small island studio by    宣雄     

 Xiong Xuan Melancholy    

This is Melancholy Xiong Xuan's personal website, just about my drawings, essays and  some photos during drawing process, this is my everyday drawing life as an artist, I built up this small-island since 2013 at State College, PA. I know how precious to have your support, it is meaningful to drawing everyday, and it is meaningful that you see it on my website, it is  like an isolated small island, away from lure from reality world, let me be dreaming, if you like my drawings, I will be so appreciating your support, thank you very much. contact: melancholysmallislandstudio@gmail.com  or  xiong.xuan@gmail.com 

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handwriting by Melancholy on May 3d: We visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art this weekend, especially for Raphael's exhibition. It was said there are 200 pieces in all. I didn't count how many, but it's a lot of work. I went to the solo exhibition hall for 3 times for the weekend, to look, and look again, to feel, and feel again, to think and think again. When I notice his drawings just the base-color of the paper, I realize it's just his sketch, just the preparation for his paintings, therefore it's unfinished yet. Indeed sometimes it's just the gesture of a single line, showing how the young woman and the baby title around, sometimes it's a hand reaching forward. The head looks like an egg, he would like to show the entire face not in shadows, but with light. I like his orange drawings very much, sometimes it's brown ink. I notice how much he pay attention to line drawing before put down light and shadow. Line structures are the basic forms, it's like the beam and walls when you build a house, it's the strength structure. Except main structures, such as head, neck, torso, arms and legs, there are a lot of decorative drapery assisting the form, to help to show the structure, and it's very dense very often. His drawings, especially male figures, look like Greek Vise paintings, very simple, but show the dynamic very well. The strength from top head, throw the shoulder, back, towards hips and legs, until enclose with feet, the strength is continued and very fluent, like a stream. I saw two woman artists holding a small sketchpad copying Raphael at the exhibition. Their copy are rough, can not compare to the original, but I like them. I took some photos, I prepare do some master studies when I came back home. And I would like to ask Hao to pose for me. Because I realize I need to "sharpen my pencil" by doing sketches. I need to do more exercise to catch forms more exactly. I see his sketches vivid living, I can imagine how he drew from life models. I will do the same. He is a good teacher. When you look at his work, he inspired me to do life drawing too. I could see he learn from Leonardo Da Vinci here there. You can not hide. Each artist has his own style, just his habits, just like a personal smell. When you draw with other artist's habits, it will show out on your paper. As a student, it's ok, because it's learning. But once you start doing independent works, you need to be aware of this and avoid it intentionally. Just be yourself, not be someone's followers, no matter how beautiful he is. Today I see Leonardo Da Vinci in Raphael's works, very tender, very sweet, true fine art 100%. I notice Raphael's teacher,  Perugino, his work is very peaceful too, but his student surpassed him. I used to read that Michelangelo refused to teach Raphael, worried him may learn his art. But I can see strong musculature figures in Raphael's work, that's from Michelangelo, it's like many followers has strong superman male figures. Honestly I do not like it. If you draw Moses's stature, it's ok to make it very strong with an overthinking facial expression, with his horns on his head. But when it gets everywhere, it's too much, for example, it's very funny to see a small musculature kid figure doing some gestures. And women too. I think Raphael's work got influence from his early teacher Perugino, and from Leonardo Da Vinci, as well as Michelangelo. He learn from them, summarize, and make something his own. I envy him must had many beautiful models. A beautiful model is 50% to make a successful work. i envy him. Right now I am doing master-study by copying Leonardo Da Vinci's works. I learn a lot. And he inspired me imagine some new ideas. Only when you are copying a work, you will see every single detail very carefully, and draw very sincerely, and thankful full your heart. Someone told me, you cannot draw baby Jesus and mother Maria, because I am not a Catholic. I know at that time, all great masters believe the religion, and work very sincerely. But it's too hard for me to believe, that's because I was not raised up in a religious family, and because I am very liquid. Just live basically, live, and draw, when I have some essay in my mind, I write it down. I have 200 drawing paper right now, I promised myself to finish it sincerely every single page. Until I finish my "New  Renaissance" I will look back what I have done. It's important to make a little change each time, to try something new i never dare to change. For example, during visiting Raphael's exhibition, I notice his beautiful line drawings, I will put that in my work. I used to think I should only understand line as edge of determination, as the separation of light and shadow, and I always hide it. But right now I think lines almost like ballet dancing, it's indispensable, and shadows like background music, to show the atmosphere. I was confused last week about whether art should be noble sublime beauty or it should be realistic, I think i found the answer now. There are no conflicts between the two aspects of drawings, you must show the sublime beauty through vivid details. In other words, the realistic observe details is like a shirt on your shoulders. It can not leave the content. To the end, I would like to tell you: Raphael's exhibition is going on now, until June, if you could come to Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, you should come to take a look. It's very very beautiful and grateful. And if you have a sketchpad, I wish you would like to make some copies after him. After all, his sketches are so nice. I will do some myself, and I would show you on "Hallo Kitty 3". Thanks for having me.