An interview with NUYOU

NUYOU, NOVEMBER Issue 2022

Out of the ordinary life magical things happen.

Such was the encounter I had with Tian Yu at a fragrance event in 2022.

Thank you, Tian Yu, for remembering me and giving me the special opportunity to be featured in NUYOU Magazine’s November 2022 Issue; it feels almost surreal to see myself in a full-spread of the magazine and was pampered with a dolled-up experience by the amazing styling team in an “Alice in the Wonderland-ish” outfit.

In Black And White, I talked about my art journey and the inspiration behind some of my works, specifically on Metanoia, a stop-motion animation film made out of 508 digital drawings.

Watch the film here,

Selected Images from the Stop-motion animation film Metanoia 2022.

Emma Chong, Weaving Anthuriums (2022) Intaglio, Etching on copperplate

A new phase in the new space.

During the second quarter of the year, I made up my mind to move the studio out of my home.

A decision that I didn’t see coming and should delay no further. With a toddler in the house, it would not be possible to conduct watercolour workshop in peace, I would either have to get him out of the house or the other way around.

So, the studio hunt begins.

I envisioned myself working from a space brightly lit with natural sunlight, without surrounding noise and in proximity to a train station.

After a month of busy viewings and careful consideration, I managed to find a space that ticks all the boxes on my list; I also managed to transform the room into a nice little studio space and moved in within a week.

My new studio at Ubi Techpark is within walking distance of Mac Pherson MRT station, and four bus stops away from Paya Lebar MRT station (Blue and Yellow Line).

Here’s to sharing some photos.

You will be greeted by Jackie, the pink parrot, as you enter the room; it sits on top of a lovely white cabinet from Ikea, storing my small collection of vases, tea cups, and knick-knacks.

Right in the middle of the room is a new dining table that is able to seats up to six persons comfortably; this is where students will be learning and working on their masterpieces.

On the right side of the room, I had the wall painted in my favourite colour- Old Rose Pink.

Although with the limited spaces, I am glad that my growing collections of art books and props still fits in perfectly. Paper goods and tools have also found their dedicated space stored adequately at a corner of the room.

I make sure that I have got plenty of living greens all around to exude positive energy and keep me happy.

Designed for short breaks and reading, this cosy corner with a blue velvet ottoman placed right next to a window is the favourite spot of the studio.

Turkish carpet from my Istanbul trip overlapped with the Springbok skin from Capetown and some flowers in a beautiful Blue and White China vase; these are a few of my favourite things from my past travels.

This is where I would zoned out to enjoy the warmth of daylight while I reminisced about my travels and flipped my picture books aimlessly.

Watercolour Workshop, Private class with student Amber.

Bohemian Fleurs Workshop in July.

Working on a bigger piece from the table and always having fresh blooms in the room.

Taking steps to separate work from home did not come naturally to me, as I have been working from the comfort of my home studio since the early days of my art business.

Now that I have created a brand new “comfort zone” for work, I am happy that I feel more focused and inspired when I am in the studio.

Meanwhile, I am learning to turn off work mode completely when I am back with my family after working hours, a new habit that I have just begun practicing.

Metanoia

Metanoia is a stop-motion animation film from the Weaving Flower Series painstakingly illustrated and created in the first quarter of 2022.

The one minute and thirty seconds short film consists of approximately five hundred and eight digital drawings. Metanoia is a Greek word meaning the transformative change of one’s heart and mind.

The transformation begins as the flowers go through the season of flowering and seeding. Resembling the form of nerve cells neurotransmitters, the stems of the flowers weaved and entangled. The seeds of the flowers represent the mind’s thoughts, taking the form of the human brain migrating from the seed pods to the ground, morphing into Monarch caterpillars and through another cycle of change -the metamorphosis.

At the end of the transfiguration brings a pair of wings for the new creature, taking the form of a butterfly; the thoughts of the renewed mind take flight and land on a beating heart.

In the search for inner peace, I often wrestle with myriads of negative voices in my head countless times a day. Questions of the unknown caused tumultuous anxieties and breathlessness casting shadows over me and haunting me in my sleep. In my desperation, I found an escape through the repetitive motions of drawing, and through illustrating the visual landscape of my mind, I was healing myself.

I attempted to investigate the dynamics of landscape, including manipulating its effects and the limits of spectacle based on my assumptions of what the “landscape of the mind” looks like. Rather than presenting a factual reality, I reimagined the process of Metanoia for myself poetically; whether the process has or hasn’t begun already, I have gotten closer to enlightenment than I was yesterday.

On Wings I Dream

On Wings I Dream is a dream project of late, a custom illustrated children's book commissioned by a client turned friend and book author, Christy Liang.

Christy is a magical lady whom I've not met in person, but her bright personality, the love and warmth I felt from her words for her children painted a vivid picture of her. Her charisma and kindness had brought such a positive influence to the project.

The book was meant as a gift for her children, and she envisioned the illustrations to be whimsical and entertaining for young readers, yet looking pretty for the coffee table. 

Illustrations were hand-painted individually in watercolour and screened for post-editing. The process was long and laborious, but I was pleased to see my hard work paying off when the story and pictures came together nicely. 

The most meaningful part of this book is none other than the iconic destinations that Christy had personally travelled to.These were brought out with illustrations, paired perfectly with her written words that were full of love and warmth.

A half-opened Moroccan door with butterflies fluttering into a whimsical land, colourful hot air balloons carrying safari animals overseeing the rolling dunes of Morocco, babies playing on the sun and moon…...if only I could ride on a giant butterfly and get away now, I would.

A to Z

A-Z is a series of illustrations that began with two main objectives. Firstly, I wanted to challenge my ability to create and design. Secondly, to introduce my one-year-old son to the world of Art by teaching him the alphabet. The latter is a rather ambitious one.

This series of work features topics that inspire me, beginning from flora and fauna with symbolic meanings, art history, art styles, antiques, masterpieces, and all that I am fascinated with.

 Come to think of it, creating a series of illustrations with twenty-six letters of the alphabet, each piece original, beautifully fabricated and telling a story of its own...... I've got a lot of work to do.

The first letter, "A for Anemone Coronaria," was created in September 2019 during my early pregnancy with my son, Leon. While I continued with the daily grind of my commission deadlines and work……eight months down the road, I had about six letters completed. I was glad that despite having a short breather in between project deadlines, I made time to research and work on a series that I am passionate about.

Fast forward to November 2021 as I am writing this post, I am currently working on letter “M", revamping the website, and embarking on a new habit of sharing my work and thoughts through journaling on this blog.

Many life events have happened in between since the series started, both minor and significant. Beginning motherhood, I am constantly learning to juggle that and my work. Also, not forgetting the global pandemic that has irrevocably changed our ways of life.

At the end of the day, the A to Z of life begins with A. A for Art, and it keeps our soul happy, and that matters much.

Moon landing

Bonjour~ it’s Emma here.

Welcome again to this little space of mine where I share my inspiration and creative journey with you. Occasionally, I might throw in snippets of my rather mundane everyday life stories.

Okay, I don’t speak the language, but I love all things French, and that was how the idea of “Fleurabbit” came about, a combination of both things I love, “Flowers” and “Rabbits”!

After five years of running Fleurabbit Studio, I have decided to move away from my secret garden of flowers and rabbits to “Luna by Emma” - the Moon.

 This makeover marks a brand new chapter of my journey as a full-time artist and illustrator. With this new beginning, I am ready to explore new practices in ways that I haven’t, and I can’t wait to see what the future brings.

WHY luna?

The Moon has always been a distant and mysterious celestial companion to our planet, a famous poetic symbol for as long as poetry, literature, and art. What fascinates me the most is our connection with the Moon.

 As humans, our desire to prove our existence is seen by wanting to make a meaningful mark in life, and even going so far as to conquer something that is naturally beyond our reach.

 The first Moon landing taken by Apollo astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin was one of the most significant achievements in human history. The ambitious, bold move altered the course of technological initiatives and manifestly changed the world for the better.

As an artist, my desire to pursue fine art and beauty is unceasing and constant. However, it takes hard work and a lifetime of determination to fulfil this dream.

Being both an artist and a mother, I wish to inspire my child to chase after his dreams and to keep reaching for it. And even at times, it may seem uncomfortable. 

To quote the famous and heroic speech of President John F. Kennedy In 1962 - 

“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organise and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win.”

Beginning this next chapter of my creative journey, I would like to believe that, together with Luna, we will do just that.