3. The Fatty Mona Lisa - Fernando Botero

This was a fun assignment to do and I’ll explain why.
Firstly, it’s a painting of a famous piece by Fernando Botero which my client saw in a magazine. Secondly, it’s a fatty version of the Mona Lisa!

I started by painting the whole canvas black and leave it overnight to dry.

Subsequently, I drew the outline of the figure using white acrylic paint and a fine brush (I don’t really worry about making mistakes because I can easily wash out the color with water, provided I do it quickly because acrylic is a fast drying medium).

After that I layer in the different skin tones and...

… give the face detailing.

The easiest part is painting the background and the dress.

And then it’s done!



This is the finished painting, ready to be delivered to the client.

Although it’s fairly realistic, my approach was to be more stylized and caricature.

When the client saw the painting, she was very happy and satisfied with it. Cheers ^_^

My Apprentice – HappyCloud!

I’m constantly amazed by my student’s vision and creativity!

One such student is Gan Le Yin.

After seeing my painting of the Fatty Mona Lisa, she was determined to paint one for herself.

She completed it in 2 lessons and as you can see – it’s fairly good!
Her Fatty Mona Lisa is for sale at RM100 – for anyone interested! :p

2. The making of an ArtWhiz Masterpiece

Ever wondered how a Fine Art Masterpiece was produced?
Come into my studio for an inside view of my painting secrets…

I was approached to do a 4.5 x 3 feet acrylic painting on canvas.
The client requested a painting of a bold lion surrounded by 4 wolves to activate good feng shui…

I did a rough sketch which the client approved and quickly proceeded to pencil in the general outline of the image on canvas.

Once the penciled image is to my liking, I start painting the lion first. Some painters paint broadly first, putting in background colors before going into anything specific or fine tuning.

I work intuitively and don’t really think too much about what I’m doing.

Usually, I’ll start with the dominant features that stand out and attract the viewer's attention first (in this case – the lion).

Once the lion is completed, I start painting the wolves. A fine brush is needed for painting the fur and detail.

I use Daler-Rowney System 3 acrylic exclusively now for all my fine art because I like the vibrant color it achieves.

Now for the finishing touches…time to paint the landscape!

Usually, I’ll let the piece sit for a day or so and then come back to review it just to ensure I haven’t overlooked any details.

As a final step, I apply a gloss varnish to protect the finished art and give it a nice shine.
And with that, the painting’s complete! ^_^

1. Welcome to my humble Home! ^_^

Does this look like a kindergarten to you or more like a very big storybook page?
Actually, it’s my living room. I’ve always told my wife Shirley that I wanted to paint on the walls but I never really got down to making it happen till now!

Transforming my home into a ‘magical wonderland’ took less than 1 month and it was completed before Chinese New Year this year.
(Click on the pic for a bigger view)

For those of you wondering what an artist’s home looks like – there you go!
(Click on the pic for a bigger view)

This is the Big Magical Tree. Whenever I am having my dinner, it feels like I am having a picnic under a big tree.

This is my personal favorite. I call it the secret garden…actually it’s just the entrance to my studio. I do all my design work and painting in there.
Can you spot the rabbit?

“And in the middle of the forest stood the witch’s gingerbread house…” just kidding.

This piece is Shirley’s favorite. It reminds us of our trip to Eastern Europe.

Won’t it be cool if I could just take a walk through the woods to visit that mansion?