English painter Thomas Gainsborough,
He is known for his portraits and
landscapes.
When he was active as a painter,
religious paintings or heroic events
became the main characters of
his paintings, so portraits were
considered low-grade paintings,and
landscape paintings were backgrounds
However, he painted portraits with
a fresh gaze, and captured
the delicate yet vital landscapes of
nature on canvas, giving great
inspiration to other artists and
even changing the way we look at
portraits and landscapes.
Artist One2three , who was selected
for the Hall of Fame in February,
is also showing us a new perspective
by capturing the scenery of nature
and the animals and people living
together in it.
The artist's work is full of
landscapes viewed from various
perspectives.
You can see the magnificent nature
full of beautiful colors and
expressions, and you can also see
the scenery that makes the work
stand out even more as a background
of various materials.
Along with this, the artist’s
passion and efforts are also shown
through the feed that contains
the process of drawing various
characters and paintings.
We have to ask the artist
how the artist came to draw
this kind of work.
So, let's start the interview with
the artist.
Q1. @PENUP
Hello artist.
This is PENUP manager.
First, congratulations on being
selected for the February 2023
Hall of Fame.
Please tell us about yourself.
A1. @One2three
Hello Penup Team and friends.
I am from Singapore, a country in
Southeast Asia.
I am a mother of three teens,
working in Science Education
for many years. I've enjoyed drawing
since young and was contented using
old calendar paper for pencil
sketching because of its rough
texture.
These days I draw with S7 digitally.
It took me a while before I realized
the selection was not a dream.
This honor is affirmation of
hard work put through recognized
by the team and community.
I thank you Penup Team
the acknowledgement given.
Q2. @PENUP
The first piece was posted
in June 2021.
Since then, you have been constantly
uploading works.
We are curious about how you came to
know about PENUP and upload your work.
A2. @One2three
I accompanied my children to attend
a Manga Drawing Workshop 2 years ago.
I continued self-taught drawing
digitally while they stopped.
A few months later,
I began to ponder the purpose of
the few drawings I did. I wonder
how others will response to them.
It was then I remembered Penup app
which was in my S7 tablet and made
the first posting at the dinner
table together with my girls.
After that, I was hooked.
Q3. @PENUP
You drew works of various subjects
through beautiful colors and
expressions.
We wonder what kind of devices and
apps these works are created with.
A3. @One2three
The first app I used is
a vector art app called Concepts.
It has an easy interface for me to
understand and navigate. Color
selection is easily done with
one click. Afterwards I joined PENUP
that I chance upon tutorial sharing
on Color Theory.
This enlightened me the complicated
looking color menu in pixel art app
and opened the gateway to different
styles of art creation. Thereafter,
I explored Medibang Paint, Artrage
and currently Infinite Painter and
PENUP drawing app, each can produce
unique styles.
Q4. @PENUP
We present works of various genres.
We’re curious about what inspired
you to paint.
A4. @One2three
There is something inside me that
I wanted to express.
I found painting a wonderful way to
translate my inner thoughts into
realism even though it is a painting
It feels like a whole new world is
opened for me to soar and wander.
Anything can happen!
Hence, there are works of fantasy
landscapes and characters I hoped to
paint from young. There are works
that reflect my current emotions
towards someone, some place,
global issues and more.
There are works that show
what I see around me in a normal day
To improve this expression,
I also paint for learning purposes.
You might find it difficult to
identify works that reflect me in
the midst so many others.
Q5. @PENUP
Works with beautiful landscapes
attracted attention.
We wonder what the charm of
landscape painting is that you feel.
Also, we wonder if the place of
the work is a real place or
an imaginary place.
A5. @One2three
Many of the landscapes chosen by
PENUP are inspired by real places
around where I stay. I am truly
impressed that you have such sharp
eyes to select them. I am proud of
these places and believe they have
qualities worth painting. The Rose
Garden is an exhibition I visited
in Flower Dome, Gardens by the Bay.
The Flower Dome is one of
the 'seashells" in Futuristic Ride
(Challenge).
However, I often include a twist in
my landscapes experimenting
possibilities.
Q6. @PENUP
We were also able to see the works
that drew the characters.
We are curious about how you drew
the characters in your work.
In addition,
We were able to see cartoon
characters or characters you created
we are curious about the reason for
drawing these characters and
the charm you think.
A6. @One2three
It took me by surprise these works
are selected. These characters are
Fan Art from a novel. I am inspired
by the message the author conveyed
through the character-
"Body in Abyss, Heart in Paradise".
It serves as a reminder to me in
this world full of temptations,
I want to stay true to myself.
Q7. @PENUP
You painted both Eastern and Western
paintings beautifully.
We wonder why you are trying so many
different expressions.
We’re also curious about
what kind of painting style you want
to express in the future.
A7. @One2three
I am exposed to Western Art like
oil/acrylic painting which I had
a chance to attend a short course
many years ago.
I like oil painting’s rich intense
pigment, and bold strokes.
In Chinese painting, creation of art
comes with peace of soul. Sometimes,
I just get curious and try to
experience this feel.
At this stage, I am in the progress
of learning different styles.
I have never painted with such
intensity in my life as compared to
days in Penup. I hope that when
I want to express something, I have
the language to do so, and not be
restricted by technique.
Q8. @PENUP
We were also able to appreciate
works expressing unique imagination.
We wonder how you came up with
this landscape.
Also, we’re curious about what
kind of imagination you want to draw
in the future.
A8. @One2three
I am open to possibilities.
Could there be a possible existence
of mermaid equivalent creatures
somewhere since only 5% of the sea
has been explored.
I used imagination to explain this
mystery in a logical manner.
As a nature lover, human's action
causing pollution, climate change
are issues of concern to me.
I am deeply saddened by frequent
reports on forest fires, flooding
in different countries. Although
the effects are not so extreme here,
I worry for friends who live in
those areas. I expressed my concerns
through some works.
Future works are beyond
my imagination.
Let this be spontaneous.
Q9. @PENUP
The feed that contains the process
of drawing also stood out.
We wonder why you are posting
this feed.
A9. @One2three
Completing an artwork to me is not easy.
I take several days to complete a piece.
The scene behind includes searching
for inspiration, researching,
conceptualizing before
implementation. Sometimes,
I do quick research on painting
techniques when I am stuck during
the process. It is a mini project.
I treasure this experience and
would like to keep them like
a journal. I record them like
memories, photos, and notes for
future references. I'd like to share
how I do certain things and
the story behind the art piece.
Q10. @PENUP
Last question.
Please tell us if you have anything
you would like to improve or
the story you want to tell while
using PENUP
A10. @One2three
Currently, the front page displays
popular works of the day for 24 hours.
This promotes daily posting of works.
However, some artists spend days to
create a well thought piece of art.
Frequent postings arn't sustainable
for them.
This leads to much less exposure of
them & deprives chances for viewers
to see good works, know the artists
and learn from them. 24 hrs display
of good quality works cannot justify
the effort put in by such artists
which can discourage them. Uploading
of quality works also cannot compete
with instant upload of photos
(non-art related), screenshots,
doodles etc. But this instant
gratification on front page is too
tempting for many.
I propose to have regular updates of
Staff Picks/Discover with recent
works to justify and recognize
the effort put in by serious artists
Front page can alternate between
Staff Picks/Discover and
Popular Today.
This can promote both popular works
and recommended artworks fairly.
Hopefully, this can motivate art
enthusiasts to continue their stay
here, spreading their passion and
sharing their tutorials with us.
How was the interview with @One2three?
It is said that Thomas Gainsborough
not only elevated the status of
portraits with works that were
different from the existing
perspective, but also played
an important role in the birth of
the genre of landscape painting
by paying close attention to
the landscape that was
the background.
The artist also looked at nature
and materials from various
perspectives, expressed them
beautifully, and showed a new
perspective of drawing art.
Now, how about us looking at one
material from various perspectives
and drawing it with various
expressions?
We think it would be fun to freely
express the image of the material
and share it with others.
With everyone's work, we hope
that PENUP will also create works
with a new perspective.
