Mistress of Art: DIANNE DELA TORRE

In this long overdue post for another Mistress of Art feature, let me treat you to a different kind of artistry, mostly in the field of motion graphics.

I was lucky enough to stumble upon the profile of Dianne Dela Torre on Twitter while I was treasure hunting for artists to feature on our now-hiatus blog Extra Kanin. Dianne, currently based in London, UK is a multidisciplinary artist having done works in the field of multimedia, graphics animation, graphic design and illustration. I may have had a chance to talk to her (I think, I forgot already haha) over on Twitter before, and I kind of got interested to feature her works. What captured me with what she has already done are those character designs which, obviously, are moving. I see it as a combination of surreal and child-like environment, pressed with colors that are not tiring to see. You can see her artistry at play on her personal works, such as Dreams: Dorothie and Me and Numerophobia.


It's been a while since I saw her last works, but I'm guessing what she'll show us next on her portfolio are, it not amazing, really awesome! Check out her portfolio reel from 2011. More videos after the cut.

Imagine a world without form

"Imagine Life without ID" conceptualized by Kristoffer Carillo of DLS-CSB 

industrial design
- the professional service of creating and developing concepts and specifications that optimize the function, value and appearance of products and systems for the mutual benefit of both user and manufacturer (IDSA, link)

On June 29, 2012, industrial designers all over the world will celebrate the 5th World Industrial Design Day, a event started by International Council of Societies of Industrial Design half a decade ago to observe and recognize the profession of industrial design. For the past years, other countries in the world had held this event, and it will be the first time WIDD will be celebrated here in the Philippines. Organized by the newly-formed National Council of Industrial Designers of the Philippines (NCIDP), the event will showcase exhibitions, contests and seminars to provide further knowledge to practitioners about the profession. The carrying banners "Lead and Change by Design" and "Imagine A World Without Industrial Design" will leave everyone wondering how the world will turn out if all the inventions are still the way they are (example, the steam locomotive as the primary transport, and even your iPhone or Blackberry still looking like an 80's handy phone). Eventually, everyone will also be challenged to think more rationally and design responsibly on how to make the world a better place with industrial design.

World Industrial Design Day in the Philippines will be held on June 29, 2012, from 12pm to 7pm (*updated time) at the De La Salle College of St. Benilde- School of Design and the Arts, Pablo Ocampo St., Manila.

More information can be found on NCIDP's offical website at www.ncidp.cc and Facebook page.

See you at the event! image via Nielson Navarrete

Pen and ink

“Drawing is the honesty of the art. There is no possibility of cheating: It is either good or bad." 

- Salvador Dali

Let me leave this 2008 sketch right here to remind me that I can draw before. LOL. These days, all I sketch are cars and products and anything design-related. No room for art. No room for expression.

I guess the first person to criticize an artwork is the artist himself. Never mind how others see your work (unless you're a "professional artist", if there exists such a profession), because the the message you convey is limited to how far your imagination can go. And the main goal is to show how you feel or what you think, not what society is telling you to do.

Command Your Street: 3rd gig at Amos

Hear ye, hear ye! This song entitled Biyahe Bagahe (Travel Baggage) is one of the original compositions by my band Command Your Street. Video was recorded fresh off our June 14 gig at Amos Cafe, Kamias. Hope you enjoy! More after the jump.

The Piscean and the Sea

Summer is not summer unless there is beach involved.

Finally, after two years of not feeling the waves crash upon my legs and feet, I went back to the sea. It wasn't easy to come near the beach at those years, as I have worked abroad for a long time and travel wasn't much given a chance. So right then after I arrived back in the country, I immediately planned out how to get to the nearest sea to swim in. See how water-deprived this Fish was? Haha. But that didn't work out either, and I have to wait for a month to finally able to swim. The opportunity opened up when a Bicol trip was planned.

It was amazing. I haven't been to Bicol for about six years, so this travel was like a shot on two chances. I spent more than a week there, enjoying the current festival for Mayon in Albay, and then then going for a boat-ride and island hopping at the tip of Luzon in Sorsogon. I was also inspired enough to capture every moment in my camera. (That video posted up there says it all.) Definitely one good summer story.

Let the Fire bounce

He’ll eat you with his beats, and drown you with his rapid lyrics. And that will feel good.

Presenting the second single from LEO37, one of my top followed artists on the web (since I can’t watch his show live), from his upcoming EP. He’s back with some electrifying-con-jazzy words and sounds, things that has caught my attention since hearing his song Icarus and Morning. This fascination I once wrote on a blog post last year. Now with Fire Dance, he brings back the same energy, something that will fascinate your ear if you’re not a usual listener to his genre. But hey, it’s all good, it’s all cool, and moments later you’ll never know that you’ll be head-bobbing to his music. That’s how this song reached me after I fed it into my system.

Not your ordinary cosplay: Awesome fan-made short films

We’ve seen a lot of popular comics and cartoons these days turned into big budgeted live-action movies by Hollywood. Examples are of course the upcoming movie of the Avengers, Transformers, Superman and a whole lot more. Not anymore strange, since television in the 60’s had been already showing series about the Green Hornet and Batman. Also is a typical scenario in Japan, where the sequence begins with stories in manga form, turned into anime and lastly played in live form by local actors (Death Note, Beck, Sailormoon to name a few).

However, one can find greater delight in watching movies made by hardcore fans themselves. Not just the typical cosplayers on conventions doing a specific scene or portraying their character’s signature moves. I’m talking about fans (or a whole mob of them) who used their talents to create breathtaking independent short films based on their favourite cartoons or games. Watching their works can make you sense their passion and eagerness to bring into life the icons that are part of their lives. Even better, they spark more inspiration to their fellow fans.

I’ve picked out the best independent live action short films uploaded over the Internet. Thanks to YouTube, their works can be seen online and is going viral already, reaching other fans across the globe.



Naruto Shippuden: Dreamer's Fight (created by RivenX3i)

This is video that sparked the interest to write this article. It is just spectacular. At first I thought it was just centered on drama between Rock Lee and Naruto. But after the opening dialogues, and the fighting scene comes in, it just took my breath away. Brilliant martial arts sequence, superb camera angles, and special effects staying true to the anime style. And hey, that Rock Lee actor's really got the moves of Bushy Brows! Since the title says Part 1, expect more Naruto movies from the creators of this one.

Hungry for more? Check out more fan-made videos after the cut!

Mistress of Art: DAKIE SEGURA

Ever get that feeling of seeing artworks over the Internet so polished and neatly done, you think the artists behind them are already gods? Then and now, I still get excited seeing these fantastic artworks, even if I know a lot of my friends are on that kind of artistic level already. One of them I know is Darlene Segura, our featured artist for this edition of Mistress of Art, and even by staying simple, she can rock your world through her creative prowess.

I’ve known Darlene, or commonly known as Dakie to her friends, since around 5 years ago. We met online through the deviantArt community chat, she being a moderator for an all-Filipino chatroom and I was a beginner in the dA world. I then began visiting her exhibits and became friends, sharing interest not just on art but with music and other things. I’ve always considered her works as cute and colourful.  Or moreover, having a lot of that fantasy flavour. The characters on each of her creations are eye-candies for both kids and adults.

Dakie is not just an artist with a talent; rather, she has this large passion for almost anything creative: from simple doodles and graphic designs to photography to art with advocacies. She already has a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts in Advertising, and has worked, exhibited and did a lot of art gigs after college, but still, she pursues on discovering and going beyond her limit. Dakie is currently on her last year being a student again and completing her thesis in Multimedia Arts. If she can excite you with her vector works, wait till you get to see her traditional ones, being a skilled user of the watercolour medium. All I can see for her is a bright future ahead, full of more wonderful stuff akin to her wonderful works.

Presented here are some of her works I’ve personally picked from her dA account. Be sure to check out her other portfolios for more creative pieces!

Bakit kaya ang hirap magsulat sa sariling wika?

image via Philboxing.com

Bakit ang hirap magsulat sa Tagalog?

Ilang linggo kong pinag-isipan kung ano ang sunod kong ilalagay sa blog na to. Nagkataon kasi na dahil buwan ng Agosto ngayon, at kung huli ka na sa balita, ay Buwan rin ng Wika, at napagkasunduan na sa Filipino nakasulat ang mga ilalagay na post. Kaya para sakin, nadalian lang ako. Tagalog, diba? Sariling wika. Madaling magsulat gamit ang sariling wika.

Yun nga lang, mali pala ako. Inabot ako ng lagpas ng tatlong linggo kaka-isip ng magiging topic ng isusulat ko. At nang maka-isip nga, parang hindi ko masyadong ma-isulat sa Tagalog. Para bang masyado na akong nag-iisip ng Ingles kaya ngayon di ko mailabas sa sarili kong wika ang gusto kong sabihin.

Kahit ngayon, nahihirapan pa rin akong buuin ang artikulong ito. Masyado akong nag-aalala. Tama ba ang ginagawa ko? Ewan. Teka ano nga ba ang gusto kong sabihin?

Bakit ang hirap magsulat sa Tagalog?

O siguro kulang lang ako sa praktis. Sa tingin ko rin, hindi lang ako ang nagkakaganito. Malamang marami rin ang dumadaan sa ganitong pagsubok. Nung bata pa ko, madali lang magsulat pag sinabi ng guro ng Filipino. Sus, kayang kaya. Pero ngayon, patay. Mukhang babagsak ako sa asignatura. Kasi naman, sa kakaisip ko at kakawika sa Ingles, natabunan ang pagiging natural na Filipino-speaking ko. Or writer. Minsan din kasi kapag sinabi sakin na magsulat ako sa sariling wika, hindi ko alam kung papano. “Pwede po bang pagsalitain nyo na lang ako?” Isa pang nagiging problema kapag nagsusulat ako sa wikang Tagalog, di ko maiwasang gumamit ng malalim na mga salita. Dahil pa sa tubong Batangas ako at ang pag-bigkas at pagwika namin doon ay talaga namang kalalim, ah ah. Kapag nagsimula akong magsulat ay mga malalalim na salita ang mailalagay ko, na kahit sarili ko’y hindi ko maiintindihan. Kaya rin siguro marami ang nawili nang lumabas ang mga libro ni Bob Ong dahil bukod sa nakakatawa ito ay simple lang ang mga nakalagay na salita. Hindi pang-zarzuela level. Pero papano na siguro sa hinaharap? Mawawala kaya ang pagkalalim ng mga salita natin? Hindi naman siguro. Marami pa rin ang magtatanggol para mabuhay ito.

Mistress of Art: MAI EVANGELISTA

For avid Internet users, everyday would be like an unexpected treasure hunt. In my case, I have this habit of clicking anything worth viewing, mainly on the art section. I check on various images on a lot of websites to start the morning and to inspire me to be creative throughout the day (mostly haha). Good thing Tumblr was invented, because it was the best site to keep track on a lot of creative people on the web, much less to discover pure Filipino artists as well. And there I discovered the first to be featured on this Mistress of Art topic. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the pop-fazed wonderful artworks of Mai Evangelista.

To be honest, I have zero knowledge about the artist. When I landed upon her Tumblr blog, I just let the images do the talking. I was mesmerized, so to speak. I’ve seen quite a few artists from my country with this caliber of talent and creativity, and her works are just as inspiring as it can be. It’s vector art but not just plain vector art. Viewers and visitors can really see the details and effort on each piece. I myself find stories on most of her works. Mai Evangelista sometimes includes vignettes about how she made or what was the inspiration behind a piece. I guess that’s how she captures a lot of audience and inspire them. Simple yet elegant artworks.

So as I said earlier, let the images do the talking. Here are more of her works.