7 Simple Tips to Encourage a Daily Drawing Routine

By : Alphonso Dunn

There’s nothing like a consistent drawing practice to keep your creativity fired up. Follow these tips to draw every day.

1. GET IN THE RIGHT MINDSET.

It’s surprising how much your attitude can determine your outcome. If you go into drawing with the expectation that everything you produce should be a “masterpiece,” then anything that falls short becomes a failure. It’s unfair to set such high expectations. No one needs that kind of pressure. Instead, allow room for fun in your daily practice. Use your drawing time to brainstorm ideas, keep notes, make observations. This is all part of the creative process. Thinking and reflecting. Evaluating and critiquing. This should also be part of your drawing practice.

• Takeaway: You’re more likely to start and keep drawing if you remember it’s okay to “mess up.”

2. KEEP TWO TYPES OF SKETCHBOOKS

If you’re always waiting for the “perfect” drawing before you put pen to paper, you’ll never use your sketchbook. Don’t wait. Keep two sketchbooks. Use one for your planned drawings — the ones that will be more polished and finished. Keep a second sketchbook for everything else—your doodles, notes, and experiments. The silly things. • Takeaway: Keep a sketchbook that’s not for ‘perfect,’ but for progress.

3. DRAW AT A CONVENIENT SIZE.

Most of us feel become comfortable working at a particular size. When your goal is to draw every day, however, it’s important to get out of that box and find a format that allows you to work consistently and efficiently. I find that this is easier when doing smaller drawings. Find a size that still allows you to do what you enjoy, but is small enough to keep you going. You can also work on just a part of a larger drawing daily.

• Takeaway: Find a sketchbook size that’s not too big and not too small (with compliments to Goldilocks!)

4. SWITCH IT UP.

Part of the goal for developing a consistent drawing habit is to grow yourself as well as your drawing practice. You don’t have to commit to just one thing in your art-making. Try out a new a variety of drawing media. If you’re used to graphite, try charcoal. You may discover that you really like it—or that you don’t. Both discoveries are valuable.

• Takeaway: You don’t have to commit to one thing. Give yourself an open and honest chance to experience something new.

5. KEEP IT SIMPLE.

Don’t feel pressured to make a highly polished drawing every time you draw. Simple drawings are fine. Go ahead— doodle, sketch, make a blind contour drawing or a partial study of a subject. Sometimes these less finished efforts are even more expressive and exciting than a finished drawing. • Takeaway: Simple drawings are fine. The point is to keep yourself moving and progressing. 6. CREATE DRAWINGS IN THEME.

Draw variations of the same thing. This could be as simple as drawing a box from different perspectives, in different lighting, or in different sizes. You could draw a series of eyes, hands, feet, trees, or any theme you want. You could draw a subject using different media or in different levels of finish. Working in a theme will help you continue to draw consistently without becoming bored.

• Takeaway: Working on a series of themed drawings allows you to widen your scope and teaches you about your own style and process.

7. HAVE MULTIPLE DRAWINGS GOING AT THE SAME TIME.

If you get tired of working on a drawing, take a break. Then, start a new drawing. When you return to the earlier drawing, you’ll come back to it with a fresh eye. • Takeaway: No need to force a drawing. Give yourself some space and come back refreshed.

Ready to Start Your Daily Drawing Routine? There’s nothing like a consistent drawing practice to keep your creativity fired up, so make yourself do something in the realm of drawing every day. That doesn’t have to mean specifically putting pen or pencil to paper. Spending time reflecting and being visually present is important too. Take time for close observation. Make notes. That mental activity is also part of the drawing process.

William Yu making artworks for exhibit in Hyatt Hotel San Francisco California

COVER STORY WILLIAM YU

Beyond Language

By : Timberly Fuentes

Human language is diverse and dynamic. It is ever-evolving across geography. Whether it is in the form of written, verbal, or gesture, language serves as a bridge in passing information from one being to another being which is a critical part of learning and understanding the values and concepts of a certain culture. Hence, language embodies identity initially shaped by the respective ancestors. It also reveals the nearest neighboring countries as they share distinct commonalities. It is like the process of trade wherein uttered words and expressions are commodities. Also, language shows which country once conquered another country in which the process resulted in an unfolding of stories filled with assimilation, sacrifices, defeats, and victories. There are around 7,151 spoken languages around the world, but there are around 347 extinct languages (Ethnologue). A language is considered extinct if it has not been used as the native language, has not been studied, and has no historical record about it. Therefore, if one nation or state would want to preserve its language, the people in it must be intentional in exercising and documenting it. Historians, scholars, and journalists are first-rate workers when it comes to studying, preserving, and disseminating language.

The Philippines which is comprised of Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, has around 76 to 78 major language groups with more than 500 dialects (thehague.dfa.gov.ph). The eight widely known dialects are Bikol, Cebuano, Hiligaynon or Ilonggo, Ilocano, Kapampangan, Pangasinense, Tagalog, and Waray. Filipino and English are the languages used in formal education. Baybayin is the writing system used by the Filipinos in the 16th century in which the texts can be seen on archeological artifacts, archival records, leaves using pigment, and bamboos using sharp pointed objects (Philippine National Museum). These can be seen at the Philippine National Museum. Although not mainly used in public, it still persists in many creative ways such as the Facebook Page named Baybayin-Philippine National Writing System which comprised around 712,000 Facebook members who teach each other in learning Baybayin. There are shops that sell products like t-shirts and tumblers with Baybayin text on it. Lectures, seminars, and workshops on Baybayin are conducted like the workshop conducted by Philippine Baybayin master John Keyson. It was held in London last 2019, attracting many Filipinos and non-Filipinos who are interested to learn about the Philippine indigenous writing system (londope.dfa.gov.ph).

YAHUWAHshua is the Provider Acrylic on Canvas 34 x 34 .5 in 2021

Compared to the English Alphabet which has twenty-six letters, the traditional Baybayin has fourteen consonants and three vowels. According to visual artist and calligrapher William Sayman Yu, the Baybayin can only accurately communicate sixty percent of Filipino words while the remaining forty persent present a problem : there is a deficiency in the Philippine indigenous written language. Although there is no such thing as a perfect language since every language varies from the other, it is still important to tackle and address the problems that occur in a language in order to effectively use and maximize it. How to cope with the twenty-six letters without compromising the Baybayin? It is like solving a mathematical problem : seventeen plus blank is equal to twenty-six. How do you solve this without adding another character to be able to retain the traditional writing system? Moreover, Yu stresses Filipino words ng, mga, -ng, and the translation of words and names from the non-Austronesian languages. For example, the name Victor is translated to Mananaog.

To resolve the dilemma, the answer is diacritics. Diacritics is the use of an accent atop or below a letter that indicates a variation in pronunciation. By using diacritics, the traditional writing system is able to write all words from around the world, a revitalization of the Filipino language. Hence, the compound word Neo-Baybayin means the new Philippine writing system. Here, Yu identifies the enigma of the steadfast Baybayin which already existed for four hundred ninety-eight years even longer since 1521. The Malacanang did not publicly address this until they gave official recognition of the Philippine Alphabet : Neo-Baybayin including the name of William Yu during the Presidential lecture series last December 10, 2019.

YAHUWAH is the Light of Maharlika Acrylic on Canvas 33 x 35in 2019

Greatest Worshipper of ABBAH YAHUWAH ELOHIYM in the animal kingdom Acrylic on Canvas 35 x 41in 2020

Glory be to YAHUWAH Acrylic on Canvas 34.5 x 35in 2019

According to the Heritage Gallery, visual artist and caliigrapher William Sayman Yu was born in Baculin Banganga, Davao in the year 1954 wherein his father taught him calligraphy-the skillful art of designing and arranging symbols by hand using a brush, pen, and other forms of writing tools. In 1981, Yu took painting at the International Correspondence Course in London and later became an apprentice of the National Artist Cesar Legaspi. Yu along with Alex de los Reyes and Emeritus Jovilla had a three-man show at Banganga, the first art exhibit in the place. The three founded the Banganga Artists Society. In 1983, Yu went to Manila and started to work as a full-time visual artist. During that time, Yu's works are known to reflect influences from the cubist works of Pablo Picasso. Instead of paint brushes, Yu prefer to used palette knives as tools in his paintings. The next phase of his work became more loose, translucent, and abstracted. He had exhibited in different art venues in the Philippines such as Liongoren Art Gallery, Hyatt, Gallery CHed, Shangri-La Plaza, Galleria de Carlo, Garcia Residence, Metropolitan Art Gallery, Metro Gallery, and so on. He also exhibited at Hyatt Hotel in San Francisco, California, The USA in 2006.

In an interview with Epistola's Studio Art Stories, Yu viewed art as a pictorial invention and a multidimensional form of communication. It is rooted in the soul which flows through the heart out from the body through the arm then to the tip of the brush and then onto the canvas. He added, that since it is a form of communication, painting is an act of worship. It is his genuine desire to worship and honor the heavenly God, whom Yu would sometimes call Sovereign Yahuwah Elohiym, through his visual arts whether realistic, abstract, or semi-abstract with various subject matters hence its term and philosophy "Halelismo" from the Hebrew word Hallel or Hallelujah also known as praise art.

AUW HaQODESH is Wisdom Acrylic on canvas 32 x 24 2019

The recent phase of William Yu's paintings is fused with the Philippine Neo-Baybayin. The goal is to further appreciate, preserve, promote, and challenge the viewers, especially the enthusiasts to deepen their understanding of it. In the field of visual arts, Yu is on the front line in restoring, studying, and promoting the Philippine Neo-Baybayin. Among his works is King Yahuwah Elohiym - The Aleph and Taw of Maharlika which is derived from the Christian Bible Revelation 1:8. The transliteration of the text is read onward from left to right : I am the Aleph (A) and the Taw (T) Beginning and End says Yahuwah who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. This verse is part of John's greetings to the seven churches that are in Asia. The verse praises God, and claims that Jesus Christ will come again for the second time. His other recent paintings are Yahuwashua is Life, Yauw Haqodesh is the Life-Giver, Yahuwah is the Light of Maharlika, and Yahuwahshua is the Provider. Most of Yu's recent paintings have calligraphic characters which when transliterated as "Abbah Yahuwah Ruwach Elohiym the Father, Yahuwashua Elohiym the son Messiah, Yauw Haqodesh Elohiym the Spirit of Truth". These have seals with pictographic Hebrew of the everlasting name of the "Creator Yahuwah Ruwach Abinu (Our Father), Yauw Haqodesh (the Holy Spirit), the Yahuwshua (the Light), Yahuwah Elyon (the Most High Elohiym)." Sometimes it has Chinese characters which state Yu's Chinese name : Wei Zhan. It is worth noting that on July 11, 2017, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts and the National Library of the Philippines presented a certificate of copyright registration and deposit regarding a book by William Sayman Yu entitled William S. Yu: Halelismo and the Neo-Baybayin Calligraphy of the Philippines. The certificate acknowledges the praise art merged with the Philippine Neo-Baybayin calligraphy texts of Yu's oeuvre.

Yu's language is both eternal, artistic, and cultural. It is eternal because he incorporated text that praises the Heavenly Father God. It is a form of prayer or communication between man and God. Hence, beyond Yu's language is a cultivation of a deeper spiritual intimate relationship with the Trinity Whom Yu calls YAHUWAH ELOHIYM (Lord God), YAHUWSHUA (Lord Jesus Christ), and YAUW HAQODESH (Holy Spirit). Yu's language aims to highlight God's language written in the Christian Bible by citing verses and patiently explaining them during discussions and interviews. Beyond Yu's language is a perpetuation of the calligraphy, a three-thousand-year-old form of writing, that Yu calls the sulat-sining. And, beyond his language is an enlivening of the Philippine Neo-Baybayin as a way of being intentional in exercising and documenting it, showing his love for the Philippines and its treasures.

YAUW HaQODESH is the Life Giver Acrylic on Canvas 30 x 48in 2018

Here, Yu's Yahuwshua is Life is dominated by playful expressive brushstrokes of layered red, yellow-orange, white, and black pigments. Beyond the pictorial elements, this outstanding abstract is a rejoice of one of God's attributes: God is Life. He is the source and ultimate meaning of life. For it is God's plan that we may have life and have it abundantly, that is might be full and meaningful (John 10:10). One can only experience abundant life through and with God. It also points to Jesus Christ as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. It entails that Jesus Christ is the One and Only way to God, and when you have Jesus Christ in your life, you have eternal life, which means forever with God.

Morever, his Yauw Haqodesh is the Life-Giver is a cubist figure of a captivating wild cat against a green background. Based on the title, the piece celebrates God as the Source and Primary Essence of Life. In Genesis 1, God the heavenly Father created the heavens, earth, and everything in it. For God has life in Himself (John 5:26). He does not keep life from himself but he creates in order to share what He has. It also honors God as the ultimate Maker of all things. This piece particularly points to when He created all kinds of creatures and living things (Genesis 1:21), as it celebrates the goodness of God and recognizes the animals as good for it says in the verse "And God saw that it was good."

Further, his Yahuwah is the Light of Maharlika features geometrically depicted talented musicians, one is playing with a piano while the other one is playing with a guitar. For Yu, the Filipinos are the Maharlikans who are worldwide known to be talented and cheerful despite the odds. He considers God as the source of Light for the Filipinos. Morever, light is associated with God's goodness and righteousness (1 John 1:5). Here, Yu's piece remembers the goodness God has done in the country, the Philippines , amidst the darkness that is happening like corruption, injustices, and abuses. Yu wanted to shed hope on his fellow Filipinos that the living God is good and there is no wicked in Him, hence He is worthy of trust and worship.

Furthermore, his Yahuwahshua is the Provider is a cubist figured woman carrying a bundle of wheat. This piece recognizes God as the Provider of resources. It reveals the identity of God as the Provider or Jehovah Jireh. He knows what our needs and He will supply them (Philippinans 4:19). Here, the woman seemingly carries a source of food for her family or for a business which in return will have a source of income to buy their needs.

Taken as a whole, behind Yu's eternal, artistic, and cultural language is an ingenious visual artist who is passionate about educating the public on God's attributes and bringing pride to the Philippines' intangible treasures, particularly the Philippine Neo-Baybayin. His untiring support of the Philippine Neo-Baybayin puts him at the forefront of the Philippine cultural workers. In addition, Yu never fails to acknowledge and links his research to God not only as the Author of all languages but also the God of all nations. William Yu's eternal perspective echoes in his research and exceptional paintings that enrich sulat-sining and Philippine Neo-Baybayin, leaving a mark of heavenly legacy at the same time national heritage. - Timberly S. Fuentes

YAHUWshua is the Life 35 x 35 Acrylic on Canvas 2017