Last Saturday I had the privilege of teaching my first watercolor class on portraits. If anyone told the me of 2015 that I’d be holding workshops in a year’s time, I would have laughed in their face. Seriously, it took me a lot of thinking, overthinking, and convincing to finally crawl out of my comfort zone and gather the confidence to actually go and do it. Why? Because workshops are the new ballet lessons? Well …yes (*sheepish smile*) but also because I’ve gained so much from being part of Manila’s growing handmade art community so it’s time to give back. <3 And why not share what I’ve learned over the years decades that I’ve been drawing faces to budding artists who share the same passion for creating?

But first, credit where it’s due. The first and only drawing-related workshop I ever attended is veteran artist Fernando Sena’s Summer Art Workshop way back in 1986. Believe me that was enough. (He still conducts these workshops, do check them out.) It was an intensive 8-session art course (complete with an on-site sketching session at Hinulugang Taktak in Antipolo, a “graduation” and an exhibit) while I was between 2nd and 3rd year high school and that was where I honed my drawing skills. I learned how to use graphite, charcoal, oil pastels, and even oil paints. It completely prepared me for the courses in the UP College of Fine Arts that I would eventually take. 🙂

An oil portrait painting I made of my Tita Lina back in 1986. My Ate Peach sent this pic to me via IG. Haven’t seen it in years since it’s in their family home in Sydney. 🙂

After that I’d do charcoal and oil portraits of relatives, friends, and the random 80s teen hearthrob (i.e. River Phoenix, Scott Baio, Robby Rosa… I know, so very #titahits). It was only last year when I picked up the old hobby again and taught myself how to do it using watercolors by watching Youtube videos and reading tutorials. I would also observe Arnold whenever he drew and applied some of his digital sketching techniques to my analog work. And that’s how I developed a watercolor portrait style that I’m quite happy with — and that’s what I shared and demonstrated in my class last Saturday.

It was held at Hey Kessy, a cute little art and crafts store in Katipunan which also houses a charmingly decorated brightly-lit workshop venue. It’s also where I did the Shrink Art workshop last year. I love the place’s artsy, creative vibe so please expect more workshops from me in the space.

Some photos of what went on…

I thought it was important for them to learn face-drawing basics first so I guided the participants on how to do it then let them apply what they learned when sketching from a reference photo. *I just had to pick Kiko Mizuhara as our practice model. How pretty is she?

After we were happy with our respective pencil drawings, we started painting. Below is the result of the face I sketched and painted on-site. Admittedly, this was the part I stressed over for weeks since I’ve never drawn in front of an audience before — can I do it fast enough? Will it turn out okay?

Below: everyone hard at work on their paintings.

And finally, the result of everyone’s efforts — yay, class photo!

A few of the participants are illustrators like my friend Jovan de Ocampo who’s a cake designer and longtime member of AngINK; some are young art students looking to hone their portrait skills, and some are new to watercolors and admitted that they’ve never properly drawn faces before. But look at their outputs above and below, they did it and I think some of their own styles are already emerging! I’m so proud of them. 🙂

One of the participants, Chu, even shared a before and after photo (below, left)  of a portrait she made a month ago (inset) and her work after she took my workshop.

The other drawing (aboce, right) is a portrait wherein she used a technique I taught them. So happy to see so much improvement in such a short time!

You can keep track of my workshops and student outputs via the hashtag #cynarreworkshops on Instagram. I will definitely hold another class like this soon so if you’d like to join the next one, please leave a comment on this post + your preference of area (QC / Makati) so I can update you once I get hold of more details. 🙂

After a year of practicing watercolors almost non-stop, I’ve decided that I’m now ready to hold my own watercolor workshop. I’ve thought about it for months — some generous people have already offered their establishments as venues — but I didn’t want to commit until I was 100% ready. But then I got such a high from teaching the shrink art workshop and from giving a talk to young creative ICA girls last year that something inside me clicked and said “ok, now na.”

Since Mansy of Hey Kessy has been very supportive of me & my art journey, I wanted to hold my first watercolor workshop with them. 🙂

You can sign up for a slot here.

In this class I’ll be teaching you how to paint simple and loosely expressive watercolor portraits from live or photo references. Don’t worry, even if you have never drawn a face you will learn the basics. We also won’t make anything too involved or “overworked” since I want to highlight the spontaneous quality of the medium. (And to be honest, I can appreciate them but I’m not a big fan of hyper-realistic paintings because if I wanted “realistic” I’ll just use a camera. ;))

The fee is inclusive of snacks & a workshop kit consisting of a zine, a 12-tube watercolor set, a 3-pc round brush set, watercolor paper sheets, a mixing plate, a pencil and an eraser.

Here are some of my sample practive work. Can you tell that I’m both nervous and excited?

Spent the last few hours getting acquainted with Lefranc & Bourgeois Louvre watercolors, a French-made student-grade paint just a bit over the price range of Prang (the 12-tube set is P290) but obviously more intensely pigmented. I think it’s a great starter choice for portrait practice. ? Incidentally, my workshop details are now up over at @heykessy website ? http://workshops.heykessy.com/watercolor-portrait-painting

A photo posted by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre (@arncyn) on Jan 17, 2016 at 6:25am PST

Hope to see you then though if you can’t make it on Feb. 20, I promise there’ll be more soon. I’ll announce when the dates are final.

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Update on our coloring books: they are now available at select Powerbooks and NBS branches in Metro Manila, Hey Kessy in Katipunan (Flutterby only), and Laruan Atbp, in Maginhawa St. QC along with Arnold’s graphic novels and Nautilus Comics / Chamber Shell Publishing books.

Some local award winning comics brought to us by Arnold Arre and Nautilus Comics. #laruanatbp #laruanph

A photo posted by Laruan Atbp. Cafe (@laruanph) on Dec 9, 2015 at 4:21am PST

You can also buy them directly from our publisher at Chamber Shell, via orders@nautiluscomics.net, or by clicking the button on the sidebar — >

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Happy 2016! Sorry, I’ve been a little remiss in updating these past few weeks… BUT! If you’d like some bite-size news, I recently reactivated my Twitter so you can peek in there every now and then if you like. 🙂

Hi guys! First of all, a quick reminder that my Shrink Plastic Crafting Workshop is happening this Saturday, November 21, from 1-4pm at Hey Kessy in Katipunan .Please head to this link to view the details and/or sign up for a slot. The fee already includes basic materials and snacks but participants can get extra shrink plastic sheets from me at a discount.

Below is an example of what you can learn to make. among so many other fun things, with shrink film. 🙂



A photo posted by Cynthia Bauzon-Arre (@arncyn) on Nov 9, 2015 at 10:49pm PST

And if you’re wondering about the doodles in the background of my shrinkydink “sampayan” collar pin, those are some of the illustrations you will find in my coloring book FLUTTERBY.  😀

Thanks to Chamber Shell Publishing, Arnold and I both have our own adult coloring books.

LOCAL COLOR – A Philippine Fantasy Coloring Book features (as the subtitle says) Arn’s Filipino fantasy themed illustrations that depict both modern and classic facets of our mythology. Think diwatas, aswangs, people from a techno-future and what-have-you.  🙂  It has 30 of his original drawings contained in 64 9″ x 12″ pages, perforated so you can tear out and frame your finished colored work! SRP is PHP 295.00

A few more preview images from Arnold Arre’s LOCAL COLOR —

FLUTTERBY – A Daydreamy Coloring Book has my doodles of girls in dreamy, breezy scenarios that typically involve flowers, leaves, and, on occasion, birds, butterflies, and cute furry creatures. There are 20 original hand-drawn pen and ink drawings in 44 pages, also perforated. SRP is P150.00.

A few more preview images from FLUTTERBY —

The covers for both books aren’t glossy on purpose so you can color them too if you want! They will be in bookstores soon but you can also order directly from the publisher at orders@nautiluscomics.net for stress-free delivery to your doorstep! Bulk and overseas shipping are available as options. 😀

UPDATE: Limited quantities of Flutterby are now available at my online shop!

I will also be bringing a few of my books to the holiday bazaars which I’ll be participating in soon. So far, here is my schedule.

November 28 (Saturday) – BGC Art Mart
December 6 (Sunday) – BGC Art Mart
(unconfirmed date) – Steady Sunday Bazaaro

It might get even quieter here on the blog as I prepare for the art fairs but you can always check my Instagram for (a bit more) regular updates. 😀