http://search.deviantart.com/?q=by:Vyrilien&section=today deviantART RSS for by:Vyrilien en-us Copyright 2009, deviantART.com Sat, 19 Dec 2009 19:34:39 PST deviantART.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://s.deviantart.com/minish/widgets/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/20466851/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/20466851/ Sat, 13 Sep 2008 06:41:31 PDT Not old as in 'the end of my life here on planet Earth starts drawing near', but old as in 'Am I supposed to be an adult, right now?' It's not like I can't handle any responsibilities or that I can't take care of myself or anything, but it did have something scary about it. Like I no longer have an excuse to act younger than I am. I've crossed a boundary and I can't go back (Gee, sounds depressing )

All of my friends have entered the twenties long before me, but it still feels significant for some reason. I'm not making sense, eh?

Don't get me wrong though, I'm enjoying my special day just fine and I can't wait to get more prezziessss I'm just feeling a bit...different. Huh, weird that. Well, I hear the problem of over-thinking things can be easily remedied by eating large quantities of cake, so I'll be doing just that.

Here, have a slice


~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/20106954/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/20106954/ Sat, 23 Aug 2008 03:25:10 PDT
But I sure take my time for FOUR (okay, five) deviations, don't I? I'm SO sorry it took such a damn long time (especially all you guys who were waiting for Suzaku) but even though they may not all be a succes, I'm still proud of each and every one

I've learned a lot, or so I try to believe I'm finally making attempts at doing backgrounds (which were practically non-existent in my pre-Four Symbols deviations) and I'm no longer relying on working my way with lines, light and contrast on a black canvas. I still like it (Cerberus is another example), but I can do without now.

Byakko remains my favourite one though. I dunno, he started the whole series and for the time spent it's the best-looking one A close second is Huang Long. I like him better than Suzaku, but that's probably my passion for dragons working in his advantage when I was painting.

I have PLENTY of stuff still to paint though. I owe/promised some people some work. I want to have another go at drawing my demonic horse, Fearl, I need to draw another tiger, just because I want to and some people have been asking me about drawing a Qilin/Kirin. Not to mention all the fandoms I need to do fanart for. I should be busy enough

And then the point of this entire journal entry...

THANK YOU! As said, I couldn't have done it without everyone's great support! I'm sorry I didn't follow everyone's suggestions for Suzaku, but I damn well tried That counts, right? In any case, I would never have come that far if it wasn't for you guys. Love you all

~Vyrilien

P.S.: I actually didn't like Seiryuu all that much when I finished him. Ironic that he should be the most popular one of all five. Oh well, maybe I'm doing something wrong

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/19781806/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/19781806/ Tue, 05 Aug 2008 00:20:57 PDT

Well, I got back from HK and it's safe to say I had the time of my life Although it's good to be back, I really miss Hong Kong already...

It was great seeing my family again. Three years really fly by when you aren't looking. Unfortunately I didn't get to see my uncle much (only briefly on the very last day) because of some family feud going on between my Grandma and his wife, but you know how families can be sometimes. I also got to visit some very old aunties of mine -who are already far into their nineties- at their rest homes. My Mom claims they're close relatives, but as soon as she starts explaining exactly how we're related, I get very much confused. And I gotta warn you, don't get old in HK. Visiting the rest homes was...an interesting experience.

And if you want to visit HK (which I strongly recommend ) it's best to avoid the summer season. Everytime I stepped outside -fortunately they have airco's almost anywhere- it was like stepping into a mixture between a sauna and an oven. It was VERY humid and VERY hot. Also if you do, don't visit the Ocean Park theme park. By the end of the day you will have stood 4 hours in waiting queues to have been in exactly four rides -and you will sweat your own weight in water not to forget. Go to Disneyland instead, it's way more awesome.

But then there are the many good things about HK. Namely, the food. Thank goodness I'm not living there; it's one big all-you-can-eat buffet table over there. Everything is at least ten times cheaper than over here in Holland and a thousand times more delicious.

And you just have to love the enormously HUGE buildings surrounding you wherever you go and the small characteristic market streets where all the poor buy their groceries and chickens run amok. HK has so much atmosphere and unlike other big Mainland China cities, it's surrounded by beautiful mountains and the city sits right at the edge of giant forests. So if you want to take a break from the bustling city life, you just take the tram up to the peaks and enjoy the beautiful scenery. Or you just take the World's longest escalator (No joke, there's a giant escalator in the middle of the city that goes all the way up to the foot of the mountains)

I've also been to Macau this trip. It's a former Portugese colony and THE Las Vegas of Asia, as it's the only place in Asia where gambling isn't yet illegal. I've been to the big casinos (The Venetian and the Lisboa -ugly from the outside, gorgeous from the inside) there and it was awesome! Even my brother managed to get past the security checks and see the gambling halls (he's seventeen, but a whopping 1,93 meters/ six foot three tall). I didn't gamble a penny; I've seen how fast those machines swallow money. Let alone the amounts I've seen people lose at the BlackJack tables.
Oh, and I've been in my first mini tropical storm. When we got back from the Macau Tower (home to world's highest bungee jump platform) the skies suddenly turned very dark and before we knew it we got knocked back by some heavy wind and got soaked to the bone by all the rain that suddenly fell from the sky. Trash cans and heavy branches were rolling all over the place. It was pretty interesting.

I can't tell about all the things I've done, of course (this journal is already getting ridiculously long) but having been able to go back to HK was a really happy thing for me. And I'm not coming back empty-handed either, not with their mega-cheap prices. I got a new Wacom tablet!! It's A4 sized and four times bigger than my crappy old one! Plus, it's so incredibly pretty... I'm really happy with it!

One last bad thing though. The return flight wasn't so good for me. You know how sometimes, when the plane drops in altitude in a relatively short span of time, you can feel your ears pressured from the inside? (No idea what it's called in English) Well I had that. Normally you swallow and it goes away. But this time I had a bad cold -to be blamed on the constant switches between extreme heat and extreme cold I got exposed to in HK; for some reason they set their airco's to a chilling 15 degrees and while a nice change when stepping inside a restaurant, it's gets REALLY cold after ten minutes.
Because of... ]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/19669263/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/19669263/ Tue, 29 Jul 2008 20:27:52 PDT

Wow, first time I ever got tagged by anyone. This is not an invite for more tags though

* 1. Post these rules.
* 2. Each tagged person must post 8 things about themselves on their journal.
* 3. At the end, you have to choose and tag 8 people and post their icons on the same journal.
* 4. Go to their pages and send a message saying you tagged them.
* 5. No tag-backs

Okay, 8 facts. Sorry if they seem random; I couldn't come up with anything good after number 3

1. It took me two or so years of stalking deviantART before I finally gathered enough courage to make an account of my own. And even then it was mostly my brother forcing me to make one.

2. I'm a halfblood. I'm half Chinese (my Mom's side) half Dutch (Father's side, though that's obvious) but was born in Jakarta (Indonesia). However I look like neither (well mixed apparantly) and people have been mistaken me for being Greek, Italian and even Indian. And oh, I've got a French surname -don't know where it comes from.

3. I'm a gaming freak. I've been gaming almost forever and worked my way from Super Mario 1 to Metal Gear Solid 4. I think we have 8 consoles at home (PC and Gameboys not included) I couldn't miss gaming for the world. (I've even been addicted to World of Warcraft for a year or two -but I was never any good at it)

4. I know 7 languages but I'd like to take up another one when I get the time. Russian's always sounded cool to me. And knowing Japanese would be REAL handy...

5. I LOVE company but fare just as well being on my own for long periods of time. I have enough things to keep me plenty busy. It does mean I can be neglectful sometimes and I know I need to work on that.

6. I tend to be very critical, but overly protective over the people I love.

7. I love singing, but not everyone thinks I have the voice of an angel... Damnit. I do believe I have some sort of musical talent (for instruments), but I never took the time to develop it. My brother, however, is sceptical

8. I have never been injured badly. The worst thing I ever had happening to me was some sort of mini-hook cutting into my leg which needed three stitches. But that's it; I've been lucky so far I guess.

Okay that's it; this was pretty fun actually. Sorry, I won't be abiding by the rules of this tag; I tag no one. I hate the feeling of having to bother anyone

~Vyrilien

P.S. I will get back to commenting on everyone's works as soon as I get back which will be third of August

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/19425199/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/19425199/ Wed, 16 Jul 2008 09:52:21 PDT

I'll be going on holiday to Hong Kong tomorrow morning, so I won't be coming on at deviantART for the remainder of the trip, which is 'till August 3rd So apologies in advance if the replies are a little late. Unless of course I manage to get internet there and find the time to reply. Chances are small though, I think I'll be plenty busy

So well, that's it. This is just so you know

Have a nice summer everyone!

~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/18981453/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/18981453/ Sun, 22 Jun 2008 10:50:08 PDT
(You can ignore this, especially if you're not from Europe, 'cause it'll probably bore you to read this )

Bet you didn't expect this to be football-related. Neither did I to be honest. I just needed another journal entry and well... I'm actually genuinely sad Holland's out of the Championship.

So, it's official. The Dutch had their butts handed to them by the Russians in a very nerve-wrecking 120 minute long match. (And yes, I do realize it's already yesterday's news and no Dutch will want to hear about it anymore.)

But wow, have I ever been this excited about football? No, I haven't. I don't even care that much for the sport, but for some reason watching the European Football Championship is always so much fun! (Don't get me started on the World Championships). It's the atmosphere mostly, the cheering, yelling and the alcohol too.

I don't know how it's like in other countries, but it was like the whole of Holland had been practically drenched in orange paint (it's our national colour). Orange shirts, orange drinks, orange flags, orange furniture, orange cars and orange paper hats for our dear pets. It's like we'd gone crazy. And even football haters eventually caved under the orange pressure and joined the party.

And now BAM we're outta the game. And we were doing so well too, hahah. Guus Hiddinck, you traitor... (Nah, not blaming him, but he damn better well make the Russians European Champions now he's at it)

/End football rant

I'm actually working on something and it's coming out pretty well. Not saying what it is yet (in case I get another inspiration-less episode) but it isn't anything from my 'yet-to-paint' list, so don't be disappointed once it's up.

I went to Pasar Malam Besar a few weeks ago. It's the largest Indo cultured festival of the world and held annually on at The Hague in Holland. I've gone almost every years since I was little Sad to say it's getting smaller every year, but it's still a great place to go. There are all these cute stands selling scary masks, large beautifully painted fans, wooden sculptures, antique furniture, Wayang puppets (if you know what those are) you name it. Not to forget, there are food courts too, where you can eat local Indonesian food. (the food is half the reason I go every year ) It's all indoors, in a large tent set up for the occasion, so the atmosphere is great too.

Oh wow, I'm ranting. Anyway, I got inspired by some of the wooden sculptures there. Hope it'll turn out well

Now I'll stop talking

~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/18628440/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/18628440/ Mon, 02 Jun 2008 14:04:09 PDT
The amount of messages is scaring me, it honestly is.

What have I been up to in the time not well spent painting? (Warning: this is where I start spewing lame excuses) Uhmm...I've been trying and failing to finish Suzaku. I'll post a WIP in my scraps later and you'll see why it's been (temporarily) abandoned. That along with another pic I was working on back then and too have have left to rot somewhere in the deep crevices of my harddisc.

Other than that I've been pretty busy with loads of other things, amongst which I'll list my study, friends and gaming. Don't get me wrong, I had plenty of time to paint. I just couldn't get myself to do it. I can never force myself to paint/draw. It doesn't work. And not painting generally means going through guilt trips about slacking so much, which eventually bugs me bad enough to cause me to abandon dA 'cause I dislike facing the fact that I should've worked but haven't.

I know, I'm bad. Really bad. You can beat me with a fish if it helps. Whatever it takes to kick me out of this crazy funk. And tell 'inspiration' to drop by my mind again. I miss him.

Love,

~Vyrilien

P.S. It´s good seeing this site again. People never cease to amaze me with their great art. Lot of great new and original pieces and yet, the Popular Page doesn´t seem to have changed all that much in the time I was gone

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/17362009/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/17362009/ Sun, 16 Mar 2008 11:42:16 PDT

I'm away for a month (or two?) and look what happens! Guys, every single one of you, you're all awesome! A DD and so soon; it's something I never even dared dream of. You have no idea how happy it's made me! Here's a big thanks for all the awesome people who have visited my page, faved my work and have left me so many great comments I'm ever so honoured!

Thing is, you're all doing great jobs guilt tripping me; I've been such a neglectful deviant I apologize for the recent inactivity, but if all this attention doesn't get my artsy engine starting again, I don't know what will! I will do my very best to paint more (and finish Suzaku, I swear! ) Now my exam period is over I should have plenty time to do so And to be real honest with myself, I've also simply been slacking and spent ungodly amounts of hours playing Devil May Cry 4 and Dynasty Warriors 6

Love you all,

~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/16763349/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/16763349/ Thu, 07 Feb 2008 00:43:04 PST

No, I am not months late. It's actually Chinese New Year today~! The Year of the Rat if I am not mistaken (don't ask me in which element cycle we're currently in; I have no idea) If you were wondering, I am part Chinese, so yeah, that's why you get Asian inspired deviations popping up in your inbox every now and then

'Kay, for those interested, just a tidbit about this holiday. Otherwise you can just skip reading this

Chinese New Year 農曆新年 (sometimes referred to as 'Spring Festival' is the most important of the Chinese holidays. It begins on the first day on the first lunar month in Chinese calender, which just so happens to be on the 7th of Februari this year and ends fourteen days later with the Lantern Festival. A different Zodiac animal presides over each year and after twelve years the cycle start anew. (So in twelve years from now, it would be the Rat Year again). The cycle starts with Rat, then follow Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and it ends with Pig (which was last year)

This is stolen from Wikipedia, but my Mom used to tell me this story each year too

According to legend, in ancient China, the Nián (å¹´, which means 'Year' now actually) was a man-eating beast from the mountains (in other versions from under the sea), which came out every 12 months somewhere close to winter to prey on humans. The people later believed that the Nian was sensitive to loud noises and the colour red, so they scared it away with explosions, fireworks and the liberal use of the colour red. These customs led to the first New Year celebrations. Guò nián (simplified Chinese: 过年; traditional Chinese: 過年, which means to celebrate the new year, literally means the passover of the Nian.

Alrightie, information part over

Now I just need something to spend my New Year's pocket money on. Hmmm, Devil May Cry 4 is coming out soon... Also, I had planned to put up a deviation (not Suzaku ) in celebration for today, but it looks like I won't be able to make it. Ah well.

Well, now that you know more: I wish everyone a healthy and prosperous year

~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/16669545/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/16669545/ Fri, 01 Feb 2008 06:06:04 PST

I finally finished Genbu, which I am very happy with. I finally got to paint something that's 'really out there' and not something that emerges from an inky background or blends in with sky. That was kinda hard for me at first, especially since I had no idea how to cope with outer lines. Real life has no lines, but looking at pictures and how other people paint, I think I got a general idea of how to deal with it (or so I hope).

Now to the problem. I've got one last painting to do in my 'Four Symbol' series and that's Suzaku or Zhuque, the Vermillion Bird. I am doing this one last for a good reason. I have no clue how to do this. I don't even know how to begin painting Suzaku, because I think the pose will be very important. This was not such an issue with the other three: Genbu is so complex, there was plenty room for creativity and detail, dragons are sort of my thing and tiger heads are beautiful enough to be able to stand largely on their own in an image. Phoenixes on the other hand...

I desperately need some good ideas here. How should Suzaku look like? How should I pose the bird? What kind of a background do I need? If you've got any ideas or suggestions I'd love to hear them, because currently my head is looking pretty empty.

Thank you for your time

~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/16182362/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/16182362/ Mon, 31 Dec 2007 10:40:12 PST

I know, it's still a couple of hours away, but I really want to wish everyone a very happy New Year in advance! Ah, I'm going to enjoy all the fireworks, oliebollen (Dutch traditional New Year's food) and the champagne of course!

I can say 2007 was definitely a good year. I've learned a lot, passed my exams, got my driver's license, my very first car (which I adore to itty little bits and have named 'Veyron' after the Bugatti...I'm weird I know) and made lots of great friends

I guess this is also a good time to reflect on my own artwork. It's been a little over a year now since I've started doing Digital Art and I think I've improved a lot since the first few pictures (especially drawing human faces, which I used to suck at. Now it's semi-decent ). Even so, I strive to get a lot better in the next year! I'm going to do my very best to do so!

I hope everyone has had a great year and that 2008 will be even better! Enjoy!

~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/15930017/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/15930017/ Fri, 14 Dec 2007 11:48:24 PST
Yes, I am still alive...

I've been gone, say 6 months now? Maybe longer. And what do I have to say for myself? Well, nothing really. I actually can't come up with any good excuses. Yes, I've been busy every now and then. But then again, I also had loads of free time. During which I've been quite unproductive :/

Does this mean I'm back? Well, no, probably not. It's just to say that I'm not permanently gone from this site Also, I have say two or so pieces that I could upload. Nothing too big or anything. I've been pretty lazy art-wise.

Also, a big thanks to all the people who have commented and viewed my pieces during my absence (I've already reached a thousand views and I wasn't even there...)

~Vyrilien

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/12963851/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/12963851/ Tue, 15 May 2007 10:09:23 PDT

I've been here at dA for little more than a month now. Time sure flies when you aren't paying attention. I want to thank everyone who visited my page, commented and faved my work and the people who watch me. You've all made me feel so welcome around here, I'll be sure to stick around

I don't think I will be submitting many pieces in the near future though. I draw quite infrequently and I usually draw to keep myself busy, not so much as a project. When I think about it, I hardly draw in my free time, I draw when attending classes and I draw on the pc whenever I have to write some article or another. So basically, I draw when I am supposed to work Maybe I perform better under stress? Beaause I sure am a procrastinator.

I'll try to keep myself busy working on my gallery though

Cheers,

~Caroline

]]> ~Vyrilien http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/12553676/ http://Vyrilien.deviantart.com/journal/12553676/ Wed, 11 Apr 2007 13:04:56 PDT
It may sound ridiculous, but I think it might have taken me at least half a year to pluck up the courage to create the account. (Don't ask me why...) Then, much to my dissappointment, I found out I couldn't create one, since deviantart banned my IP adress, but it all got sorted out in the end and here I am!

Hmm, that's it for now. I am just happy to be here I shall begin working on my account next week, since I am sort of busy at the moment, hehe.

Cheers

]]> ~Vyrilien