Category: Help & Resources (Page 4 of 10)

Do you currently have any pets?

No, I don’t have any pets currently. I really want to keep a pet, but my financial situation does not allow me to do so, and I have not yet prepared for the responsibility of keeping a pet.

Did you have any during your childhood?

Yes, I did have pets during my childhood. I had a Dachshund and a Labrador at my grandmother’s house (my mother’s mother). In the summer vacation of primary school, I raised a small turtle and two goldfish at my grandfather’s house (my father’s father).

Do you have any memories that stick out about these pets?

At that time, I was too young to remember clearly. There are only fragments left in my mind. The Labrador urinated on a friend’s bed. We knew we were in trouble and ran out of the room with little Labrador in our arms. And I remember another time when I took my Dachshund and my aunt for a walk. It was too small, and it almost fell into the sea without noticing, because the gap in the railing was very large for it. The railing can’t stop it at all. Then I picked it up and walked. I have no memory of goldfish. But when I was a child, I was timid and dared not put the turtle in my hand because I was afraid it would bite me. 

What does your pet mean to you?

Pets are friends and partners to me. There is another reason why I don’t keep pets now. I want my pets can accompany me forever. But I know it’s impossible.

I currently have one pet and that would be my pet dog Coco. She’s two years old and is a half shitzu and half poodle. I got her around the start of the pandemic, which was a bad time for us all. She’s one of the most energetic dogs I’ve met in my life and in a way that’s what makes her stand out from others. My dog means everything to me, she’s sort of like my child. She’s there for me on my happy and even my sad days. What’s funny about her is that when she was little, she was all over the place, but now she’s so calm, something I didn’t think would happen.

The best way to capture her in a portrait would to have her in her most calmest moment, laying down. When she’s up and about, it’ll be impossible to have her stand still for a photo. But when sitting or laying in her bed, it can give me the opportunity to draw her for her portrait. She avoids photos at all costs, so the best chance I have would be when she’s the most calm.

Something from my own interests that inspires my art would have to be music and people. With music, it invokes certain feelings when I sketch and helps set the tone for whatever I draw. People also inspires my art because of the stories they share with me. I tend to draw people or environments based on the cool stories people shares with me.

The place where I’m from, The Bronx, influenced my art. Everything from the people, the art and even the culture here all play a huge role in what I create. From seeing the graffiti plastered all over the walls to the people with their stories, my work derives from that.

Something personal that inspires my art would have to be graphic design. I say that because I tend to bring in some principles and rulesets of design into my work. In a way, that’s what helps differentiates me from other artists as I continue to experiment with different things around me.