Wenlin's Blog

My roommate NM moved out this morning. I’m taking his room, which is 30 ft^2 larger than my current one.

I looked at the empty room with nothing inside, but a large bay window, framing the view of a playground w/ palm trees and top of the Bay Bridge in a distance. It gave me a refreshing breezy feeling. CN and I repainted the room with four different colors, because I don’t want to be “color-ist” in a way that discriminates towards colors. Lemon, pumpkin, bright pink, and purple! They don’t quite work in harmony. I had to unlearn everything I learned about color theory in arch school to make such bald decision. Yet the eccentric color combination reminded me of a child’s painting, without wanting to have mastery of technical knowledge.

A child pours out, onto the canvas, very precious things, her innocence and zeal. I really admire a child’s relation to his/her artwork is so pure and joyful. They are not referencing themselves to pop/high art, or other cultural precedents, which often turn people into self-critics and take them away from truly experiencing art making itself…

I want to draw like a kid again, with pure joy! Tonight, while painting my room, such a simple act, I found that feeling! It was like finding the hidden treasure I hid when I was a little girl that I forgot about.

Empty space, sometimes, is a great thing. It invites one’s imagination of what it can be instead of what it was. A place to meditate. A room of my own.

The rain is so beautiful tonight.

I am very happy how this simple moment got captured in comic form!

My Comic Life #2

I feel taken care of, thankful and peaceful

I drew this illustration, responding to a prop “What Have I Gained” at the open workshop that I go to at UCSF on Weds. Art making on Wednesdays has been a very meditative and spiritually uplifting experience for me. I feel safe and comfortable among a creative community, sharing ourselves with one another.

As I closed my eyes, a sense of being grounded, and warm feeling rose in my chest.
I felt at peace, quietly happy, and connected.
And this image was what I saw with my mind’s eyes.

I appreciate you being in my life!

Comics about the simple moments in life

As a child, I wanted to be a cartoonist, because drawing gives me a lot of joy. I remember, during the pre-Play Station and Nintendo era of my childhood, it was reading and drawing comics (plus eating watermelons) helped me survive the notorious hot summers in Wuhan. I used to draw comics based on events happened around my friends and me. “Cartoonizing” moments of life has given me a unique perspective on life, people and events – simultaneously living fully within the social context, and also observing life as an outsider.

I like comics, not only because of its artistic expressions, but also, the spirit it reminds me – never lose the ability to laugh at oneself; it’s about having a sense of humor that makes us laugh, and often, even on those days that we seem to have no reasons to be cheerful…

I haven’t had a chance to draw comics for at least 10 years. I had a bit of a drawer’s block. Thanks for the encouragement and support from many great people, now I’m picking up my childhood passion. I’ve started my very first visual diary since the end of March. I’ve been sketching comics almost every day. But I’ll choose only one of them per week to update on the website. You will see the 2nd Comic in a week.

Keeping a visual journal makes me more reflective and perceptive about the details of my experience. Every day is different: our personal experiences are shaped by our social interactions, and observations of the physical, cultural, and political environment. Sometimes, there’s a punch line or two. Sometimes, I just honestly keep track of the conversations and actions of myself and people in my life. Hopefully, collectively, they will become more vivid portraits of the individuals that are growing, evolving with time.

(I hope I can keep this up for at least a year. Jia you to myself!)