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