Here goes the long overdue part 4 of my usual formspring.me questions and answers, this time we have quite a few thought-provoking and deep questions, and of course I tried to answer it as eloquently as I can. There were more than what is posted here, but I chose the ones that are worth reading and also many questions were the same so I just picked one. Read on to see if I shed some light on your question...
QUESTION: What type of camera do you use?
ANSWER: I've already answered this question on this formspring many times, but I use a Canon DSLR Rebel XS, with the basic lens that it came with.
Q: what's your fave movie?
A: hmm... well, I have so many favorite movies. This is a hard question! How about I list you my top 10 favorite movies?
1) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2) Devdas
3) Bad Education
4) Ghost World
5) Amélie
6) Volver
7) A Single Man
8) Closer
9) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
10) The Holy Mountain
lol, sorry I know you didn't ask for a top 10, but I just wanted to share those amazing ones, and there's still so many great movies that are not even in that list.
Q: Art is medium to express one's feelings. What if those expressed feelings were hurtful and offensive? Would you consider a limited form of expression when those artistic expressions are @ odds with society's evolving standards and sensitivities?
A: wonderful question, thank you for asking.
I think before viewing art, we must accept the fact that there will always be negative and offensive expressions in life. Personally, I always practice positive and self-fulfilling artistic expressions rather than hurtful or offensive.
You know that phrase "destruction leads to creation"? Yes, well... sometimes when artists feel destructive inside with so much anger, anxiety, sadness, so then... they create and translate those feelings into some sort of artwork.
We all have a choice to view something offensive or not. To consider a limited form of expression would be going against the whole idea of being limitless. I mean, there is a clear difference between producing hateful work and genuine artistic expression, and when someone who makes art genuinely because they feel the need to create, like giving birth, creation, that they must do it... then the viewers will definitely feel the artist's genuineness through their work.
I can understand that it's wiser to be aware of society's evolving standards and sensitivities but times are hard for dreamers/artists as well. There's this quote by Marshall McLuhan, he said: "Art is anything you can get away with." Andy Warhol also rephrased it to "Art is what you can get away with." If you think about it, art really has no rules. You can get away with anything by calling it "art" ...when the line is blurred, that's where it gets dangerous. Art is dangerous! Anything goes; all in its offensive, hurtful, truthful, sublime, eccentric, and eclectic glory.
Q: your blog's awesome, u have serious art blood in u. anyways, just wondering, i'm taking fashion as my major but i always seem to think that i'm the only one that thinks that fashion is more of an art rather than glamorous life. am i lame? cause i feel am
A: thank you so much! you are not lame, don't feel that way! I agree with you that fashion is another form of art. Art doesn't necessarily have to be the traditional painting, drawing, etc. There are a lot of ways to express your artistic desires, like Thierry Mugler, or Gareth Pugh, their designs have many sculptural pieces. That to me is art as well, because it's a form of artistic expression.
Q: I'm very inspired by your art and things you wrote in your blog! I'm currently majoring in Economics and thinking of taking a second major in either Graphic Design or Art History. Which one do you think has better prospects and future?
A: Hi. Thank you so much! I hope my blog continues to inspire you! As for the decision between Graphic Design or Art History. I'd say Graphic Design, but only if you are truly passionate about all things design/art, and have a drive for it, then I'd say go for it! Remember 1 thing, there's millions of people out there who are trying to do the same thing you do if you decide to pursue G.D. but since you are taking Economics, you should just finish that up, and then get a steady job, and have the money to pursue what you love later. Always finish what you started. BTW, I love Art History too, but only modern and contemporary art history, hahaha, I know, I'm so bias because I'm very modern.
Q: Love picking your brain and I admire the way you answer some questions. Here goes...How would you deal with a tainted past? Wouldn't it be nice if we can filter what to remember/forget? Have you ever been marred by an experience to painful to think about
A: :) Thank you!
Now, this is one of the best questions I've gotten. Very deep! With such a delicate subject as a tainted past... it's very hard to know how to deal with it. Different people have different approaches. It depends how was this ago? When was the past tainted, and how long has it been tainted? Sometimes people could just forget all together. Instead of worrying and trying to cover up the tainted past, I think you should just confront it, and say YES, I HAVE A TAINTED PAST, but keyword is "past" NOT "present"...and as long as who are you now doesn't match who you used to be then people will notice that. We all have a choice to make it positive, or negative, so why not use positivity to respond to everything even if they are bad.
I don't really have a tainted past per se, but it did took me very long to come into terms with my past as it wasn't something I'm proud of at first... but now as I'm growing older, you know I realize because of my past, because of all the agonizing metamorphosis, I am able to sit here and answer this question for you. I am able to stand on my ground.
A quote from Madonna: "If it's bitter at the start, then it's sweeter in the end."
Q: Of all the questions to ask, what does your daily diet consist of? You're quite fit yourself. And a more serious one, who are your artistic influences? I'm sure Gaga is one of them. ;)
A: I don't have an actual diet. I usually go jogging on Mondays and Wednesdays for 30 minutes, and then do cardio for my lower body, legs, back, etc. and on Tuesdays and Thursdays I usually work on my upper body, chest, arms, with bench press and free weights, etc. I don't even follow an eating routine, lol... I don't really care, I just want to stay healthy and toned up.
Q: Where do you get all your clothes? You always look fantastic! :D
A: thank you! I get my clothes from all over the places, online, thrift stores, overseas, anywhere, everywhere! :)
Q: How'd you learn how to draw? do you know any good books or resources that will help me for a beginner?
A: I always loved to draw, even when I was very little, around 6 or 7 years old, I would always draw all over my mom's books and journals (and got in trouble for it ahaha...) I guess, it's in my blood. I was born this way. But I did went to school and take more art/drawing classes to sharpen my skills. I look up to James Jean and Audrey Kawasaki, they're amazing! I also look at a lot of art blogs like http://www.booooooom.com/ Good luck! ;)
Q: how does your parents feel about you being gay? i come from a Vietnamese family and they're not very accepting.
A: my parents doesn't know about me yet. I'm so sorry to hear that your parents are not very accepting. I'm sure you have close friends that you can find a sense of acceptance with. For me personally, the reason why I haven't told my family/parents yet is because when I was growing up, they always emphasize and wants me to be successful, have a steady career and life, and they'll die happy. So, therefore I'm focusing on myself, my work, and my future right now... and when I become successful and stable, I'll tell them about myself. By then, I will achieve what they wanted, so I'll tell them without any backlash... and even if they won't accept it, I'll still be happy that I let them know and I did my part as a son!
Good luck! If you need to vent, I'm always here, listening, reading, and answering! :)
Q: I'm not much of a spiritual person (except for karma and voodoo), but since I think we've hardly talked about your perspective on spirituality, can you tell us what you think about this subject?
A: Well, I am not religious, but I'm fascinated by religion.
I think it's fine to not be spiritual or religious as long as you are good to yourself and others. But if I had to picked, I'd say I'm NOT religious, but spiritual. I do believe in the universe and creation, but I'm not sure how/what/when/why... and it all gets too complicated. I'm also quite existential. All I know is that we are existing in this very moment of an infinite time span.
I also do believe in Karma, not so much voodoo but that can happen too. Simply put, just be free from whatever conformations people try to put on you, and believe in yourself first and foremost! I just think if you do good, you'll get good back. We get what we give.
Q: Hi lovely! I need some advice on how to gain self confidence. I am such a shy and insecure person. People think I'm a stuck up and I am seriously not one! It's so hard making new friends and I'm majoring in fashion! I need connections! Please help me!
A: Hi there. Sorry for this extra late reply!
I know you asked this questions 4 weeks ago! =X
Here goes my advice on how to gain self confidence, and believe me, confidence itself is a very hard thing to acquire and maintain, but once you have it, you will feel the power of it, and whether you choose to feel its positive or negative power, that's up to you.
Please don't feel bad if you're a shy and insecure person, I used to be very insecure and hated myself too. I would always be very conscious of what I say or do, because I'm scared people might think of me this way or that way BLAH BLAH BLAH... but sometimes we are our own worse enemies. So, I was my own worse enemy at that time in my life, the truth was, people didn't care about what I say or do, but in my mind I thought too much into it... so, what I'm saying is, sometimes you just have to GET OVER YOURSELF! like I finally decided to get over myself and tell myself to just stop over analyzing things and just be true to what i want, and go from there!
It's hard to make friends in general, it's even harder to establish a genuine connection with another human being, but if you open yourself and be social, active, and have interesting things to share, you will make new friends in no time. Also, connections are from knowing people, the more people you know, the better your connections get, but remember to choose wisely who you get to know! Good luck! :)
Q: what, in your opinion, is the key to living a happy life?
A: in my opinion the key to living a happy life is balance! I truly believe that. When you have a good grasp of where you wanna be or stand in life, then work towards that goal but still keep balance by taking it 1 day at a time.
Work towards the future, but live for today. Balance is easy to say but quite hard to perfect, just like in my work... the question that always come up is how do I know when to stop? I don't want to overcrowd the canvas, or leave too blank. That's where balance comes in, step back a little view it from far away, then close up, and if you think it's good enough and content with it, then you achieved your balance.
Also this article of questions that could free your mind is a must read: http://www.marcandangel.com/2009/07/13/50-questions-that-will-free-your-mind/
Stay balanced! :)
Q: If you were a milkshake, would you bring all the boys to the yard?
A: is that even a question?! BOY BYE! of course.
Thank you to everyone who asked me questions so far (see I used them to make a blog entry, so you didn't wasted your time asking! hehe). You can go here (click!) to see the original links of these questions. And there are some that's too short, so I didn't include it. If you need to vent, I'm always here. Ask away!
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