Seminar-Workshop for Illustrators and Graphic Artists

     One of my greatest childhood dreams is to become an animator/manga artist or a children’s book illustrator. Aside from teaching, my passion and shall I say, my “God-given” talent is drawing. I have been drawing since when I was two or three I think. My father was an upholsterer, and he used to lay leatherette on our floor. The other side of the leatherette was actually my first canvas where my father taught me to draw elephants and other animals. Animals then turned into human characters like angels and saints (not kidding, I love to draw cherubs and archangels, Mama Mary, St. Antonio and many more…hehe...talking about how religious I am, or was?..hehe). At about 11, I became an otaku and turned my drawing style to anime. When I was in high school, I was a regular contestant in poster making contests (and bragging aside, I usually end up in top three places). In college, drawing helped me a financially since I usually was asked to draw SIMS for my classmates whenever we had demo teaching. 

   

    All my techniques are self-taught. I remembered going to National Bookstore just to read “how to draw” books. I didn’t watch TV that much back in high school and all I did was to be in my room drawing and drawing until I get contented with my work.

    Now talking about my present job as a teacher, it became obvious among my colleagues that I was quite good in drawing. My bulletin boards which I posted last time caught a lot of attention whenever my colleagues come in my room, and because of this I started to become a judge or a coach in poster making contests.

    My break in drawing actually started when my former teacher and now a colleague asked to illustrate a big story book for her. It was a story of a fairy and a cat. I said yes since it was Christmas vacation and I had nothing to do and of course, a fulfillment of being a children’s book illustrator. To make the story short, our LRMDS (Learning Resources Management and Development System) supervisor got impressed with our work that the big book with my illustration got approved for display and reproduction in our division. It was also followed by another two story books all of which also got approved.

My first big book illustration...I forgot the title sorry..heheh

My second drawing..Ang Damgo ni Miyo (Miyo's Dream)

    Last September, I was honored that I got chosen to be one of the representatives to attend a regional seminar-workshop for illustrators and graphic artists in our region. The seminar was held in Magic Island, Guimaras which was the same resort where we had our faculty summer outing last 2015. There was a typhoon at that time and we actually had second-thoughts if the said training will push through. Thank God we got to our venue safe and sound despite of the bad weather. The seminar was attended by more than a hundred participants from Panay and Negros Island Region.

    The seminar-workshop was my favorite seminar so far. It wasn’t cerebral but more of a development and a showcase of our drawing skills. We were taught how to illustrate based on the guidelines given by the Department of Education in making textbooks and learning materials. We were also trained how to use computer application like Photoshop to efficiently and aesthetically improve our drawings.

The drawing I made during seminar,,,"Lupad Pinalangga" (Fly, My Beloved)

     I got a specific style when I drew my illustration and I decided to stick with it in every book that I do so as to have my own identity as an artist. And I am happy that my fellow illustrators appreciate my work. They called it “doodling” but I thought I was doing zentangles. One illustrator commented that my work has similarities to those with “award-winning” children’s story book illustrations in the country. All I do was to smile and got embarrassed because I don’t think I am that good. If my drawing will be placed side to side with the work of other artist, my drawings are amateurish though it has specific style. Perhaps this made my illustrations unique from others.

   What I love the most about the seminar is the conglomeration of such talented people. I am not saying that I am “talented” but I felt “belonged”. It is so nice to be surrounded with people with the same talents as you have and whom you share a common passion. And the best part of this is the fact that each artist respects each other. Each artist has their own style and to necessarily compare each is futile. Hopefully, there still will be another seminar similar to this and I will still be chosen to attend…hehe…