Today I finally got around to populating my online store with my latest art prints (yay!)

A photo posted by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre (@arncyn) on Nov 27, 2015 at 12:37am PST

(Some of the items in the photo above like the bookmarks and Pampanga parol gift tags will only be available for now at the BGC Art Mart on my second weekend this Sunday, December 6. And as always you can avail of them at special bazaar rates at the event. 😉 )

This new set of watercolor artworks are quite significant to me because through them, I got to relive and pay tribute to some of my favorite works of art (and people). The first two are homages to Philippine indie films “Ang Nawawala” by Marie Jamora and “Rakenrol” by Quark Henares. I’ve been a big sis to filmmakers Marie and Quark for about 18 years now (I met them when they were still in school!) and it makes me proud to witness all that they’ve achieved. Of course it was a no-brainer for me to select scenes from their films to draw for my first couple of tribute paintings.

“Ang Nawawala”

“Rakenrol”

The next set are tributes to some of my favorite music by the Eraserheads, namely “Ligaya” and “Ang Huling El Bimbo.” I just had to set “Ligaya” in the UP Sunken Garden since that was a big part of my U.P. life. And incidentally, it was in UP Diliman where I first met the band members before they were even known as the Eheads.

“Ligaya”

“Ang Huling El Bimbo”

Making the last painting in this series was perhaps the most nostalgic for me because it was a re-imagination of “Lightyears” (from the album and storybook “Fruitcake”) which I illustrated in 1996. It was like seeing the same scene, now in color, through older, more experienced eyes. 😀

A photo posted by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre (@arncyn) on Nov 24, 2015 at 6:09am PST

“Lightyears 2015”
In the new version, I imagined an older Frannie Wei back in the real world. She could be married and has kids by now but every Christmas eve she would still climb up on the rooftop and reminisce about her childhood adventures in the land of Fruitcake . Also, that may or may not be Shadow behind her anymore… but who knows?

All prints are available at my online store and directly through me at my pop-ups. 🙂

Endless thanks to Marie Jamora, Quark Henares, Ely Buendia, Raymund Marasigan. Buddy Zabala, and Marcus Adoro for allowing me to create tribute art and sell them as limited edition pieces.. <3

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Also! If you’ve been following on Instagram (or if we’re Facebook pals) you probably remember my “Literary Creatures Quotes” series. All of them are now available as postcards prints and on iPhone and Samsung phone cases courtesy of The Diff. 🙂

The phone cases feature hip animals reading books accompanied by quotes from Leo Tolstoy, Dr. Seuss, and L. Frank Baum. They’d be perfect Christmas gifts for your book-loving loved ones, yes? There;s also a bonus sleeping orange kitty doodle design on one of the phones. Shop my collection right here and also check out the awesome designs by other local artists!

A photo posted by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre (@arncyn) on Oct 26, 2015 at 6:21am PDT

I’m teaching my first ever workshop and it will be on Shrink Plastic Crafting! If you’d like to learn how to turn your doodles into wearable art in the form of necklace pendants, bracelet charms, pins, and earrings, I will show you how to do it and share some techniques and tricks I’ve learned along the way. It will be on November 21, Saturday, from 1-4pm at Hey Kessy (31 E. Abada, Katipunan).

The workshop fee already includes shrink plastic sheets and all other materials, design templates, a take-home zine, snacks and refreshments. (Additional shrink plastic sheets can be purchased from me at a discounted rate if you’re a participant. 🙂 )

See you there? Please go to www.heykessy.com/register to reserve your slot!

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Callalily’s 5th album “Greetings from Callalily” was released last Friday, October 23, and I’m very happy to have been part of it! It’s been a while since I’ve designed a full-blown album because almost everyone prefers buying MP3s, right? But then this is Callalily — I heard that their albums’ sales can hit Platinum — so I wanted to design something that a fan would love to have in his/her possession. I’m happy with the end result and I can’t wait to share it with you. Please see the portfolio to see what we came up with. 🙂

I had the privilege of taking part in Maginhawa StrEat Food Park‘s first ever art fair titled Palette Palate from August 1-2, 2015, thanks to the awesome Ella Lama who organized the event.  The fair consisted of an exhibit + pop-up shops by some of the participating artists, myself included. Here are the three artworks I displayed (on the counter, last three from the right). They might look familiar because I posted work-in-progress videos and/or just-finished shots of these on Instagram. 😉

Setting up in the background are Ella (left) and Cheska of StrEat. On the wall from l-r are works by Megan Dino, June Digan, Mary Grace Vinas, and Andrea dela Cruz. This is actually a photo from day 2 because we got rained in on the first day and had to set up at 6 pm, 2 hours later than planned.

Our pack-up-and-go pop-up shops on the first day. From l-r: works for sale by yours truly, Ella Lama, and Megan Dino.

Handy outdoor craft fair tip (especially helpful during the rainy season) — if your items will fit, you can use a craft toolbox (or any other box with a lid) as a “portable shop”. It allows you to arrange and label stuff and you can quickly close it — and protect the contents! — whenever necessary. 🙂

Another learning: have faith in your customers. Given the weather conditions, we initially thought that only a few people would come. To our pleasant surprise a lot showed up, talked to us and bought our stuff. <3 <3 <3 (If you were among those I talked to, THANK YOU! I loved meeting you and was happy to finally see the face behind the familiar Instagram handle. :D)

We were so busy that before we knew it, it was already 10 pm and we hadn’t even eaten. 😀 Thankfully, StrEat is open til 2am so there was plenty of time to grab food once the art buying crowd thinned out.

A photo posted by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre (@arncyn) on Aug 2, 2015 at 12:02am PDT

Class picture from day 1 plus a few other snaps of our works in the exhibit. August 2 — Very grateful for much nicer weather on the second day since we were able to set up at 4pm as planned and I also got to take better-lit photos. Some more artworks on display. Works by Yang Barrios, Alexandra Paredes, Hands Love Papers, Geli Balcruz, and Karen Versoza. More artists were also able to set up shop besides Megan and myself. (Below photo) top left: rubber stamps and cards by Alex Paredes’ Rubber Ducky Stamp Co; bottom left: prints by Karen Versoza and June Digan. My good friends Earnest and Buddy Zabala dropped by and gamely posed for pics and even helped me sell (woohoo! I love these guys. <3 ) Here they are with my little blue toolbox (looking a bit more organized this time). The evening was a bit more relaxed and I got to bond more with my new friends. These girls are so creative and inspiring! Of course I couldn’t go home without buying some of their beautiful creations: 

A photo posted by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre (@arncyn) on Aug 2, 2015 at 10:45pm PDT

You can check out the above photo on IG to see their feeds. Included in my loot from Ella, Megan, Alex, Karen, and June are the “Light” book (which was a gift from Rob Cham!), two art cards featuring Paola Jane Esteron‘s calligraphy & watercolor work (also gifts!), and free brush calligraphy of Arn’s and my names by Sarah Francesca of Creative Curiosities. 😀

Finally, an almost-complete class picture which I nicked from Megan’s Facebook album ;

I’m joining another art fair soon! Please stay tuned for more details. Meanwhile you can always check out my feed to see what I’m currently up to. 😉