Painting in an A3 paper

 I woke up early in the morning as I didn't want to boringly stay in bed. I got up and painted the picture "A sleeping boy on the seashore" with watercolour. This is the first time I painted a picture on an A3 paper, which is bigger than those I used before. Painting on a larger paper is a great fun, and the result is unexpectedly good. This is by no doubt my best painting in this year.

After finishing reading Elton John's autobiography, I began to read  Sushi's article collection.

I haven't played guitar that much these days as painting has got more and more of my attention.

About realistic paintings

 I drew a picture about the mailbox that could be seen from the window in the early morning. Different pen and paper characteristics require different levels of saturation. To be safe, we can always safe to start with less water.

Since the invention of cameras, many people lost the confidence of the future for realistic paintings, as they thought those paintings would be easily defeated by photographs. But I think the feeling that a painting can give to the people is still very different from a photo. Through examining the scratches and traces left during the creation of the painted picture, you can feel the time and efforts the painter spent to finish it, as well as the learning process and the talent. In addition, you can feel the culture heritage about the techniques that are passed by generations from an ancient time. No two paintings can be exactly the same despite they may reflect the same scene. We can always understand the styles and interpretations of the painters.

Of course, some people love abstract painting more as different people have different tastes. 

Beach Play

 I finally received my fountain pen ordered online. It is really hard to buy one. To be safe, I chose the brand of Heros, which I had been used for a long time in the past. 

Yesterday I repainted the "Beach Play" picture in the early morning. I want to say that it is a much more pleasant experience. Yeah, for something you can't do it well, it is fine to just try it again. I painted the background before applying the pen for drawing objects. For fine objects such as human beings, I used a ball pen rather than a fountain pen so that the lines would not be mixed with watercolours.

I played a bamboo six holes xiao flute, which is a birthday present I got from high school, in the evening. The temperament is different to that used in today's western music. The feeling is great to play an instrument you've owned for more than 20 years.

Music composition

 I got up early in the morning today and composed a lullaby. It's a long time since my last composition.

Brisbane's summer has eventually arrived. It has been rather bright after 5 am. Yeah, I don't need to copy or imitate those stage performers. As an amateur musician, I can develop my own style, the style that is suitable to play at home for self entertainment. Maybe this is what literati music should be like.

Mum watering the veggie patch

Yesterday I drew a picture of mum watering her veggie patch in the garden. The hard part of it is the water. But I finally thought of a way to do it. The secrete is colour contrast, which means to make the area outside the water stream darker.

A diary

Yesterday I painted a picture about the boys playing painting in the garden. It was not bad though many places still can be improved. The small size dip pen is necessary.

Using a clothe to surround the strings can mute the guitar to most extent. It is a good way to practise in quiet environment. I don't think playing with finger tips is a problem at all, especially I want quieter sounds. It also provides a level of flexibility to touch the strings. I don't have to copy others' techniques as I can develop my own ones.

A thought

 It is not hard to understand why classical music nowadays not as popular as popular music. Music to most people is to relax and to be entertained. But normally classical music in a concert hall requires you to dress formally, sitting in a good gesture there for a couple of hours, being not able to chat or record, and listening to music often with a theme relating to those tough topics such as life and deaths, war and peace, and etc, making it similar to attend a lecture.