http://search.deviantart.com/?q=by:yctham&section=today deviantART RSS for by:yctham en-us Copyright 2009, deviantART.com Sun, 27 Dec 2009 05:26:43 PST deviantART.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://s.deviantart.com/minish/widgets/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/13536760/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/13536760/ Fri, 29 Jun 2007 09:13:56 PDT
Let's see what I did in the past 6 months...

New medias I touched:
- Marker
- Soft pastel
- My digital SLR camera!
- Corel Painter IX [learning]
- Adobe Acrobat 7.0 Professional
- Adobe Indesign CS2 [learning]

New subjects I learnt:
- Marker rendering
- Typography
- Photography
- Figure drawing & anatomy
- Marketing, lol...
- Portfolio design

Areas I involved in industry:
- Staging (Floor plan & artist impression)
- Corporate branding [working on]

Plans for coming half year:
- Make some paintings to sell in gallery
- Get my Wacom tablet!


MALAYSIA ELITES GALLERY
"Malaysia Boleh!"
~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/11492127/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/11492127/ Fri, 19 Jan 2007 09:50:40 PST
During these days, I found that there were too much things for me to learn. I found that I need to strengthen my foundation in drawing. I tried to learn from basis – from drawing a stroke. Maybe some of you may take it a pinch of salt, “Tham, you’re good enough! Why you still want to learn something a beginner will only learn?”

Yes, it was something to my surprise too, ‘coz I used to think drawing strokes were silly, and just skipped if there was any chapter about this in book. But this time I took seriously in improving myself, so I just followed the tutorials in book, and started doing the “silly” works. I reflected my friends’ works with fascinating strokes; I reflected comic drawings by some local cartoonists I saw in comic magazine; I also reflected what my ‘teacher’ always critiqued about my painting method, and what he always emphasized to me – strokes.

“Gosh! Now I only REALLY realized how important ‘stroke’ is to an artwork! Why didn’t I just realize of that few years ago?” Damn it, I had been wasted so many years. What I should feel glad was I could realize it as soon as now, rather than tomorrow or even when I was old.

The 3 days in library were fruitful days for me. I started to take art and design with a more serious step. Of course, what I learnt throughout those days were not only about strokes, but also some other things. I finally felt I really made a right choice for taking design course instead of staying in science track – I really studied for the sake of my own (for my interest, my dream, my career, my life) instead of study for the sake of exam and fulfilling others’ expectation on me. My heart was filled with great satisfaction at the moment I stepped out from library.

That reminded me of a paradox I learnt few days ago, “It’s not how good you are; it’s how good you want to be”.


http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/11408405/ Fri, 12 Jan 2007 10:10:56 PST
As a good starting for a New Year, it is always good idea to make some firm resolutions:
1. I want to learn:
a. Photography
b. Corel Painter
c. Marker
d. Macromedia Flash (for web design)

2. Main skills I want to improve:
a. Acrylic
b. Colored pencil
c. Watercolor
d. Mixed media
e. Adobe Photoshop
f. Adobe Illustrator

3. Buying list :
a. Camera (for photography)
b. Prismacolor colored pencil
c. Prismacolor art marker
c. Wacom tablet

4. Some other things I want to do:
a. Building my self-promotional website
b. Getting a freelance job

Hereby, I’d like to thanks to all my supporters in past whole year, and friends who gave my guidance to make me a better person, such as:

(names arranged in alphabet order to avoid jealousy )

Metamorphosis of a new Yctham is begins...

http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/10709679/ Mon, 13 Nov 2006 08:38:03 PST



What are my holiday plan?
November & December 06’ :
Updating all my sites, including Deviant Art, my homepage”Live to Dream” [link] , and my blog.
Designing a contest entry. I’m joining a computer graphic poster design competition, organized by my brother’s university. This is a BIG challenge for me! ‘Coz I have a very limited skill in computer graphic!
Learning Adobe Illustrator CS 2. This is another BIG challenge to me. I have to learn it from zero, and “master” it before X’mas. Hopefully I could use it to help me come out a better computer graphic design for the contest entry (which I mentioned before). Gosh! I left 1 and half months of time only!

January 07’
Practicing my watercolor. I found that my skill in watercolor is deterioted. I shall put more effort and catch back the skill I had before.
Learning acrylic. It bullied me when I using it to do my college’s final projects. I shall take some time to deal with it, so that I could come out more kick ass works in the future!
Building a self-promotional website for my studio “Tham Pictures Innovation”! This is to provide me another platform to promote and share my works with more people around the world. Do look forward for it, buddies!


~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/9893580/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/9893580/ Fri, 15 Sep 2006 10:01:25 PDT

Very thanks to for recommending me to join Deviant Art. During this 1 year time I really met many great artists here (and some even become my net-friends ), and learnt a lot from them!



My gallery stat after 1 year I join Deviant Art:

“Yctham has 2,159 pageviews total and his 43 deviations were viewed 2,336 times. He watches 124 people, while 46 people watch him.

Overall, his deviations received 452 comments and were added to deviants' favourites 144 times, while he commented 871 times, making about 2.41 comments per day since he joined DA. This means that he gave 19 comments for every 10 that he received.

His deviation with the most comments is Theme of Spider-Man :computer: [link] with 37 comments, receiving an average of 2.64 per day in the first 2 weeks, and it is also his most favourited, with 34 favourites, averaging 2.42 per day in the first 2 weeks. His most viewed deviation is Theme of Spider-Man :computer: [link] with 247 views.

3 favourites were given for every 10 comments.

Every 8.3 days he uploads a new deviation, and it's usually on a
Thursday, with 9 (21%) of his deviations.

His busiest month was September 2005 with 9 (21%) of his deviations.

The majority of his deviations are uploaded to the Traditional Art
gallery (28), while his favourite category was Drawings > Portraits & Figures with 7 deviations.

Comments per deviation: 10.51
Favourites per deviation: 3.34
Views per deviation: 54.32
Comments per day: 1.25
Favourites per day: 0.39
Views per day: 6.48
Pageviews per day: 5.99

http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/9435332/ Sat, 19 Aug 2006 11:10:18 PDT UPDATE (19th August 2006):
- Top 3 Most Favourited Deviantions



Halt! Stop scratching your head! I know lots of you don’t understand what the title stands for. Ha! It’s actually translated from a Chinese idiom, means “who will win”.


Yes! I found something funny to play with you all, hehe… Since my 1st anniversary of joining DeviantArt is coming (24th August), I going to make a “Yctham Deviantions Charts 2005/ 2006” for my gallery. I’d like to know that which of my deviantion is most favourited by you all!


TOP 3 MOST FAVOURITED DEVIANTIONS in my gallery currently valid by Monday, Jul 31, 2006

1. Theme of Spider-Man (both versions) with 41 favourites *also a The Pencil Club's Daily Deviantion*
- Original version: [link] (12 favourites)
- Computer edited version: [link] (29 favourites)

2. Fishermen Village [link] and Demonlized Arrival [link] - with 11 favourites

3. Reflection: [link] - with 8 favourites


Which one(s) you prefer? Please give your morale support to any artwork(s) you like (and also to me), tell me which you like, or even vote them by add them into your favourite!


Of course, there are many more nice works in my gallery (), so browse my Deviantion Gallery [link] and add anyone you love in your favourite list, even though they are not in the Top-3-Charts.


This game will end on my 1st anniversary joining Deviant Art, 24th August 2006(Thursday). A final winner list will be come out soon after that.


Who (which one) will win, and to be number ONE in the charts? Their... ]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/8372684/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/8372684/ Sun, 09 Jul 2006 10:22:57 PDT Mmm… does it good news to you? Hope my coming back will be as welcome as the flowers in May, and turns you all on! ><
Well, this is the first journal after I come back to DA, too much of things I want to write I must say it would be too long if I write here, so please go through it with your every patience, ha!


Why I left Deviant Art?
D’oh! It’s hard to explain, buddies. So many reasons there were. Firstly, I was dead exhausted after practicing watercolor on and on everyday for 2 months. At the end of January, my practice brought me (and my teacher) a satisfying result, and then, my teacher tried to give me another more “advanced” way to practice. I was been asked to design something by him! Gosh! I was totally in lost; don’t know where to start and which way to go for design. My brain got stuck after that. Secondly, I was facing some problems for my further art education, and obstacles in pursuing my dream and also family difficulty (don’t ask). Thus, I needed a long break, and left my art and Deviant Art for temporary. Again, just for TEMPORARY. See! I’m back now! Ha!


Launch of my new homepage “Live to Dream” [link]
Yep! Guess some of you might have known it already, ‘coz I have made announcement through my last journal. So I don’t want to mention here again. If you want to know it further, you may check the last journal [link] .


Two-Day-Training in an Advertising Agency
At the midst of February, I was given an opportunity to get some training in an advertising agency, which is operated by one of my mom’s friend and her husband. Although it only last for two days, I had learnt a lot from them. Being exposed to the reality of art industry, the experience really opened my eye and widened my knowledge .My interest in advertising industry becomes deeper and firmer than it used to be.


God blessed my exam result
Anyone here still remembers the artwork “Fishermen Village” [link] which I drew for Visual Art Examination of Malaysian Education Certificate (SPM). 13th March was the day for my result of the exam came out. God blessed me! I got A1(the top grade) for it! I can’t believe it! Before that I was so worried about the result would be quite unsatisfying, as I couldn’t really finish some details while exam ‘coz time was out. Moreover, since our papers were marked by teachers from other state, I afraid my paper wasn’t been sent to either east coast or north of Peninsula Malaysia (where watercolor is much more being accepted in my country). I was relieved, and of ‘coz dead chuffed, while I knew the result! In addition, I didn’t fail my Malay Language paper, and got more A’s than I expected. It was too marvelous for words!


Undergoing a Guinea-Pig-Practice
Sigh… It has been almost 3 months I don’t touch my paint brush. My hand started itchy, ha! Since my watercolor skill is considered “okay” now (still need more improvement, of coz’), now I have started to learn another new medium in creating artwork – pencil. Huu huu. it is the medium I have dream so long to learn it! Finally I could have a great opportunity to learn it now! I have been practicing like a guinea pig everyday; lol… so crazy~ and at the same time I’m trying to create and design something new with my “bakaness” creativity, haha! Hope I could... ]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/8089381/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/8089381/ Tue, 07 Mar 2006 00:12:35 PST by Michael Learns To Rock
(Album: Nothing to Lose)

Ain't gonna do the gig tonight
with the band
I'm going out of town to night
oh yes I am
Sorry fans
sorry band
I couldn't keep my promise
I'll put on my coat and hit the road

Breaking up
breaking out
I am leaving now you can sing it loud
have to stop
Had enough
crying tough
Quit the race
give me space
`Coz I'm so tired of being a slave
tomorrow
I'll sing a different song

There's gonna be no wedding on
Saturday
I will be on my way by then
so far away

Sorry mom
sorry honey
I couldn't keep my promise
I'll ripp off my tie and say goodbye

Breaking up
breaking out
I am leaving now you can sing it loud
have to stop
Had enough
crying tough
Quit the race
give me space
`Coz I'm so tired of being a slave
tomorrow
I'll sing a different song




I never heard this song before. Its lyric was found when I was trying to search for another song by sung M.L.T.R. This song is high rated in a lyric website; with rate 4.9 (full mark is 5.0). I tried to search to download this song, but I can't found it.(So if anyone knows which website could get free download for song, please tell me, okay? thanks! hehe...)

The lyric gives me a great feeling of glum, and tired of the singer's dream. It's clearly reflects how my feeling is lately. Yeah, I'm getting exhausted...

Never ever thought, that I'll be such easily been defeated. I had "high estimated" myself- I'm not that strong as I thought!

Love, is: my duty, my responsibility, my burden, my curse... Too much burden is on my shoulders, but there is no way for me to put it down. As I said before, "life without any love is deathly horrible".

I love my dream, and I love my family. Sadly, both couldn't exist at the same time. I have, and must, to choose one of them, sooner and later. I know I have to. Instead of practicing escapism, let me do the decision now, before anything getting worse.

Indeed, there are many great things I wish I could do, and contribute something to others. But the fact is my dream doesn't please my family at all! 'Coz, they have no faith on me. I tried to do something other else to please them; But my efforts they never seen, and, once I did wrong, my mistake will be like been put under microscope, looked bigger than it should be. And another instance was, I tried do learn to do housework; to show I'm not that useless as them thought, but for them, learning to do housework is just an ordinary thing, which is everyone ought to learnt. They never ever thought for a moment that why I want to do all this "fuss". As one old saying goes: "If you try to please somebody, you please nobody" - Nothing I do will please them! Nothing!

Maybe, I shall be a so-called "filial son" to them: listen to them, obey to them...and stop my mischievous attitude in their eyes - and even stop my deep enthusiasm to my dream, stop floating on the river full of unknown, living a stable life they think. Yeah... and then, I will be a prefect son, and a slave of their thinking as well.

Now, everything I wish, could only done in my dream. Will it be a sweet dream? A nightmare, or? Beat me...

Okay, fine. I'm too naive and innocent. There is no fairy-tale in real world.

Sorry friends, sorry teachers, and sorry those who support me and always be with me along the journey to my destination. I'm extremely tired and exhausted, in the sense of physically and mentally. I might have to slow down my pace, and even taking a long break. Thank you for be with me so long. I'll remember your good in my bottom of heart, forever and ever.

And, if, one day, I sing a different song, please don't sad for me... ]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/7824097/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/7824097/ Mon, 06 Feb 2006 23:10:12 PST [link]

I had spent 2 months to complete it (of course not working on it everyday, I did it a little bit by a little bit if have free time); from concept, photography, texts to webpage design, I did it with my own. Although it is quite tiring, the result brought out is very satisfying for me. So those difficult times are worth at last.
The concept actually is taken from my album which I planned to produce in the past but canceled at last due to some technical problems. So I apply it to my new homepage, and by doing so, hopefully I could share it with more people throughout the world.

The funniest part, and I enjoyed the most was photography. I took a lot of photos myself secretly without my parents’ acknowledgement. I set up my “photography studio” myself, which is actually a guest bedroom. And the custom design I also decide by my own; the custom I like the most is the white shirt with white trousers—everything is WHITE! The result come out was really fantastic, really suit with my concept for the homepage.

Editing photo with computer also is one of my favorites. I took the opportunity to learn Adobe Photoshop. I found it is really powerful software. You know why? ‘Cuz, similar with other teens, I have pimple problems. The Photoshop enable me to “erase” the pimple away in the photo, so that I will look more handsome, haha!!! Wish I could master the software very soon.

By existence of this homepage, I hope I could share more things about me, no matter are my art works, experiences, feelings or thoughts, with more people around the world. And I hope I could do my part in helping the needy, to inspire them with various meaningful words, to share them with different life lesson I gone through, and to perk up again who are demoralized.

Through the site, let’s built a community for those who have dream for their life. I found that it is a NEED! On the journey of pursuing dream, we will face a lot of obstacles of course. We need those who understand us to moralize us, continue pursuing the dream until we achieve it one day. Who are the people will understand us? They are who same with us – having dreams to pursue in their life!

Dream. Let’s dream. Live to dream. ]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/7245435/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/7245435/ Wed, 07 Dec 2005 09:01:52 PST It was a total disaster when I hold my paintbrush again after stop painting for 2 months as it was exam season. I found that my painting skill was going a step backward! No, 2 steps. Oh no, 3 steps? 4 steps? Whatever….Thus I have to double my effort, hoping that my skill would be as good as, or even better than, I was. Only by that mean, I will achieve my dream, involve myself in art industry one day, and to be someone… if God willing!
“Life is about choices. We can choose just to complete a job or set out to do our best. It is better to attempt our best because then we test our limits. In doing this, we learn new things about ourselves and very often the work we produce will turn out to be outstanding.” This is a quotation from a book “Inspiration Moments” co-written by students of LimKokWing Institute of Creative Technology which I read recently.
Do you have any dream? Just do it! Don’t limit yourself by your mindset. Go beyond limits! Dare to challenge, and dare to be different, to be the one.
Make your dream real, and make it BIG! Do it for a deeper purpose. Not only for your own sake. Dedicate to your family: earn money by your dream, and let’s them (and yourself) live a better life; Dedicate to your community, share anything you had learn from your life experience to your friends; Dedicate to your country, raise your country’s image in the eyes of the world!
DO IT FOR A DEEPER PURPOSE~!!!

]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6701741/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6701741/ Fri, 07 Oct 2005 06:56:21 PDT
---------------------------------------
Before – 28th September 2005

Finally, the day I’ve been waiting it comes. 7 more hours after this, I’ll be sent into exam hall, examine my real capability in art.
… …I should learn flying by myself. Only I, only I can help me. There’s no other refugee.
This time, bravely, I use watercolour as my medium for my painting for exam. It is the first time, and also the last time, the last chance for me to determine my success and failure. Constantly and making hard efforts learning watercolour for 3 months, I had gone beyond the limits of myself. Whether others agree with my capability, it’s still an unknown.
… ... ‘Coz the encouragement of Mr.Tang, my teachers, friends and “die-heart fans”, I become braver… …
May everything go on as I wish. Despite what will happen, I’ll continue pursuing my dreams, till the day they come true.


---------------------------------------
After – 29th September 2005

I’m exhausted. Deadly tired. After finished my exam and came back from my school, I’d slept for 4 and half hour.
The nightmare I dreamed last night becomes true—I can’t really finished the painting by the time. In fact, I could finish it. I only left some details. The exam comptroller made mistake and wasted my 5 minutes. If she didn’t, I could finish those details! Sigh!
Seeing my monitor teacher so love my study art piece for the exam, I gave it to her. That’s my first B4 size watercolour painting in my life. Ha! Anyway, glad she likes my painting. Woo, so miss my painting now. Will she frame it up and hang in her home? Haha! Hopefully she will, and wish after years, when I success in my career, I could go her house and visit my that painting, hehe…
Hopefully I could get A1, or else… … T.T ]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6570165/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6570165/ Thu, 22 Sep 2005 06:22:22 PDT [link] ), helping my friends so that they could do better for the exam.
Fell stress now. Hmm mm. It is the first time I sit visual art exam prepared by our government. I don’t know who will mark for my art piece, hopefully the examiner likes my art piece, or else….. T.T Please pray for me, for not getting A2 in the exam.
So gambatek for those will sit for the exam next week! ALL THE BEST!!! ]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6419202/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6419202/ Mon, 05 Sep 2005 02:07:46 PDT
Last year I had participated competitions by those same organizers, and both I won 1st Prize! But you see, the result this year getting worse!!! I wonder what’s going on, and what’s wrong with me? I suppose, I lose not because of my techniques getting worse, ‘coz, I know, I know I had improved a lot. Or my concepts are worse than last year? I don’t know, hopefully not so. Sigh! Or maybe the participants this year are better and more experienced, maybe…who know?

Whatever…I think I need to do what as the ads said – Take a rest, and have a Kit-Kat, haha! ]]> ~yctham http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6395104/ http://yctham.deviantart.com/journal/6395104/ Fri, 02 Sep 2005 07:34:44 PDT [link]), I have found another one good gutter for me to share my art pieces and thoughts – DeviantART. Very thanks to Iris for recommend me to join this community!
Since I just a newbie here, I’m still don’t have so much idea to develop this space. Well, just let this first blog and art piece as the open ceremony for it. Haha!!!
Hopefully you all enjoy viewing my art pieces and my thought I shared here. Feel free to give any critics/ comments. And, if you have interest to know me further (make friend with me), welcome to contact me, either by email or messenger.
Happy visiting!!! ]]> ~yctham