<![CDATA[POPEYE WONG - Blog & Sketches]]>Sun, 15 Sep 2024 21:51:18 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[La despedida]]>Mon, 16 Sep 2024 03:33:21 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/la-despedida
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A todas esas personas que han seguido y apoyado mi trabajo, ya sea por meses o por años: gracias.

Si has seguido mi trabajo por algún tiempo, sabes del ciclo en el que entro cada año, comenzando en septiembre y terminando en abril, cuando mes con mes (a excepción de marzo), me dedico a crear imágenes de pin-ups inspiradas en días festivos: Día del Grito, Halloween, Día de Muertos, Navidad, Año Nuevo, Día de San Valentín y 4/20. Por 14 años ha sido una especie de tradición crear una imagen para la mayoría de esas fechas festivas.

Pues bien, este año he decidido dejar esa tradición atrás. En otras palabras, ya no seguiré creando ese hilo de ilustraciones como lo he hecho hasta ahora. Al menos, no en un futuro cercano. Creo que ha llegado la hora de cerrar ese ciclo y seguir concentrándome en otras prioridades, un camino en el cual he estado caminando desde hace ya un par de años.

Esto no es de ningún modo una mala noticia. Mi vida se encuentra en un punto donde por fin puedo concentrarme en terminar varios proyectos que he dejado pendientes por muchos años, la mayoría de ellos no relacionados con el arte. Esa es una de las razones por las que casi no he estado activo en redes sociales desde hace ya meses. Pienso que a tod@s nos llega el momento en que nos damos cuenta que nos queda mucho menos tiempo del que pensábamos. Es ahí donde un@ decide cuáles son los asuntos que toman prioridad. En mi caso, mi prioridad es organizarme para aprovechar más mi tiempo. No para ser más productivo, eso ya no es importante (ni necesario) para mí. Quiero disfrutar lo ganado y compartirlo, porque ¿cuál es el objetivo de acumular experiencias y recursos si nos negamos a compartirlos?

El dejar este ciclo no es un acontecimiento que afectará la vida de nadie a nivel personal... excepto la mía. Aunque no lo parezca, para mí esta es una decisión difícil. Sin embargo, es una más de las cosas que he dejado ir en este último año. Soy una persona que siempre ha tendido a aferrarse a los hábitos del pasado, pero poco a poco he podido ir soltando las piedras o pesos que he estado acumulando a través de mi vida. Con piedras/pesos no me refiero a algo malo, sino a aspectos materiales e inmateriales que formaron parte de mí, pero que ahora ya no son más que un recuerdo de algo que ya no es ni volverá. No se trata de deshacernos de todo aquello que ya no nos es útil, sino de saber distinguir qué es lo que vale la pena guardar. Porque al final de cuentas, ¿quién decide qué es útil y qué no? Solamente nosotr@s.

Cabe decir que la tradición de crear estas imágenes año con año, venía enteramente del placer de hacerlo. Nunca fue un proyecto pensado en crecer, ni un plan de comercializarlo. Simplemente era un gusto que me daba a mí mismo cada año y que me alegraba compartir con quien quisiera apreciarlo. Sin embargo, en los últimos años, ese gusto comenzó a convertirse en una especie de obligación personal, donde el objetivo era terminar la serie de imágenes para continuar ese ciclo, para no interrumpirlo, a costa de tiempo que en realidad sería mejor aprovechado en otros aspectos de mi vida.

Quise decir adiós este ciclo de una manera "incompleta". No podía decidir si despedirme antes de siquiera comenzar la primera imagen de este año en septiembre... o si comenzar y terminar la serie actual de imágenes (en abril del 2025) y entonces despedirme... o si continuar por un año más para completar una racha de 15 años (en abril del 2026). Al final, me decidí por un punto intermedio: comenzar brevemente la serie de este año, con la imagen de inicio en septiembre, para el Día del Grito, con la diferencia de que esta vez la imagen no sería terminada. Quiero dejar esta ilustración incompleta, esta serie incompleta, la racha que sería de 15 años incompleta. Quise expresar ese pensamiento en esta imagen, donde se puede ver mi método de trabajo: líneas del lápiz mostrando ideas, bosquejos, trazos, líneas finales, con colores, con expresiones, con detalles... porque, de nuevo, compartir me hace feliz.

Quiero expresar mi agradecimiento a todas aquellas modelos que sirvieron como musas para la realización de todas estas imágenes abarcando más de una década. Mi agradecimiento especial para Lisa Del Toro, la modelo que cada año inspiró la imagen que marcaría el disparo de salida (y el estilo) para la serie: la imagen del Día del Grito (conmemorando el Día de Independencia de México).

¿Por qué escribo tanto para un asunto tan simple? ¿Qué gano con esto? Bueno, me gusta escribir lo que pienso, me ayuda a entenderme a mí mismo... ustedes siendo testigos de este monólogo. No, no estoy enfermo ni estoy en problemas. Al contrario, me encuentro en una situación bastante afortunada, es por eso que quiero aprovecharla y disfrutar la presencia de las personas que le brindan alegría a mi vida, ya que nada dura para siempre. Nada.

En fin, espero no haberles aburrido con tanta divagación. ¿Esto significa que voy a dejar de dibujar/pintar? Si me conoces, sabes que eso nunca pasará. De nuevo, a tod@s aquell@s que disfrutaron cada año esta serie de imágenes, muchísimas gracias por su apoyo. Estoy seguro que en el futuro, uno que otro pin-up de días festivos se volverá a asomar en mis publicaciones. :)
~Pops.

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​To all those persons that have followed and supported my art for months or years: thank you.

If you have followed my work for some time now, you know that every year, starting in September and finishing in April, I go into a cycle of rendering pin-up images inspired on holidays: Mexican Independence Day, Halloween, Day of the Dead, Xmas, New Year's, Valentine's Day and 4/20. It has been a sort of a yearly tradition of creating an image for the majority of these holidays, for the last 14 years.

Well, this year I have decided to leave this tradition behind. In other words, I will stop doing this yearly batch of images. At least for the near future. I think it is time to close this cycle and continue focusing on other priorities, a path that I have been following for a couple of years now.

This is in no way bad news. I am in a point in my life where I can focus on finishing several projects that I left pending for many years, most of them not art related. That is one of the reasons why I have not been active on social media during the last few months. I think that we all get to that point in life where we realize that we have much less time left that we anticipated. That is the moment when we decide which ones of our priorities are the most important. In my personal case, my top priority is to organize myself to take better advantage of my time. Not with the purpose of being more productive, that is no longer important (or necessary) to me. I want to enjoy what I have earned and also share it, because, what is the goal of accumulating experiences and resources if we refuse to share them?

Leaving this cycle behind is not an event that will affect anybody's life... except mine. Although it might not look like it, the fact is that this is a hard decision for me. However, this is one more thing that I have let go during this past year. I am a person that have always clung to habits from the past, but little by little I have been able to let go of those burdens/weights that I have picked up throughout my life. By burdens/weights I do not mean anything bad, but rather to those material and immaterial aspects that were once part of me, but today are just no more than memories of something that has been and will be no more. It is not about disposing of everything that is not useful for us anymore, but rather to be able to discern all that is worth keeping. Because, at the end, who decides what is useful and what is not? Only ourselves.

It is worth mentioning that the tradition of creating these images year after year, came entirely from the joy of doing it. It was never a project meant to grow, nor there was a plan to market it. It was simply a treat for myself and I was happy to share it with whoever appreciated it. However, in the last few years, that treat started to become some sort of personal chore, where the goal was to finish the batch of images in order to avoid interrumpting the cycle, to keep it alive, at the cost of using time that could be useful in other aspects of my life.

I wanted to say farewell to this cycle in an "unfinished" way. I could not decide if saying bye before even starting this year's first image in September... or if I should start and finish this current batch of images (on April of 2025) and then say bye... or if I should keep doing these images for an additional year and complete a streak of 15 years (on April of 2026). At the end, I went for a mid point: to briefly start the batch for this year, with the starting image in September, for Mexican Independence Day as usual, with the difference that this time the image would not be completely finished. I want to leave this illustration unfinished, this batch unfinished, a would be 15 year streak unfinished. I wanted to express this thought in this image, where you can see my work method: pencil lines showing ideas, sketches, strokes, with colors, with expressions, with details... because, as I mentioned, sharing makes me happy.

I want to give thanks to all those models that worked as muses and inspiration for all these images created during more than one decade. My special thanks for Lisa Del Toro, the model that every single year inspired the pin-up for Mexican Independence Day. This image not only would start the batch for each year, but would also set the tone for it.

Why do I write such a lengthy text for such a simple thing like this? What do I get by doing this? Well, I like to write what I think, it helps me to understand myself... while you yourselves are witnesses of this monologue. No, I am not sick and I am not in trouble either. For the contrary, I am indeed in a very fortunate situation. That is why I want to take advantage of it and enjoy the company of those persons that bring joy to my life, because nothing lasts forever. Nothing.

Anyway, I hope I did not get you bored with my rambling. Does this mean that I will no longer be drawing or painting? If you know me well, you know that will never happen. Again, to those that enjoyed my holiday images year after year, thank you for your support. I am positive that once in a while, in a not so distant future, a new holiday pin-up will show up in my posts. :)
~Pops.
]]><![CDATA[Good riddance, 2020...]]>Tue, 05 Jan 2021 01:40:57 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/good-riddance-2020So, 2021 is finally here. A year full of hopes and dreams, after a *insert your own adjective here* year like 2020. Mmmh, 2020, a year that also started full of hopes and dreams. Oh, the potential. Just the sound of 2020 was motivating. Twenty-twenty, two twos with two zeros, it was almost poetic. Then, COVID-19 happened, and we all know how that went.

OK, then, how was 2020 for me? Personally, it wasn't so bad... and please let me make clear that I say this at a mere personal level, in no way minimizing what 2020 meant to many individuals and families out there. I am fortunate enough to be able to stay at home, working from my studio. I am fortunate to say that not a single member of my family was lost due to the pandemic. Furthermore, I am fortunate to say that even though I myself got infected with COVID, my symptoms were pretty mild and was out of it with no detriment to my daily life.

No, the pandemic basically didn't impact my life in a bad way. From the very beginning of the on-off-on-off lock downs, which included the temporary closing of the tattoo shop where I was working, I decided to stay home. I've been doing freelance illustration work from my studio for years now, so this decision wasn't hard at all. I changed my grocery-shopping habits, and now I go to the store once every 3 weeks. This new scheme pushed me to start cooking more and depend less on processed food or going out to eat. I even learned how to make bread! (I know, it turns out it's far easier than I thought, but I didn't know that a year ago, so cut me some slack).

I also got around to finishing a few pending projects around the house... although it seems like for every project I finish, 10 more pop up. All this happened while also creating new artwork. As I said before: it wasn't so bad.

A downside for me in 2020 (again, speaking strictly on a personal level), was not able to visit my family in Mexico at any given moment. Not that I go there all the time, but I'm used to visit them at least a couple of times a year and stay there for several days. I did manage to go to Mexico due to extraordinary circumstances... but I wasn't able to get close to family, meaning that even though I saw them, I had to keep my distance, no physical contact. Thinking about it, I think that was the biggest downside of them all. However, if that was the biggest downside, in a scenario where not a member of my family was lost, I really cannot complain at all. My sympathies go to anybody who experienced a loss during 2020, during the pandemic, human or otherwise.

As you can imagine, my work felt the effect of my surroundings. I kept focused on my illustration work, but also incorporating elements of the pandemic: editing my images to include a face mask, posting cheer up messages, and even creating a new illustration based on a Mexican superheroine (not created by me, by the way) who fights COVID. But, oddly enough, it wasn't the pandemic what reshaped my work in the most noticeable way, but a social movement. After the huge rise (note: rise, not birth) of the Black Lives Matter movement on the second half of 2020, I ended up asking myself the same question that many around me did: am I part of the problem? For me, the answer is a resounding yes. Ignoring a problem, as it didn't exist, because "by not getting involved I'm not making things worse" is indeed making things worse. My artwork, as irrelevant as it might be, it was a reflection of a norm, an insidious norm, where inclusion is a choice that most often than not is (again) ignored, or even shunned.

My work is a reflection of myself, and I like to think that it evolves with me and my views. Yes, I still am an erotic artist, but I definitely want to paint a picture using broader strokes (yes, pun very much intended).

Then, what's next? I'll tell you what's next: 2021. We're already there. We're not out of the hole yet, but a new year has started and with it, the new hopes and new dreams that I mentioned. In fact, more hopes and dreams than usual because we're carrying the leftover from 2020. This is going to be a year that will go by quickly, but hopefully will be productive (fingers and toes crossed). So make it count. Make it count. Oh, and please stay safe. :)
~Pops.
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]]><![CDATA[Paper thin wall...]]>Wed, 08 Jul 2020 18:32:23 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/paper-thin-wallI am back... with a new pin-up, of course. As always, I hope you like it. However, I must say that I am back with much more than just a pin-up. I am bringing some personal thoughts. I ask you to please bare with me, because, if you are familiar with my posts, you also know that I tend to write about my thoughts in a lengthy way. Many times I ramble away, but this time I assure you that what I am writing has a definite point, a purpose. You and I might not agree to it, but it is a point nonetheless. One more thing, a very important thing before rambling... errr, I mean, sharing my thoughts: I want to thank Eirenne Suicide for being the beautiful reference muse and inspiration for this artwork. This is the second time I've had the honor of working with her image. Thanks so much, Eirenne, you rock!

OK, most of you have not noticed, but I have been virtually absent from social media for about a month now. And I say "virtually" because I have popped in here and there, once in a while, mostly sharing different posts. Not that I was very active before, but I had some plans about new images, new merchandise, promotions, etc. Then, a terrible murder on May 25, triggered a chain reaction that became stronger and stronger in a matter of days, if not hours. Yes, I am talking about the murder of George Floyd and the protests that followed. I am not a news savvy guy, but I do try to stay up to date of what is happening in the global arena. I saw a movement that kept growing, and the more it grew, the more I read about it. Not in an academic way per se, but rather as in checking the pulse of what was brewing in real time. That is the reason why I went away, at first as a form of respect to the movement, but after a while it was because a lot of my time was dedicated to learn about it.

I must say that in the last few weeks I learned a lot about discrimination to Blacks, in specific, the African-American community. And by saying "a lot" is in no way to compliment myself, but in fact the opposite. I learned a lot because my knowledge about racist practices toward Blacks was so minimal, so basic, that yes, what I know now is huge compared to what I knew just a month ago. Is like going from being illiterate to learn all the vowels. Yes, it is a big progress, no arguing there... but there is still a lot to learn.
​
I try to keep to myself. I try to stay out of the way. I try to be empathetic to the needs of the vulnerable groups of our society. Being that said, I just keep doing my artwork and watching how the world goes up and down, up and down. I am an observer, you might say. But, that also means I am an enabler, by turning a blind eye or playing along in a system that I myself cannot change. I am not a politically active guy, I am not an activist. After all, I am just one person, and what I do or not do, does not make a difference, right? Well, sometimes is not so easy to hide behind that rationalization. Sometimes the truth gets so much in your face, that the rationalization I mentioned becomes a paper thin wall.
This movement is not just about George Floyd or anybody in particular, but about a society in general. Obviously, is not about me either. Then, why am I talking about myself? Because, I want you to understand that I am trying. I am trying to understand. I am trying to empathize more and more. I am trying to stop being numb about everything that is happening around us. The world keeps going up and down, up and down, like a jump rope. And, as we would do with a jump rope game, we have to decide when it is time to jump in.

For many many years, my life has revolved around my artwork, specifically my passion for drawing women. When the social unrest and the protests started, once I learned more about it, my first reaction was to render a new pin-up featuring a Black model, as my artistic contribution. But, since I did not have anything ready, I thought it would be good to post a couple of past pin-ups that featured Black models, while I worked in a new piece. After all, between toons, portraits and everything in between, I have rendered a few hundreds of images, so it should not be hard to have a few Black model pin-ups available right away, right? I am embarrassed to say that, once I started looking for some samples, I realized that the number of images I have rendered using Black models as a reference or inspiration could be counted in one hand. There is no excuse for that, I own it. I like to think that, when it comes to my artwork, I am a king, a god of my empty canvas. I say that as an obvious nerdish joke, meaning that I and only I decide what goes and what does not into my art. That is why I like to work as an independent artist, rather than doing business or private commissions. When it comes to my canvas, the only rules that play are my rules. Therefore, the fact that I do not have Black models represented in my portfolio is entirely my fault, nobody else's. If you are a figure artist and your opinion is that you do not need inclusion in your portfolio, that is a perfectly valid point as well, it is your art. In my case, that was not my conscious decision, but it is something I did anyway.

I am sure that for many, the lack of Black models in my portfolio is not a big deal. But for me, it means that I did play along with a system that is failing to so many communities. As small as my role is in this society, I did play my tiny part in perpetuating discrimination. Be it because I was too busy, or because I had other projects in mind, or because I like to forge my own path when it comes to my art, or because (insert any excuse here). The reality is that representation for Black people in my art is not there.

​That is why I decided to pledge that my next personal pin-up projects for the rest of year will be based on Black models. And, starting next year, I will be incorporating more and more Black models as well. This is my contribution as a pin-up artist. It is just as a start, not a "solution" or anything of the sort, but we all have to start somewhere.

Additionally, I want to sell prints of those pin-ups and donate 100% of the profits to an organization/funding/charity that supports BLM. Yes, 100%. I would like for clients to "pay" (or donate) directly to the chosen organization/funding/charity, then show me the receipt of their donation and I'll take care of the costs of printing and shipping. I am not expecting the number of orders growing too big, but if it does, I will need help with the shipping costs (it would be great if the orders reached that point, though). If you know any organization/funding/charity that would like this idea, please let me (or them) know.
"But... what about Latina models? what about Asian models? what about Muslim models? what about trans models? what about full figure models? what about...?" I know, there is always another area to cover, another community to support, but again: we all have to start somewhere. The African-American community is not the only one close to me, but at this moment they need most of the immediate support. Being that said, it is my goal to represent more and more communities in my work in the near future, with the proper respect.

Last but not least, let me tell you more about this new pin-up illustration. As I mentioned, it is based on the beaaaaaautiful Eirenne Suicide, an official SuicideGirls model. About three years ago I rendered a semi-realistic cartoon of her, and when I thought of doing this current project, she immediately popped in my mind. I am so happy that she allowed me to work with her likeness again. Thanks so much Eirenne! I have many ideas that I want to try in the upcoming images based on Black models, but for this one, being the first, I decided to render a simple yet detailed illustration. It allowed me to work and play more with colors. I erroneously thought working on this new pin-up would be identical to working in what has been my regular line, with a bit of tweaking the color tones and saturation. But I was definitely wrong. If I had done so, I would have ended rendering an image that looked just similar to a Black model, but not quite the real deal. I like to render images that look natural, that look authentic. That does not mean that I achieve that effect every time, but I do try. And this was no exception. It was great to work on Eirenne's image in so much detail, because it allowed me to study and highlight the beauty that she portrays, both due to her persona as well as her ethnicity. And that is the point of my artwork: to celebrate the beauty of women of all colors and figures (something I obviously have not done for many many years).

As always, I want to thank each one of my patrons, for their support month after month. You are part of what allows me to keep working as an independent artist. This post touches a very sensitive subject, and I can imagine not everybody agrees with my point of view. If you have questions or concerns (or comments in general), please do not hesitate to contact me. Speaking of patrons, Patreon will start charging taxes next month... but as far as I understood, that does not affect my patrons, since I do not sell anything. If I missed anything, please point it out, so I can research more about it.

And with that, I am done for today. If you made it here, congratulations, I know that my posts are a bit hard to read sometimes (English is not my first language). Also, a big thank you for reading my thoughts all the way through. And if you did not, no worries, I will give you the main idea/purpose of my post:
BLACK LIVES MATTER. They do. :)
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See you next time.
~Pops.
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]]><![CDATA[Weekly sketch: Poison Ivee]]>Thu, 19 Mar 2020 18:46:05 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/weekly-sketch-poison-ivee
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]]><![CDATA[Weekly sketch: Esperanza Gomez]]>Sat, 07 Mar 2020 21:36:54 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/weekly-sketch-esperanza-gomez
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]]><![CDATA[Weekly sketch: Jessica Sage]]>Mon, 02 Mar 2020 19:09:42 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/weekly-sketch-jessica-sage
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]]><![CDATA[Weekly sketch: Kitty Ann]]>Sat, 22 Feb 2020 20:09:04 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/weekly-sketch-kitty-ann
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]]><![CDATA[Weekly sketch: Giselle Montes]]>Sun, 09 Feb 2020 22:04:32 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/weekly-sketch-giselle-montes
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]]><![CDATA[Weekly sketch: Helena Danae]]>Tue, 28 Jan 2020 19:56:13 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/weekly-sketch-helena-danae
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]]><![CDATA[Weekly sketch: Eva Davai]]>Tue, 28 Jan 2020 19:54:14 GMThttp://www.popeyewong.com/blog--sketches/weekly-sketch-eva-davai
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