceded by a news promo blip from a local TV station.  I had my 5 seconds of fame.

The day started off with the set-up, when the facility was still dimly lit and cold.

Before long, people were filling the chairs, eager to start painting the dog.  I am just going to shut up and post the few photos I had.

It was a grueling 5 and a half hours of almost non-stop talking over the drums and cymbals of the lion dance, and being on my feet the whole time.  I had my past job as a pharmacist to be thankful for;  I was used to be on my feet 12 hours a day.

I must emphasize again how positive this whole experience had been.  Not because it worked out beautifully.  Not because of the accolades that the project received.  It was the pure joy and satisfaction and pride that the participants showed.  Every one of them effervesced with such new found confidence.

I added a new element to my program this year.  I brought along a chop and let the participants stamp their own seal of approval.  The wording on the chop says " Still Having A Heart Like A Child".   I thought it was fitting for a painting of a cuddly dog.  This simple act of stamping not only validated the works as their own, but it also decorated the painting with that familiar Chinese veil.

My only regret is that I don't have more pictures to post.  I was too caught up at the moment and not much free time to hit the shutter.

Rehearsal

The demo event at the cultural festival is fast approaching and I would be less than honest if I admit to not having any anxiety.  I know I have a plan, but unlike working at home, out there anything can happen, including boo boos. For all to see, nonetheless.

Just received word today that a local TV station will be filming a little segment on me as part of the festival promotion.  If that doesn't stoke my fire, I don't know what will.

To assuage my trepidation I decided to run through my steps in painting my dog again.  I call this a step by step rehearsal, to have some discrete and concrete ideas on what each step would be.  I am doing this for my own benefit.  I can't be mumbling and be taking too much liberty in which part I would be painting next, as if I was at home.  I need to be able to parlez my scheme and the group audience need to be able to follow me in an orderly fashion.

For my TV appearance, I decided to use a Xuan that I use for calligraphy mostly.  It is quite absorbent and does not bleed too easily.

First step is do record my template on the Xuan, rubbing out the silhouette with charcoal.

Then write in the eyes, nostrils and the mouth using dark ink.  The voids in these small areas are important.  They represent the glint in the eyes, the nostril openings and the tongue.  So try not to fill everything up.

Keeping the brush which is drier by now, and employing side-tip, block in the dark areas between the front legs, below the belly and in front of the hind legs and the junction at the butt and the upturned tail.

Wash out the ink somewhat from the brush to achieve a lighter shade, write in a big mustache beneath the eyes.   Join the nose to the lips Write in the chin. This helps to define the snout of the dog.

Write in a lone ranger's mask around the eyes.  Now the dog has a face.

Write in the right leg ( left on paper )

Write in the left leg ( right on paper ), leaving a big "S" void, hinting a highlighted contour of the left leg.  Write in the chest area with a darker shade to bring out the chin.

Try to leave a gap at the bottom of the eyes.  This void describes the highlighted profile of the snout, and gives separation between the muzzle and the eye sockets.

Using a light shade with a side-tip, lay the brush down and execute big bold strokes to round off the hind quarter.... and accentuate the "S" void to suggest the front left leg.

Write in the tail, leaving the top margin blank, to suggest the back lit areas of the tail.
I forgot to round off the lower lip of the dog by writing in a lighter margin beneath the lower lip.
So I'm doing that now ( red circled area )

Using a light wash, go over the edges of the animal where the charcoal was.  This helps to set the powder and one can use a darker wash at the bottom to cast a shadow from the animal.



I've also tried the same painting using different kinds of Xuan;  not only as a chance for further practice but I wanted to see the different results

my calligraphy Xuan

my regular Xuan

my semi-sized Xuan

on canvas

I used the calligraphy Xuan because it is more forgiving with regards to water content of the brush.
I thought the semi-sized would be the easiest but the result was disappointing for me.  The painting looked harsh.  I liked both the regular Xuan and the calligraphy Xuan in this exercise.  The one on canvas turned out really nice.  That was a complete surprise.

So is this dog going to be the harbinger of an auspicious year to come?

Wish me luck.