Pick-up line of the week

"I like the way you use those brushes. Do you want a job?"

Looks like I'll be heading to Macau for a week or three to paint some faux marble at the Venetian, so blogging will be sporadic for awhile.

stepping out

stepping out, originally uploaded by e.briel.

the shot from Review Asia's July issue. What pale legs I have! They've not seen the light of day for over ten years....

And I had no idea the dress-straps were made of python skin when I slipped it on. One learns something new every day.

anthotype - Purple Iris Southbank

anthotype - Purple Iris Southbank, originally uploaded by akki14.

Just discovered another fascinating alternative photo process; the example above was made by Akki. Anthotypes are made with flowers! Photos can be made from poppies, cabbages, and more. You can't get more environmentally friendly than that. Read about it here.

This was disovered by Sir John Herschel, who also was instrumental in formulating the cyanotype, of course....

Thanks to Akki14 from Flickr.

On Saturday I gave a last-minute private workshop to an American student and his girlfriend, who are researchers in HK this summer. The cyanotype experience was part of an afternoon of surprises from him to her, and it was a pleasure to play a part in this endeavor.

They'd been interested in doing cyanotype photos but had contacted me last-minute, so there was no time to prepare negatives.

"You can print photograms, though, using jewelry, flowers, whatever you can think of, as long as it has an interesting shape. Also, feel free to look through these older negatives," I said. "I won't be selling original prints of these to collectors, so you can print them."

Here's one of their test prints onto a linen pocket:



From a 35mm photo I took near Hvar on the Dalmatian coast, Croatia, 2000.

As usual, I got too involved in the workshop to take photos, though I had the camera nearby the whole time. There's just too much to do, too much to explain, and one is racing with the sun, the weather, and the wind, so it's easy to forget documentation till it's too late.

Ditto with the Portrait Party. We ended up having 4 female portraitists - and Roy. I think he enjoyed all the attention.

Time to finish some fruity cocktails, the best way to begin the week.

office-bound

Oops! You can still see the pencil marks

office-bound, originally uploaded by e.briel.

modern foot-binding: part of a woman's "business" uniform requires crippling shoes.

you can see petite bandages peeking from the straps slung round HK womens'ankles.

Photo from last weekend's Second Sunday Open Studio, featuring SARA.

19th cent singer, originally uploaded by e.briel.

a composite portrait drawn from from several early 20th-century singers in HK.

pu yi associate, originally uploaded by e.briel.

portrait based on a photo of a man associated with "the last emperor", Pu Yi

he looks a bit like my HKMS colleague, Joel Ferraris?! (Joel smiles a lot more though)

self portrait [w/heavy makeup after a long night out]

make-up/self portrait, originally uploaded by e.briel.

The Open Studio was a successful Sunday - we had a completely different crowd from last month, with new faces and larger-than-life personalities filled the small studio space.

Photos to come soon.



A truly low-res portrait: Man holding songbird, oil on mahogany [detail]. 4' x 8', 1999

Next Sunday July 15th, I'll be hosting a Portrait Party at the Cyan Studio, from 4-6pm. For just HK$250 you can relax with a glass of wine (or tea) and learn the basics for expressive portraits of yourself and others. All levels of artists welcome, from beginners and beyond.

To reserve a spot, email me at The Cyan Studio [no caps] at gmail dot com.

Sunday's Open Studio: Sara Sene

Sara's the featured artist this sunday at my Open Studio this Sunday, July 8th, from 2-6pm.



If you're in Hong Kong, stop by the studio for the chance to chat with this talented artist and sample some fabulous Sri Lankan food.

Click here & scroll down for the map/directions to the studio.

He's supplied me with the following impressive write-up, but be sure to take a look at his website to get a glimpse of his talents.

SARAsene, a professional multimedia artist living and working for the past
36 years in 16 major international cities around the world, finally settled
down in Hong Kong for the past 22 years having a solo exhibiton of his recently
done multimedia work including controversial caricatures, illustrations and
sculpture work.

He will display some of his printed and published editorial political
cartoons which helped him to win Amnesty International Press Awards in 1996, 1997 & 1998 in Hong Kong.

He had over 16 solo exhibitions in all over the world including famous
galleries in the USA, Queens Theatre in the Park in New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles,
Singapore, Rome, Hong Kong, Nepal, Teheran and Colombo.

His work has been commended by such public figures as Queen Elizabeth II, Former US President Bill Clinton, ex British Prime Minister Tony Blair and last Governor of Hong Kong Lord Chris Patten.

He is still in exile from his native country Sri Lanka and has stirred controversy with his published editorial political cartoons and caricatures.

pak kok-kian pinecones

pinecones, originally uploaded by e.briel.

crooked lock in Pak Kok

crooked lock, originally uploaded by e.briel.

our computer keyboard id currently broken. the keys seem to have a ghost in them that's sticking the keys together. it typwesd likwe thisd, rewquiring Hwercxulwean amountsd of editing.....

just when I've got to send out the press release for the Open Studio this Sunday!



Morwe info soon when thwe xcomputewr'sd working again.

spotted light

spotted light, originally uploaded by e.briel.

Peered into an abandoned New-Territories home in Pak Kok village. Light filtered through a broken rooftop and drifted onto a rickety stairway.

From the mural workshops last week. All photos taken by Joel: