Artist Diary

IT’S OK TO LIKE FLOWERS

Alain de Botton is a contemporary philosopher that recently released a book called Art As Therapy. He says that Art has many roles to play our everyday lives and it has seven distinct purposes. One of them is to help us remember things, because as humans, we are forgetful. Art acts as a reminder for us. One of the most popular postcards sold in museum gift shops is Claude Monet’s Waterlilies. Apparently, this is disturbing to sophisticated art tastemakers. Flowers are viewed as frou-frou, not serious by the art world. According to Botton, the popularity of such artworks is an indicator that people look for art to remind them of hope. Hanging beautiful artwork on your walls can brighten your mood when things don’t feel so great. Flowers, though seemingly frivolous is what offers hope and inspiration in a not-so-nice world.

Botton also talks about how Art is used to bottle something, a feeling, a thought, a concept. I definitely feel like I am bottling the essence of flowers in my photography. Flowers are so fleeting, just like life’s beautiful moments.

If you would like to learn more about Art As Therapy, check out Alain De Botton’s video on it.

March 27, 2016
THE BEGINNING OF SPRING

I’m so excited that the official beginning of Spring is here! Finally, the flowers come back in bloom. I expect to be going out on shoots more often. I’ve started putting up my limited edition works for sale in the Shop. I’d like to raise funds for travel to do more shoots elsewhere. Hopefully some gardens in Europe. Fingers crossed!

Here are some photos from a recent visit to Allan Gardens in Toronto. The Easter show is starting, so I’ll be there again soon to see what new blooms they’ve planted.

March 20, 2016
COLOR INSPIRATION: SPRING PALETTE

Whether you are a graphic designer, interior decorator, or fashion designer, choosing colors can seem like an arbitrary process. However, it doesn’t have to be. Choosing colors through inspirational images can take the guesswork out of whether or not the chosen color combinations are going to be harmonious. These color charts created from my Spring photography collection shows you how you can select colors directly from an image to create your color palette. Kudos to Lauren Wager, I was inspired by her blog, Color Collective.

I am excited to announce that I have released an ebook full of color scheme palettes created from my photographs. The ebook includes the color codes for RGB, HEX and Pantone, so that you can recreate the exact color schemes. I hope this will help those of you out there to feel inspired when you’re working with color for your next design project.Details here.

or more color inspiration, check out my new ebook here.

March 13, 2016
LUSH GREEN PARADISE

I love that in the winter time, I can down those cold weather sorrows in warmth and sunlight at a conservatory. Here’s my collection of photos from a recent visit To Allan Gardens in Toronto.

March 6, 2016
STOP CHASING YOUR DREAMS AND START MAKING THEM A REALITY

Have you ever thought about trying something new in your career? Did you stop yourself because it just didn’t seem like a logical career move? But your heart is still calling you to it?

When I started my intuitive consulting business, I seriously thought that I had arrived. You see, I’ve always had different jobs or businesses, and I’ve never stayed in one place for a very long time. My resume is a patchwork quilt of different experiences. To a hiring professional, I would probably appear very flaky on paper.

So when I thought that I had arrived at some place that I could stay in for a long time to come, I was quite happy. I trained as a life skills coach, and it was such a rewarding feeling to be working with people to change their lives. To grow spiritually and offer wisdom to others is amazing.

But then my interests shifted again and I started doing other stuff. I got into photography and video making. And I loved it.

The process of creating images and moving pictures was fulfilling a different side of me that wasn’t being fulfilled. It was allowing me to express myself in a way that I couldn’t before.

I wondered if I should pursue this more seriously. My heart was saying YES! My head was saying, are you sure about this? It’s going off path, AGAIN!

After some serious consideration, I decided to go for it. I was starting to realize how ungrounded I was becoming in my work offering personal development and spiritual guidance. Don’t get me wrong, I love this stuff. But too much of it isn’t a good thing. We need to have balance in life. It can’t just be all about the touchy-feel-good stuff they talk about in self-help books and Super Soul Sunday. We have to participate in life itself. And that means getting outside of our heads and taking action. Too many words of encouragement, too much looking for the deeper meaning in everything can really just be an excuse for procrastination. To truly live our dreams, we have to create it into reality, instead of chasing them with mere wishful thinking.

I decided that what l needed a vehicle for more real life experience. A way to get back to reality. And photography was going to be the way forward, because it puts me in front of reality itself. I wanted to get in touch with what’s around me and create something tangible from it.

The interesting thing about photography is that it has allowed me to merge two worlds together; the seen and the unseen. I work from an intuitive place, but I create with the reality around me. I am legally blind, so I often have to trust my gut feeling that I got the shot I wanted, and that everything is lining up for me in the photo. I don’t question so much, I rely on my instincts to guide me.

And so I believe, this is what they would call “inspired action”. This career move wasn’t planned, it wasn’t a strategy. It just happened, I let go and I followed my heart. And I couldn’t be happier.

February 28, 2016
THE BOARDWALK IN QUINGDAO

On the first day in Qingdao, the tour guide took us to the boardwalk in Quondam. It is where the Olympic torch was passed on when the game were happening in Beijing. All along the boardwalk, there were these vendors selling all kinds of trinkets, such as seashells and jewelry.

#China #Olympics #seaside #boardwalk #tourism #peoplewatching

February 21, 2016
WALK INTO THE SUNSET

I was quite stunned by this place that the tour guide took us to. This is a shopping arcade in Quingdao. The ceilings are painted like a sunset and the place is made to look like an outdoor village. The experience of walking through is surreal because you get the impression that the colours in the sky are changing. But the fact is that it is not– you are just changing perspective. It felt like I was walking into a Van Gogh painting!

#surreal #China #painting #mural #sunset #fauxfinish #painting

February 14, 2016
THE FOG OF QUINGDAO

In Quingdao, we went to the seaside and walked on the pier. It had rained that morning and by afternoon, it was misty and foggy. We considered it lucky that throughout the trip we only had one day of rain. Sometimes I think the unusual weather makes for the most interesting of photos. I really enjoyed the people watching at the pier. There were so many swarms of seagulls flying everywhere. The fog felt somewhat magical.

#seaside #China #peoplewatching #seagulls #fog #rain #mist

February 10, 2016
PEOPLE WATCHING IN CHANGCHUN

Some aspects I find interesting about China is the difference in living standards. It’s interesting to see how people from the other side of the world life. In Changchun and Jilin, it made for some interesting people watching. You may notice people wearing masks over their nose and mouth in these photos. The reason for that is that environmental pollution is very apparent in the cities. I also noticed that Chinese people wear a lot of colour in general. Unlike in the West, where most people prefer to wear dark or neutral colours.

On one of the tour stops, we went to Jilin Beishan Park. The river was frozen and so people were skating. We walked over the icy white bridge past the railway track and I could heard weird ghostly noises. A recording was being played repeatedly. I’m not sure why or where it was coming from. It was a rather strange and surreal experience.

#China #skating #peoplewatching #snow #winter #landscape

January 31, 2016
ROCKS AND ICE IN SHANDONG

We travelled to Tai’an to see the mountains. It is a less popular attraction during the winter. But I do have to say that it is worth going to. The waters streaming from the mountains are frozen and it offers a spectacular sight to behold. The rock formations are stunning with its vibrant colours and textures.

#breathtaking #China #landscape #mountains #hiking #nature #beauty

January 24, 2016