Bush Flowers from the Jungle of West Papua

Here are small flowers that I saw in the bush while walking with some European tourists in the jungle. As a tourist guide, I often run rainforest tours for visitors who are interested in seeing flowers, butterflies, birds, beetles, and unique plants.

Bush Flowers from in the forest of West Papua

The duration of the rainforest tours is between 3 to 4 days with visitors staying in tents or huts in the jungle. The most favorite destination for tourists is Klasow valley located in the east of Sorong regency. There are wild flowers in the jungle, especially orchids, but there are also flowers that were planted by the villagers.

Visitors can watch birds such as sulphur crested cockatoo, Lesser Birds of Paradise (Paradisaea minor), Pinon Imperial Pigeon (Ducula pinon) hornbills (Rhyticeros plicatus), Large Fig Parrot, and a lot more.
At night, visitors can join with me on a night walk to see wallaby. It is a kind of kangaroo but has got smaller body.

Rainforest Flower Framed Art Print

In addition to birds and wallaby, the tropical rainforest of Klasow valley is the natural habitat of a lot of species of butterflies, some that I know are Blue Mountain Swallowtail (Papilio ulysses), Meadow Argus (Junonia villida), and Cruiser Butterfly (Vindula arsinoe) and Birdwing butterfly (Ornithoptera priamus).

If you are interested in taking rainforest tour in Klasow valley and need me as your guide, please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com.

I will be happy to organize your trip and guide you into the jungle.

Digital Illustration of Rainforest Flower

I often go to the rainforest in West Papua to guide tourists for 3 to 5 days to watch birds and other wild animals. I also saw various species tropical rainforest flowers which I could not identify their species names. One of them is shown below.

I created the digital illustration of the flower using Freehand MX, a vector drawing software from Macromedia which is now in the hands of Adobe. Unfortunately, it not updated anymore.
I use Inkscape to create my vector illustration. It is powerful and free. But now I prefer to create digital artworks on my Samsung Galaxy Tab A with Sketchbook Pro as choice for drawing application.
You could by my artwork above in the form of silver plated necklace, teapot, keychain, t-shirt or mugs by clicking the following product links:

Tropical Rainforest Flower Silver Plated Necklace
by tropicalart

Tropical Rainforest Flower
by tropicalart

Purple Flower

I have just finished my newest drawing tonight about two purple flowers that I often saw while walking around my neighborhood. Because their sizes are small, they are not considered as important as roses whose plants are higher.
People here may also consider this flower plant as grass.
However, I believe that they are so beautiful especially if I make a drawing of the flowers using my Samsung Tab A with S-pen. I used Autodesk Sketchbook to make it. I am happy to see the result. I hope that you also like this digital artwork.
Well, I often see the flowers when I guide European and American tourists in the jungle of Tambrauw mountains. During the tour, we see birds such as sulphur crested cockatoo, hornbills, frigate birds, eclectus parrot. We see unique bush flowers, orchids and plants of the tropical forest. We also swim in the fresh water river and build tents deep in the jungle.
I still do not know the species name of this flower plant. If you know it, please, contact me by e-mail to: peace4wp@gmail.com. Or if you are interested in taking rainforest tour in West Papua, particularly in Arfak mountains, Tambrauw mountains or Klasow valley, you can also send email me.
If you like the flowers, you could buy them in my zazzle store as a T-shirt by clicking the following link:

Purple Grass Flowers T-Shirt
by tropicalart

Drinking Nectar

Drinking Nectar

Here is a sketch of butterfly and hibiscus flower that I have just created while waiting for boarding time at Rendani Airport of Manokwari city. I was going to Sorong city by Sriwijaya Air. According to the schedule, the plane would leave at 9.30. So, I pulled the stylus pen of my tablet and started to draw.
I had not finished when the call for boarding came out of the loudspeaker in the waiting room.
When I was inside the plane, I still continued drawing this sketch but as the stewardesses started to demonstrate how to use lifejacket, I turned off my tablet and fastened my seat belt.
The flight duration between Manokwari and Sorong was 40 minutes. Shortly after I came out of the passenger terminal in Sorong city, I did not leave the airport. I decided to continue my drawing at a seat outside the building.
Now, it is ready as you can see the Butterfly (perhaps Ornitopthera priamus) and Red Hibiscus Flower on this post.
I saw the butterfly when I was guiding a British tourist who wanted to see tropical flowers in the rainforest of Manokwari. I guided her into the jungle of Arfak mountains to see orchids, and rhododendron flowers. She took a lot of pictures of the flowers for one week before flying back to her country - the United Kingdom.
Well, if you are interested in traveling to Manokwari to see flowers in the coastal areas and in Arfak mountains, and need me as your guide, please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com

You could order the following jacket or mug with above drawing by pressing the following images:

Red Hibiscus and Ornitopthera Butterfly Jacket
by tropicalart

Ornitopthera Butterfly and Hibiscus Flower Coffee Mug
by tropicalart

Anggi Lakes of Arfak Mountains

Lake Anggi Giji

In my previous sketch about the Traditional House of Arfak Tribes, I said that I visited Anggi Lakes. They were very beautiful. Perhaps, you want to know they look like. Well, Google could help you find them.
I have just finished a sketch of one of the two lakes. Its name is Lake Anggi Giji or Lake Man. I stayed there for a few nights in the traditional houses of Sougb tribe. They were very friendly to me and my friends. It was very cold over there. And there were a lot of colorful flowers along the shores of the lakes as well as on top of the mountains that surround the lakes.
If you are interested in visiting the lakes and need me as your guide, please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com

A Nearly Empty Bottle of Chilli Sauce

Chilli Sauce

I visited a cafe in the downtown this afternoon. I did not have a cup of coffee though. I had a place of rice and a bowl of chicken soup locally called soto. It was delicious especially if it was added with some chilli sauce. Soto is famous in Indonesia. The chicken soup is cooked with turmeric. That's why the soup has got yellow colour.
The focus of my drawing that lunch time was not the soto but the chilli sauce. If you visit most of Indonesian eating houses, you will see a bottle or a small bowl of chilli sauce on every table. Indonesian people like chilli sauce.
When the worker of the cafe brought my soto chicken soup, he also brought a very small plate of freshly fried chilly sauce.
There was one bottle of chilli sauce on the table (it was nearly empty but was more than enough additional ingredients for 5 to 7 people's lunch). Still the waiter of the cafe gave me a small saucer of chilly sauce.
While my soto was being prepared in the kitchen of the cafe, I spent my time drawing the nearly empty bottle of the chilli sauce. Every body knows that it is hot. Well, there was the word "delicious" printed on it.
Well, the soto was getting colder.  Bon Appetit.

Traditional House of tribes from Arfak Range

Rumah Kaki Seribu

I spent 5 days in Arfak mountains last week visiting some villages around Anggi lakes. The scenery was very beautiful. I also went hiking in the tops of Mount Kobrey and Mount Sensenemes. There were a lot of species of high altitude flowers including Anggi gladiol, nepenthes, rhododendrons, orchids, ants nests. During the tour, I stayed in the houses of the indigenous people called Rumah Kaki Seribu. Local people burned firewood to keep the room warm. Unfortunately, their houses did not have chimneys. I could not stand the smokes that filled in the whole spaces of the house.
I like the trip in Arfak mountains. It was a nice adventure. I hope to be back soon.

Male Lesser Birds of Paradise

Male Lesser Birds of Paradise

I bought a Samsung Galaxy Tab A last week. It has got an S-Pen which I could use for drawing or digital painting. After making some sketches of basic shapes, I decided to draw a bird. I used Autodesk Sketchbook free edition to create the drawing.
I haven't bought the professional version of the application but I feel that the free edition is powerful enough to create complex drawings. The bird that you see in this post is called male Lesser Birds of Paradise (Paradisaea minor). It lives in the jungle of New Guinea particularly in the lowland and lower montane forests. Local people call it Burung Cendrawasih or Burung Kuning. Male birds are usually active in the mornings and in the afternoons. They compete one another to attract female birds for mating.
Paradise birds have been hunted since hundreds of years ago for their beautiful feather. It is important for us to protect them so that they will not extinct from their natural habitat. 

Sand Castle

Here is another drawing that I made in 2004. I shows how a boy was building a sand castle by the beach. He concentrated all this intelligent to build the castle. Playing with sand at the beach is fun. I used to do the same thing as the boy. I still go to the beach to swim and to enjoy free diving. I used watercolor and an A4 size white paper to make the painting.

Building Sandcastle

It is important to keep our sea clean so that no more plastic bottles will land at the beach. Let our children play at the beach that is free from wastes. Also, fishermen will be able to catch more healthy fish.
I also have created a lot of artworks that are available for anybody to purchase in zazzle store. Some of them are listed below:

Bird Knitting Nest Adult Apron
by tropicalart

Paradise Bird T-Shirt
by tropicalart

Arm Wrestling

This is an old drawing of mine that depicts a father and a son were playing Arm Wrestling. Actually its real title is "David Against Dad." I made this drawing in 2004 when I was still living in Malang city of East Java. I think I used colored pencil manufactured by Faber Castell and created the artwork on an A4 size drawing paper.

I still have the original drawing. So, if you are interested in buying it, you can send me an email.

Reclining Nude Siesta

This is my drawing entitled Reclining Nude Siesta that I created using charcoal pencil. This black and white drawing was made two years ago and I began studying how to sketch using charcoal. This media was similar to graphite pencil but darker.

Reclining Nude Siesta now available in Redbubble store

I did this figure drawing study to improve my skill in sketching human figure. It was not a perfect artwork but I was satisfied with the result.
I feel that I need to practice drawing more human figures until I feel that the result of my drawing is well balanced if not 100 percent perfect. We see people everywhere. If I make mistakes in drawing an arm, people can easily recognize it.
If you want to give comments or suggestions, send your message to my email: leororing@gmail.com

Bush Flowers T-Shirt
by tropicalart

Paradise Bird T-Shirt
by tropicalart

Nude Lady by Waterfall

Here is another watercolor painting of mine a Nude Lady by Waterfall. I made it in 2004 when I was still living in Malang city of East Java. I have just bought a set of watercolour pencils from Derwent. These high quality art materials are imported products from the United Kingdom. I made the painting on Canson paper. I think it was from France.

Every artist knows that drawing or painting human figure is one of the most difficult subjects in visual art. 

Even though I have practiced drawing human figure for years, I still feel that it is definitely a difficult subject. Human being has got standard proportions that every artist has to follow but every person is unique. One is fat but another is slim. Some are short but the others are tall. Even an experienced artist still needs to see a model when he or she wants to draw someone with accurate details. So, I consider this artwork as a drawing and painting practice. In my opinion, it is not perfect.

Green Snake in Dark Night Watercolor on Paper

Here is an old watercolor painting of mine. I made it in 2004 when I was still living in Malang city of East Java province of Indonesia. I made this painting based on a photograph that I saw in the internet. The artwork was created using Maries Watercolor which is a product from China.

I think I have to show the artwork here because it was one of the few paintings that I made while living in Java. I spent approximately three and a half years in the city whose atmosphere was quite cool. I don't know when I will be able to visit that city again.

Charcoal Sketch of a Nude Lady

I have just finished reviewing my external hard-disk. It contains files that I copied from my old computer. When I was looking at the files, I found a drawing of a nude lady who was kneeling on the bed. I made this sketch in 2012 after buying a charcoal pencil. To test the pencil, I made some sketches of human figures, palms, moth, birds, eyes, human heads and this nude lady. I also created another drawing of a nude lady in reclining position. All artists know human figures are the most difficult subjects to draw.

I like using charcoal pencil because it gives me strong and darker lines on the paper. But it leaves black smudges on my palm. It is an important lesson for me when using charcoal pencil. Next time, when I make a drawing or sketch with this media, I have to cover the drawing paper with a piece of clean paper to protect my palm or fingers from direct contact with my sketch.
By the way I lost the original drawing of this nude lady. I don't know where it is now. It is not in my sketchbook. Perhaps, it was drawn on loose paper. I hope that I can find it again, one day.

Please, support this blog by buying some of my artworks in the form of printed products such as t-shirts, bags , pillow, or smart phone cases at the following link: portfolio - thank you.

Dolphins Jumping out of the Waves

As a tourist guide, I often travel by boat when I accompany my guests. We usually enjoy snorkeling in Raja Ampat, Numfor island or Mansinam island. Sometimes, during the trip, I and the tourists see dolphins when we are in the middle of the sea. They like to swim very close to the boat particularly when it moves at faster speed at sea. Dolphins like to jump beside and in front of the hull. It is a great attraction when watching these beautiful fish.
Click the picture below to see my portfolio in Redbubble store.

Dolphins Jumping out of the Water

Actually I made this drawing above long ago. I used charcoal pencil and drew the Dolphins Jumping out of the Waves on my Sketchbook. The sketch is still a black and white artwork. But I was thinking of enhancing its look by giving colors. Since the sketch was done on thin paper, adding colors using watercolor media may cause some damages on the paper. So, I decided to process the drawing in digital format. After taking picture of the sketch, I opened it in Adobe Photoshop where I added some dark and light blue on the waves. I also added more lines that depict the contour of the waves. Now the drawing looks better than the original black and white sketch.

Papuan Hornbills

I often make a drawing study about birds, flowers and human figures. The following picture is a sketch of Papuan hornbills (Rhyticeros plicatus) that I saw when I visited District Kais in the southern region of Sorong. These big birds were considered by local people as the Symbol of True Love.

a sketch of Papuan Hornbills (Rhyticeros plicatus) - charcoal on paper

To make this drawing I used charcoal pencil. It gave me darker color. But later before uploading it into this blog, I did some processing in Adobe Photoshop to add some colors on the heads of the birds. Blyth's hornbills can be seen not only in New Guinea but also in the surrounding region and islands in the South Pacific.
If you are interested in taking birdwatching tour in Klasow valley of Sorong regency of West Papua province - Indonesia, just contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com
The above sketch is now available as t-shirt and many other products in zazzle store:

Papuan Hornbill Birds T-shirt by tropicalart

The Silky Owl Butterfly (Taenaris catops)

Here is the vector graphic illustration of The Silky Owl butterfly (Taenaris catops) that I made using Macromedia Freehand MX. It was the time when I was learning how to create vector drawing digitally. Macromedia Freehand MX is a powerful software. Unfortunately, after Adobe bought it from Macromedia it has not been updated. The latest Mac operating system cannot run it. Fortunately, the latest Windows can run the application.
I often see the butterfly and other beautiful insects when I guide tourists on a rainforest trekking and camping tour in the jungle of West Papua.

2-Eyed Butterfly T-shirt by tropicalart

Now the digital drawing is available as prints on various products in my zazzle tropical store including t-shirts, cell phone cases, and mugs.

Pink Orchid Flowers

This is the watercolor painting of orchid flowers that I saw in Raja Ampat. I don't know its species name. I just enjoy drawing the flowers.

Orchid Flower

There are a lot of flowers in the jungle of West Papua. Some of them are Glory Vine (Faradaya Splendida), Terrestrial Orchids (Spathoglottis plicata), and Cananga or Ylang-ylang.

When I guide tourists on a trekking trip in the jungle of Arfak mountains or Klasow valley, I often see flowers in tall trees. Birds and butterflies like to gather in those trees to eat or collect the nectar.
Besides making the watercolor artwork above, I also made the vector graphic version of the pink orchids using Inkscape. Creating a vector illustration is not as intuitive as drawing on a paper or painting on a canvas. However, the advantages of having a transparent background and the ability to export to png file in any size are two things which digital printing companies such as zazzle or redbubble need from our artworks.
As a matter of fact, it was my first experience using Inkscape. Now, it is available in my Tropical Art store on various products from T-shirts, to mugs and spiral notebook.

Pink Orchid by tropicalart

White Terrestrial Orchid

Harvest Time

Here is a drawing of a traditional farmer in Java island of Indonesia. He was working in his garden harvesting agricultural produce one afternoon. I made this drawing several years ago when I was still living in Malang city of East Java. The city had a cool atmosphere with productive farmlands around it. I used colored pencils to make it. I forgot the name of the manufacturer. Perhaps it was Faber-Castell. I still make figure drawing but not as frequent as before.

The drawing has been kept inside a carton box, together with my other drawings, for years. I am happy to see that it is still in good condition. So, I feel that I should share it in this blog.
Please, support this blog by buying some of my artworks below:

Yellow Bush Flowers T-Shirt
by tropicalart

Birdwing Butterfly Notebook
by tropicalart

Carrying a Cement

After guiding a German tourist named Katja in Raimuti island where we enjoyed snorkeling over coral reef, I accompanied her back to Manokwari city. It was approximately 2 p.m. We took a chance to visit Niko Asaribab - a Papuan artist who lived near Anggrem harbor. Most of his works were wooden carvings. There was a painting of underwater world that showed coral reef and tropical fish.
After spending half an hour with the artist, we continued our trip to the harbor. There were several wooden boats parking at the jetty. There were a pile of Cement Tonasa not far from where we were standing. The sun was shining fully with clear sky. The surrounding atmosphere was really hot. And I saw a porter was carrying cement on his back walking towards a boat. There was a sack of cement on the wooden jetty. Perhaps it fell while being carried by one of the porters.

I made a colored pencil drawing about the mid-day scene of the Anggrem harbor. It was a modest harbor. Several years later, the people's harbor has been changed into a concrete jetty with concrete construction and paving block floor. I heard that it was inaugurated by Jokowi - President of Indonesia last year.
Now the modest look of the people's harbor has disappeared. At least, I did a small drawing of the old harbor as a souvenir.
Please, support this blog by buying my artworks below:

Paradise Birds in Watercolor Dart Board
by tropicalart

Manta Ray T-Shirt
by tropicalart

Bird Knitting Nest

I have just uploaded my old watercolor painting into my Redbubble online store. It is a bird that was knitting a nest. I made this painting when I was still learning watercolor. I was not experienced enough in controlling the wash techniques of this wet media. So, I used watercolor pencils to do the artwork.

a bird was weaving a nest

There are certain species of birds that weave their nests like pockets or socks that are hanging in twigs of trees or in thin vine in the jungle. Birds make this kind of nest to avoid predator. Usually a a female bird weaves a nest from dry grass and fallen twigs after mating season as a preparation to lay eggs.

Watercolor Painting of male Lesser Birds of Paradise

As a tourist guide, I often organize birdwatching tour to the forest of Klasow valley in Sorong regency - West Papua province of Indonesia for birdwatchers who want to see birds of paradise and other tropical birds. If you are interested in taking a hiking and birding tour, please, contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com
Here is the watercolor painting male Lesser Birds of Paradise which I have drawn and painted since three days ago. First, I created its sketch after studying the anatomy of the birds based on some photographs, drawings and videos. I also have seen the bird a lot of times when I guide birdwatchers in Arfak mountains of Manokwari, Klasow valley of Sorong regency and in Tambrauw mountains.
After making the sketch, I added colors on to it using Derwent watercolourpencils. For his yellow head and neck, I used Deep Cadmium 6. For his dark brown chest, stomach and tail, I washed it with Burnt Yellow Ochre 60 in combination with Sepia 53 for the feather lines. I gave Kingfisher Blue 38 for the bill and Mineral Green 45 for the his throat.
The branch of a tree where the paradise bird was perching consisted of 2 main colors, i.e. Emeral Green 46 for the leaves and Bottle Green 43 for their lines. The wooden branch was colored with Burnt Yellow Ochre 60 and Copper Beech 61 for the bark lines. The legs of the bird were colored with Kingfisher Blue 38.

Male Lesser Birds of Paradise

Because I used the picture for my Tropical Art Shop in Zazzle, I had to import the artwork into Adobe Photoshop and removed its background. So, it can be printed on a lot of products such as t-shirts, mugs, and towel.
I hope that all of you like this watercolor painting and are interested in ordering some products in my Redbubble Paradise Bird artworks too. Just click the drawing above to see my portfolios.

Lesser Bird of Paradise - a pencil sketch

I have just created a pencil sketch of a male Lesser Birds of Paradise (Paradisaea minor). This is not a final drawing of the bird. I used Staedtler 2B graphite pencil to do the drawing.
I still have to refine it and add some colors using my Derwent Watercolour Pencils. I also plan to make the digital version of the sketch using Inkscape. I don't know how long it will take to finish the artwork. It can be 3 days or even 1 week. I cannot stay for a whole day coloring the sketch.

My pencil sketch of male Lesser Birds of Paradise 

In the previous article about Paradise Birds, I said that most of them live in tropical rainforest of New Guinea. They like to dance in the mornings and in the afternoon. They mate with many partners. Because of their beautiful feather, they have been hunted by human for centuries.
Paradise birds, together with other birds, disperse seeds of the fruits which they eat to all corners of the forest. This is a very important role in preserving rainforest.
Rainforest absorbs CO2 gases that we emit from our cars, motorcycles, stoves and cigarettes and at the same time releases Oxygen that we breathe every second. Therefore we must preserve rainforest, protect paradise birds and other wild animals in the jungle.

Birdwing Butterfly Ornitopthera priamus

Here is the watercolor painting of the birdwing butterfly Ornitopthera priamus that I saw when I was guiding a British tourist in the north coast area of Manokwari regency. The insect was collecting nectar from hibiscus flower. It did not stay still when hanging on the flower. Actualy it was 'floating' in the air with its wings continue to flutter. The butterfly needed a few seconds to collect the nectar before moving to another flower.
There are two versions of the artworks, i.e. the watercolor and the vector drawing which I made using Inkscape. I usually make manual drawing and add some colors with my Derwent watercolour pencils as a study before continuing the process to digital illustration.

Birdwing Butterfly

In the past, I used Macromedia Freehand MX but now I use Inkscape.
This butterfly illustration is now available as printed products in the form of t-shirts, hats, cell phone case, travel mug, and even pendant necklaces in my zazzle butterfy goods.
You could support my art creation works by ordering some of them.

Birdwing Butterfly Teapot by tropicalart

The above product is a teapot that is made of bright white porcelain. I hope that you like it.

Male Lesser Birds of Paradise

I have just uploaded this vector drawing into my Redbubble online store that I created using Inkscape. It is a male Lesser Birds of Paradise (Paradisaea minor). The bird lives in tropical rainforest of New Guinea. As a tourist guide, I organize hiking and birding tours in the jungle of Klasow valley and Arfak mountains to watch the birds of paradise, cuscus possum and other wild animals that make the tropical rainforest of West Papua as their natural habitat. If you are interested in taking hiking and birding tour in the forest of Klasow valley of Sorong regency of West Papua - Indonesia, please contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com.

Male Lesser Birds of Paradise

Male Lesser Birds of Paradise have to perform courtship dance to attract his female birds for mating. This dance is usually performed early in the mornings and in the afternoons before sunset. The dance performance has been an interesting tourist attraction. I have guided hundreds of nature lovers and birdwatchers on a hiking and birding trip in Arfak mountains for visitors who want to watch the paradise birds. The duration of the rainforest tour is usually between 3 to 4 days. We will stay in tents or the villagers houses (depending on the location that we are heading to). 

Birds of paradise and other birds are the guardian of the rainforest. They disperse seeds from the fruits that they eat throughout the forest. Tropical rainforest ecosystem is very important in our life because it absorbs CO2 gases which we emit every day from cars, motorcycles, and stoves. At the same time, the rainforest releases Oxygen which we breathe every second.

Now you could order this digital illustration as printed materials on various Redbubble products such as T-shirts, hoodie, iPhone case, and duvet cover or even Drawstring bag and spiral notebook. Please, click this Lesser Birds of Paradise Redbubble for more info. 

Verandah of Balinese House

I used to stay for around two and a half months in Bali several years ago. I was in Ubud and liked the town very much. It was an opportunity for me to see Balinese art and culture. I spent most of my time visiting traditional handicraft, art museums and painting galleries.
It was easy to find art supplies store in Ubud. So, I decided to buy an A4 size sketchbook and began drawing the veranda of the house where I stayed. Balinese houses were unique compared. They had carvings on the wooden pillars that support the ceiling and roof of the house. The walls of the house consisted of concrete materials and red bricks with some relief and carvings.
One thing that I like the most about Balinese house is that it is surrounded by green trees. This is a good concept of eco-living.

The Veranda of a Balinese House in Ubud

I could understand that Balinese life cannot be separated from art. Art has been an integral part of their cultural and religious activities. It is not surprising if we see that millions of tourists like to visit Bali every year.

Lesser Birds of Paradise in Watercolor

This is the picture of Lesser Birds of Paradise (Paradisaea minor) that I created using Derwent Watercolor Pencils. The birds live in forest of New Guinea (the largest tropical island in the world). I watch the birds while I guide tourists or birdwatchers on a hiking and birding tour in Klasow valley of Sorong regency or lower montane forest of Arfak mountains in West Papua region.
If you are interested in taking a rainforest hiking and birding tour in Klasow valley of Sorong regency of West Papua - Indonesia, please, contact me (Charles Roring) by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com or send message to my whatsapp number +6281332245180.
Click the following picture to see my portfolio in Redbubble:

Paradise birds and other birds play very important role on the ecosystem of rainforest. They disperse seeds from fruits which they eat to all corners of the forest.
I introduce ecotourism in this region to economically empower the indigenous people and at the same time preserve tropical rainforest environment.
This watercolor artwork can now be ordered as printed materials in a lot of products on my Tropical Art Store. One of them is the following kitchen towel decorated with the painting:

Paradise Birds in Watercolor Hand Towel by tropicalart

You can also have a look at my Redbubble store for Paradise Birds Watercolor Products

Sketch of a Woman Sitting Cross-legged

Human is the most difficult subject to draw. Why is that? Because not all of experienced artists can draw human figure with balanced or accurate proportions. If we draw a tree, scenery of the beach and mountains, the mistakes that we make in the form of branches, waves of the sea won't be easily recognized by people who see the artwork. It wil be different if the subject which we draw is human figure. If one of the legs is shorter, or the neck is longer than usual people who see the drawing can easily identify it.
That's the reason why artists need a lot of practices to achieve an expertise that is adequate to draw human with good proportions.
Below is the drawing of a woman in sitting cross-legged position. In the beginning, I made the sketch of the woman as a whole from her head to toes. I drew a lot of lines and erase them many times before I could determine that the proportion of the drawing is well balanced.

A Young Lady Sitting Cross-Legged

After that I did some hatchings and coloring all over her nude body. Although she is fully naked, I did not expose parts of her body that are sensitive. Let the viewers imagine how those parts behind the folding hands and crossed legged look like in their minds.
I don't want to make full color drawing or painting of this naked lady. This is only an ordinary sketch of human figure that I create for the purpose of study. Yes, I study human forms using pensil lines. If there are still parts of her body that are not perfect, please, understand that I am still in the learning process.
An artist who can make very good sketches has got strong foundation to draw or paint anything. And that's the uniqueness of visual art.

Hibiscus Flower in Watercolor

Here is a small watercolor painting of pink Hibiscus flower that I made using Derwent Watercolor Pencils. I saw it when I guided a British student who spent two weeks trekking in the jungle to study tropical flowers. At first, I did not give special attention to this flower because it was so common every where in my town. Later I found that I had never made any drawings or watercolour paintings of hibiscus. I decided to make a little sketch of the flower using my 2B Staedtler pencil but later I gave more color on it.

Pink Hibiscus - watercolor on paper

This little painting attracted the attention of someone in the USA who saw it in my tropical art Redbubble online store. She ordered it and this hibiscus flower became my first design sold in my Redbubble Tropical Art online store. I still don't know who bought it but I hope that she likes the artwork.

Hibiscus Flower T-shirt

There are a lot of products in the online store that need transparent background. To meet the demand, I have to remove the background of the digital version of the painting using Adobe Photoshop. The following is the link in my Redbubble account for readers who are interested in ordering t-shirts, cell phone cases/ skins, travel mug or totebags and spiral notebook: Pink Hibiscus Flower

Swimming with Manta

Manta is a very big fish. It looks like a bird. I saw it a few months ago when I was guiding some Czech tourists in Raja Ampat. There is a place in the open sea where manta fish like to gather to clean their bodies. People call the place Manta Point.  When we were at the point, we could feel sea current in the area. So, we had to swim continuously to keep our position above it.
If you have never seen manta in its natural habitat, please, look at the following sketch of the Manta Fish with a women freediver.

Cleaning Station
Manta "glide" or "fly" around the place while their bodies are being cleaned from tiny marine creatures that attach to them by small fish that live in the nearby rocks. The small fish eat the "dirts" whereas the mantas get free cleaning service.
It is a kind of mutualism symbiosis between the giant fish and the small fish.

Watercolored version of the Manta sketch

I work as tourist guide in West Papua, I often accompany tourists in the jungle to do wildlife watching and at sea to enjoy snorkeling. That's why you will see that most of my drawings or sketches in this blog are derived from nature as the source of my art inspiration.
Ecotourism
Ecotourism that I promote helps local people generate some income by working as cooks, porters, rangers and boat drivers and at the same time preserve the marine and rainforest environment.
Vector Graphic
I also like to make vector drawing that I develop from my sketches. The drawing below is not exactly the same as my sketch above but it reflects the same idea about how big the mantas are compared to human as represented by the freediver.

This vector drawing is now available as printed materials in Redbubble. One of them is the t-shirt below:

Swimming with Manta Ray T-shirt