A Forest of Tangles – An Art Exhibition by 7F5R Studio

 

Did you catch the “A Forest of Tangles” exhibition held by Team 7F5R?

🗓️ The exhibition ran from 15th December 2022 to 14th January 2023.

📍 At Senso Art Gallery, 25 Jalan Tan Hiok Nee, Johor Bahru, Malaysia.

We’ve had so many wonderful adventures as a team over the past few weeks, and we wanted to share some of them with you!

Debbie and I first set out to Malaysia on 14 December 2022, from our little Studio located in Singapore. We had booked a private-hire car in order to safely transport all of our paintings and miscellaneous items.

Off we go!

We arrived at Senso Art Gallery but needed to have lunch with Susan first, before we could start setting up.

After the yummy lunch, we got to work!

And by that evening, we were mostly all set up:

In addition to the large paintings we had for sale, we also had smaller-sized original artworks, prints, and blank tinted tiles.

Debbie and Susan’s original artworks in tile format, in transparent frames.

After that, we had a well-deserved dinner at a Japanese restaurant and caught up with each other.

The next day, we were back at the gallery to complete our final touch-ups.

Over the next few days, some of our friends also dropped by to visit!

One of Susan’s old classmates, Seow Hui, dropped by to say hello.

Suchitra Komandur came to visit!

And two representatives from Sakura Malaysia came to show their support!

Thank you Ms. Ivy Lee from KL and Ms. Jass Choo from Johor Bahru for coming in on your off-days. ❤

We also taught some Zentangle and Neurographica workshops at Senso Art Gallery. Here are snapshots from some of those workshops:

Many more meals were had…

We even had the good fortune of being able to visit a craft fair that was held just outside of Senso Art Gallery, on one of the weeks.

Debbie and Susan got themselves a new bag each.

And they bought me a very cute pair of bee-flower earrings!

I love them very much.

We also each got these cards that were created using dried flowers and a wax seal.

It was a beautiful day out, and I certainly enjoyed myself.

On one weekend, we also received wonderful news from Susan that one of our largest pieces had been sold! There was a lot of sentimental value attached to this piece as it had always hung in our Studio ever since we first started 7F5R Studio. It was a joint collaboration between Debbie and me; and then before the exhibition, Susan added to it to make it a collaboration between all of us.

It is bittersweet to see it go, but I am glad it now belongs to someone who genuinely loves it. The painting now hangs in the buyer’s newly-opened cafe! Susan visited it on its opening day to take some photos for us:

Along with this larger piece, the buyer also purchased three smaller canvas pieces created by Susan.

I hope you've enjoyed seeing all of the photos I included in this blog post and reading a very condensed version of what Team 7F5R has been up to the past few weeks. :)

#aforestoftangles

Warmest Wishes,

Stephanie J. CZT 21, and Team 7F5R

Singapore

Breathtaking Bales of Batik

 Back in late-September (how quickly time flies), our friend Ildica Boyd came to Singapore for a visit. Debbie, Susan, and I had a wonderful time taking her to various places of interest. Ildica was here for just two and a half days, but boy, did we pack in as much activities as we could!

One of the places we visited with her was the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM). At that point in time, ACM was having a special exhibition titled, "Batik Kita". It was a beautiful exhibition that explored the history and culture of batik and batik making. The designs shown ranged from traditional ones and also modern designs that we see today.

There was much inspiration to be found, and I thought you'd enjoy seeing some photos that I took at Batik Kita...

At the start of the exhibition, we saw the tools used to make Batik prints, and different cloth cuttings. 

Doesn't this design remind you of Bales:

And this one resembles Pangea!

These were more traditional designs.

This one was a very large piece:

Here's a photo that shows the tiny and intricately drawn details of the cloth:

Modern batik featuring words! This reminded me of the tangle, Vermal.

I loved how dynamic this piece looked. The colours and patterns were a feast for the eyes, and I wanted to create a tile inspired by it.

It just so happened that Ildica had gifted to us her handy little guidebooks. They are foldable accordion-style pocket guides that contain different types of enhancement and shading techniques. They were so handy to have as I worked on my tile.

If you think they're absolutely adorable, too, you can buy Ildica's extendable pocket guides here!

On my tile, I used some stickers that I got from the Batik Kita exhibition to create a Whatz-Its, and then used some tangle enhancers and shading techniques that I found in Ildica's pocket guides. The colours were added using Derwen't Coloursoft coloured pencils. This was lots of fun.

If you'd like, you can also download some batik prints from ACM's website on this page. They're great fun if you'd like to learn more about the history of batik making, and also for getting tangling inspiration.

It was great fun having Ildica come to visit and we were sad when she left.

Team 7F5R also recently gifted Ildica this postcard:

Because, truly, we as Certified Zentangle Teachers, are better together. :)

Happy Chrismahanukwanzakah to you!

Warm Wishes,

Stephanie Jennifer, CZT 21

Singapore

Inktober Tangles 2022 Official List

October will soon be here, and that means Inktober will soon be starting.

Inktober is an online event where artists all over the world challenge themselves by doing one ink drawing a day the entire month. In 2015, I adapted the idea to fit with Zentangle art by making each day's prompts be a tangle. I call my list of tangles the Inktober Tangles challenge.

Here are some common questions that people have asked about Inktober Tangles:

Why is it called a "challenge"?
It is not a challenge against others, but a challenge to draw something every day for a whole month.

What are the requirements to join Inktober Tangles challenge?
Just draw something every day for the month of October. That's all there is to it. You can tangle on a tile, in your sketchbook, and use any shape or size or colour. The important thing is that you build the habit of tangling every day.

When does Inktober begin?
It begins on the 1st of October every year.

What if I miss a day?
Create one art work by combining today's tangle with the tangle that you've missed. Or just skip the tangle that you've missed and carry on. Always remember that the point of Inktober is to encourage you to draw more, so don't feel too badly if life happens and you had to skip a day or two.

Why are some tangles in your list non-official tangles?
I try to feature non-official tangles in order to introduce you to new tangles that you may not have seen or used before. Having other tanglers use a tangle you have deconstructed is always great fun, and it builds a community spirit while supporting other tanglers. If you want to swap out the non-official tangles, feel free to do so.

What if I don't like a particular tangle?
I encourage you to still try to create something with it. Pushing past your comfort zone is part of the spirit of Inktober. If you really dislike a tangle, you can always substitute it with another tangle.

What happens after Inktober ends? Will there be another challenge in November?
We do not have a daily challenge in November. However, Debbie and I host weekly and bi-monthly challenges in the 7F5R Challenge Facebook group. 7F5R Challenge is also the official Facebook group for Inktober Tangles.

Is there an official hashtag for Inktober Tangles?
Yes. This year, we are using #InktoberTangles2022

Where can I find the step-outs to all of the prompts for Inktober Tangles 2022?
I have created a handout that contains the list of tangles that you can print on A4 or US letter sized paper. It also contains links to all of the tangles' step-outs, and example tiles that I have created for each day's prompt to inspire you. Here's a link to the handout: https://bit.ly/InktoberTangles2022Prompts-2

Without further ado, here are the prompts for Inktober Tangles 2022:

Please feel free to share the list in your Facebook group or with your friends and students. I have also created a square version of this list if you'd like to post it on Instagram:

I hope that you have fun with this year’s list.  If you have any questions, leave a comment below. I can also be reached at stephanie@7f5r.com or on Instagram @havepen_willdraw. If you’d like to support my work, you can buy me a coffee at https://ko-fi.com/stephaniej

I can’t wait to see what you create for this year’s Inktober Tangles.

Warmest Wishes,

Stephanie Jennifer, CZT 21

Singapore