An afternoon at the Central Public Pier 中環公眾碼頭光與影

After attending a workshop this morning, I walked to the Central Public Pier and did a sketch of the harbour.  Instead of just sketching the harbour,  the intriguing shadows cast on the ground and on the pillars caught me and hence they are included in the sketch.

我早上完成一工作坊後，行咗去中環公眾碼頭畫維港。下午時碼頭斜陽與影縱橫交錯，很好看，便順便畫入畫中。

Good Afternoon Sai Kung 西貢午安！

I stayed at a coffee shop in Sai Kung Old Town yesterday afternoon sketching the street scene.   Since the panorama sketch was quite complicated, it took me the whole afternoon to get it done.

昨日下午係西貢舊墟一間咖啡點邊畫邊嘆熱茶同三文治，一畫就一個下午。

Sketching Trams in Central 中環畫電車

The trams and the cables above them have witnessed the many changes in Hong Kong for more than a century!  Finally,  I found the perfect spot to sketch them!  I went to Central and found this perfect spot opposite the old Bank of China Building to sketch them.  The winding road and the web-like cables overhead make a very interesting composition for a panorama sketch and so I settled down and spent an afternoon sketching the scene.   

電車同穿梭半空的電纜培伴香港已超過一個世紀，今次終於揾到合適地方去捕捉它們。舊中銀對面遮打花園正是畫電車同半空蜘蛛網狀電纜的好地方。


維基百科:
1904年初，電車車身以組件形式由英國運抵香港裝嵌。首批電車共有26輛，分別為10輛頭等及16輛三等，全部為單層設計。電車原擬分為三等，後來為方便運作只設頭等和三等。頭等電車頭尾部分採用開放式設計，中間則是密封，每邊設有兩行長椅，可載客32人，收費每位一角。三等電車採用全開放式設計，設有6排背對背長椅，可載客48人，收費每位五仙。

1904年7月2日，有電車首次駛離車廠作試驗性行駛。經過隨後多日的測試後，香港電車終於在同年7月30日啟用。

A Hongkongese in Taipei : Sketching Beitou 港人畫台北 : 速寫北投

Thanks to Carton and friends from Urban Sketchers Taipei,  I had a very happy sketch day in Beitou and visited a few interesting spots in the area.  The first place we sketched was the Beitou Public Library, a wooden structure that stands next to the hot spring river.  I was really drawn to the interior of the library so I decided to stay inside and made a sketch out of it.  During lunch, we shared our sketches and talked about different techniques and styles.  Carton, the leader of the Taipei sketch group, even demonstrated to us his quick sketch method.  After lunch, we visited the Beitou Hot Spring Museum, formerly a Japanese bathhouse and I chose to sketch in the balcony of the museum afterwards. 

感謝Carton同「速寫台北」的朋友帶我遊北投同一齊速寫。早上先到北投圖書館。此館主要用木材建成，依河而建，無論內外都很有歐陸風格。我特別喜歡館內的環景，於是就留在館內速寫。午飯時大家分享作品，品評切蹉，Carton還示範一筆畫一畫！之後前往原為日本溫泉浴室的北投溫泉博物館參觀，我並在二樓露台上速寫。

Retro Ladder Street 復古樓梯街

Retro Ladder Street
Oil and Acrylic on Canvas

The painting is based on an old photo of Ladder Street.  I really like the clothes that the people were wearing which were either white or black which unified the image so well.  A deliberate blue tone  was added to the painting so as to create a cool jazzy feeling to it.  It's also quite a challenge and a lot of fun to paint so many people in one painting.   While painting each one of them, I was like going back in time, trying to think and feel what each person's life was like. 

復古樓梯街
油彩，塑膠彩畫布

此畫是根據舊照片畫的。地點是樓梯街。大概是當時其他色彩的布料昂貴吧，畫中人物衣服都是非黑即白。如此黑白配襯，畫面又特別好看。繪畫時我刻意加上藍調，給整張畫一種冷的感覺。還有刻畫每一個人時，好像時光倒流，猜想他們每一個當時究竟過著怎樣的生活。



Painting the under layer.
畫緊張畫的底層。

A Hongkongese in Taipei : Song Shan Cultural Park and Taipei Dome in Construction 港人畫台北 : 松山文創園與興建中的台北大巨蛋

It's my first time to visit Song Shan Cultural Park.  The old complex I drew which was one of the two old main buildings was built in 1939 and was originally a cigarette factory.   It stopped operation in 1998 and was finally converted into a cultural park in 2010. 

After a nice walk around the park, I settled in the inner courtyard (Baroque Garden) of the old complex and started to sketch.  I really found the juxtaposition of the Taipei Dome in construction and the old building in front of it a very interesting sight to sketch.  

松山文創園原本是松山菸廠。廠房建於1939年並於1998年停產。2010年轉型為松山文創園。

遊覽完畢，選了舊建築內園「巴洛克花園」速寫。後方建築中的台北大巨蛋同園內舊建築相影成趣。

A Hongkongese in Taipei: Si Si Nan Village 港人畫台北 : 四四南村

Heard that Si Si Nan Village has become a hip art venue so I decided to go there to have a look on the first day in Taipei.  It was already quite late when I arrived at the village and sadly the village was closed as it was under renovation.  To waste no time, I climbed up a berm next to the village and sketched the outside of the village together with Taipei 101 as backdrop. 

首日遊台北，聽說四四南村係新興文藝村，便到村一遊。可惜四四南村正在維修，暫停開放，唯有係村側一草丘上速寫村外景色，順便畫埋台北101。