I thought it would be a good idea to start developing my own style of painting portraits in preparation for my future career in tattooing. Given that I'm a massive fan....here's a portrait of Lady Gaga I started last night:


As you can see from the original photo, I punched up the contrast and stylised the hair so it would work better as a tattoo. Can you spot the nod to music in this piece?


* I'm not completely sure if it's okay to sell on Society6, so if it isn't and Gaga/her people would rather I take it down, I will immediately.

From 19th February it will be the Year of the Goat! Each year has an element assigned to it as well as an animal, and 2015's element is wood. As such, I've combined these factors along with this particular zodiac's flowers.

Finished pieces would typically go on my website but I'm having trouble accessing the webspace atm, so I'll be posting it here first:


I'm currently contacting independent stores to see if they'd be interested in stocking them as gift cards/postcards and will post their locations here if they accept. If you run a business and are interested, or know of anyone who might be, please email me at: info [at] naomihoang.com

Animated WIPs.....because they're fun to look at. :)


Cheers,
Naomi

Another speedpaint study based on a photo I Pinned a while ago. Based on a basic Google search, I think the photographer is Daria Zaytseva: http://www.dariazaytseva.com/

It isn't a particularly strict study but I like the mood of it.

Feeling out of touch with digital work, so I did a speedie. It's fairly off but good practice nonetheless.

After attending the S/S show in March and sharing my sketches, I was invited to the Birds of Paradise show last Saturday, where I sketched live during the reception and catwalk.

Illustrations

These were displayed and up for sale during the show.

Livingstone's Turaco Mixed media on A3 Bristol paper.

Red Bird of Paradise Mixed media on A3 Bristol paper.

Mini business cards (courtesy of moo.com) were placed into everyone's goodie bags. I also prepared some Thank You cards for anyone who buys original artwork from me, complete with an authentic wax seal stamp.

Catwalk Sketches

These were really quick! Maybe 10 seconds max, then some more scribbling based on memory before the next model showed up. I'll be working these up like the ones from last year once I get photo reference from the photographers and they will all be available to buy (approx. 9.5x8" white paper).

My grey marker was running low and it really light, so I had to darken the scans. If you'd like to reserve one as it is, please email me the reference number ASAP at info [at] naomihoang.com before I add more to it.

Apologies to those who wanted to see them during the After Party, but my things were packed away in the storage cupboard and the lighting in the club was too dark to see them anyway.

BoPcwIS 0

BoPcwIS 1

BoPcwIS 2

BoPcwIS 3

BoPcwIS 4

BoPcwIS 5

BoPcwIS 6

BoPcwIS 7

BoPcwIS 8

BoPcwIS 9

BoPcwIS 10

BoPcwIS 11

BoPcwIS 12

I'll update this post when they're finished.

Photos

Setting up before guests arrive for the reception.

Photo by fashion designer Julia Chew. Check out her work, it's beautiful: http://xiaolindesign.com/

Live jazz band! There was also a cocktail bar courtesy of The Varsity Club, where we had the After Party.

The models were too busy for me to draw before the show, so I drew the t-rex skeleton instead. xD

London

August

Learning from Julian 'ArtJaz'. Julian's a friend of an old colleague of mine, who hooked us up. We met up and painted at Leake Street, where street art is authorised (so people go there to learn/practice). Southbank is more known for street art but tends to be busy and touristy, so I'd recommend Leake Street if you want some time to yourself. Saying that, we went on a Monday morning so most places like this would be dead anyway.

It was a fun and slightly alien experience, and wow did my hand/arm hurt for a couple of days afterwards! Spraying with paint cans upright uses completely different muscles to what I'm used to, so I got tired easily. I also found it odd having to move my whole body to follow the lines and maintain a consistent distance to the wall to get better quality lines. Even though the area was empty, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmingly British and reserved/too embarrassed to move much, haha.....eventually you just have to chill and go with the flow...it's almost like dancing.

Check out Julian's work here: jayspaintshop.co.uk

He's a really mellow and supportive dude, who often teaches handicapped children or those from underprivileged areas, alongside commercial work.

ArtJaz did the portrait of me whilst I figured out how to do lettering and use the spray can for the first time!

YQS = "Why Quicksilver?" Potential tag? I used to be called Quicksilver on the Conceptart.org forums.

Cardiff

September

A few friends and I got together for a workshop with Bradley 'Rmer' Woods, who was referred to me by ArtJaz. We started off looking at books on street art for inspiration and doodling ideas on what to paint. We had a go on the walls, under Rmer's tuition, then painted on boards we could take home at the end of the lesson. It was so much fun!

This was my second attempt at using spray paint. I hadn't bought any paint or practiced in between lessons but I found it way easier this time round and have since bought a few cans. Still wobbly as hell but I'll get there eventually!

Bradley's a nice chap and the lesson was really casual and fun. He does a lot of work in Wales and organises events, such as Breakin' The Bay, which took place at Cardiff Bay last month. He'll be doing another one in October but I can't remember what it's called - I'll update this post when I find out.

Check out his work here: http://rmer1.com/

Rmer sketched our names while we doodled.

We were given a Banana cap each. So hard to get thinner lines!

We had about 30 mins left so I painted something from my sketchbook. I've bought the same colours (I hope?!), so I'll try and finish this when they arrive.

Airbrush

Sketchbook

Sketchbook cover.

I used these elements to make a tileable print, shown below:

Samples of prints I've designed and applied to a photo to show it in context. This wasn't for anything in particular - just personal work...

I wanna paint this up when I have the right colours. I did a digital version a while back but it looked crap. Will try with spray paint...

That's it for now! My order from Graff-City should be arriving today, so I'll post WIPs later this week. :)

Cheers for reading,
Naomi

Hello~ I need to work on another task atm so I thought I'd post where I'm at with the trio so far:


They're starting to come together and I much prefer this organic style of painting (all one layer). The Irish River dancer's face is bugging me atm so I might re-paint it entirely...otherwise I'm happy with the direction they're going in so far. I'll add textures towards the end with the finishing touches, but will aim to keep it subtle so they look more like traditional paintings.

Let me know if you have any feedback in the comment section. :)

Also, I have a store! These paintings will be available to buy as prints/iPhone covers and more when they're finished. In the meantime, check out what's up now:


Cheers,
Naomi

I'm still in the process of developing my style atm and am having fun painting some dance-related pieces.

They're all WIPs - I'm bouncing between them all simultaneously so they look coherent.

Hello! I'm still alive but have been updating my website directly lately (rather than posting here) but I thought I'd post a piece I'm working on atm:

....thought I'd give this compo a go!

Merry Christmas, folks~! Here's something I painted the other night:

Have a good one! :)

Naomi xxx