The past few weeks have been a whirlwind! I’m thrilled about Fodder School 5 and the Fodder Challenge 2025 as I step into my role as a teacher for both—an exciting mix of celebration and new beginnings. On the home front, my daughter is back in the UK for university, and my son will be leaving soon, too. These transitions make our shared moments—meals, chats, and quiet time—feel extra precious. Amid Shanghai’s relentless heat, I’ve been finding small pockets for painting and collaging to stay grounded. It’s been a rich, challenging summer—how’s yours going? Keep an eye on your inbox, because our newsletter is going out soon with a little…
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My last post was on December 12; somehow, time just blurred—it’s already early May! I had many things I hoped to share, but life got busy, and priorities had to shift. Sadly, this blog ended up near the bottom of the list. The first few months of the year—January, February, and March—were packed. Most weekends, I doubled down on spending time at home recording and editing lessons for an upcoming class. More on that soon! It was an intense process, but once everything was completed, I felt a massive sense of relief—and excitement. I poured my heart into those lessons and can’t wait to see how students respond. Before I…
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The past two months have been a whirlwind of significant life events, including graduation and university preparations. The journey involved challenges but also moments of gratitude, connection, and reflection, documented through sketches and memories shared on Instagram.
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My twins graduated from high school at the end of May, marking the culmination of a rollercoaster ride over the past few months. It has been a mix of joy and sadness as we celebrated the end of high school life and looked ahead to the next journey, which involves preparing for university, new experiences, and exciting opportunities. Between preparing for the rigors of the IB exams, attending the last few school activities, and managing the erratic schedules as the “finish line” loomed, it’s been a challenging time for everyone. Time seemed to fly by; before I knew it, it was graduation day. I couldn’t help but tear up when…
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I bought this fantastic kit from a Chinese indie seller I found on Red Book (Xiao Hong Shu). Fortunately, it arrived before the holidays. I figured this would be great to send to family and friends and include in my swap mails all year long. So before the Spring Festival, I printed a few of this stunning Qilin on delicate rice paper. 🐉✨ Qilin, a revered mythical creature in Chinese culture, is often depicted as a majestic blend of a deer, dragon, horse, and lion—a symbol of good fortune, prosperity, and wisdom. According to legend, it can tread grass without a trace and even breathe fire! 🔥 In Chinese mythology,…
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Let's take a moment to pause and truly notice what surrounds us this November. What are we grateful for in this very moment? Together with Lea, let's embark on a journey of journaling.
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Lots going on all around between my tweens going off to uni next year, still grieving for my mum’s passing, treading water through this economic downturn, to finding enough time in between to make art. Through all these, I’m reminding myself my OLW (one little word) for 2023… Breathe. Life is an adventure.
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The recently concluded Drawing Shanghai exhibit showcasing select sketches of Shanghai’s local life that is slowly vanishing as the city is rapidly modernizing and “upgrading” the standard of living of locals. Soon, longtangs or communities that are quintessential Shanghai will be long gone. We hoped with this exhibit we can at least immortalize the local lifestyle through our sketches. “A picture is worth a thousand words.” Thank you for stopping by.
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Indulge me a little with this post as I walk down memory lane… I’m reminiscing about the 6 months I spent in Tianjin, China, as a student. This was back in 1994 when China was not open and as modernized as now. Much to my dad’s anger, I enrolled myself in the Spring semester of Traditional Chinese Painting at the Nankai University’s East China Art College, which had opened under the guidance of the famous contemporary Chinese painter Fan Zeng. I was the first foreign student they had ever accepted and was placed with the senior class because that semester, the curriculum was best suited for a “newbie” like me.…
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What can I say? December turned out so completely different from what I had envisioned to be and what I had hoped it to be. Things that were part of our everyday almost since 2020 like scanning QR codes, PCR testing at least every 72 hrs, checking of green codes in public places and other restrictions, were suddenly lifted. Suddenly, the COVID virus spread like wildfire and once again, Shanghai buckled down from COVID infections, everything (at least almost everything) went upside down fast. I was feeling like another lockdown (like what happened in March/April of 2022) was happening as the city suddenly went silent by mid-December. Schools had already…
