Todd Sumamno
Shilin, a Chinese girl, is living in Canada at the moment. She is, seemingly a common quiet girl, while her heart is full of powerful energy. Not long ago, she graduated from music university, which turned her into a musician. However, that is not amazing enough. After viewing her art works below, you will find this common girl is actually uncommon at all. Let’s move on to the interview to learn more about Shilin’s life and her art.
Q1. Welcome, Shilin. Let’s start as usual. Can you say something about yourself to our readers?
I’m a recent music graduate who has enjoyed doing art for a very long time.
Q2. As far as I know, you are good at piano, and is pursuing a degree in music performance in the University of Western Ontario. Then when and where did you get your painting skills?
Both art and music were my hobbies. I studied music with a teacher, but most of my improvement made in painting skills are from having tons of practice by actually doing it. Since I enjoy the act, I have been very motivated to get better and try new things, which were the causes for my growth.
Q3. As an artist as well as a musician, how do you manage your time deal with your work?
In university, I focused on music and continued doing art as a hobby, which resulted in very slow and fragmented learning since I was only able to finish a new piece once every few months. Now that I am graduated and decided I would like to explore this field more, I have put aside for now my music practices. I can feel both hindering each other’s potential growth, but I still wish to retain both since they’re both important to me.
Ragnarok Online
Q4. Most of your pieces are of pastel colors, do you think it is more or less influenced by your music, or just because of your personal favor?
I wish I could use more violent colours, as that is one of the many words that describe my thoughts and imagination. However I believe I am just accustomed to softer contrast and instinctively use soft colours during my work. My eyes also seem to be sensitive that sometimes if I zoom into one colour area to work on it, they’ll begin to hurt, which doesn’t help.
Q5. In all the created characters, is there any one drawn for reflecting yourself? or which character do you want to be if you can choose?
None of my characters are modeled after myself, although most of them probably take on elements of my personality, believes or philosophies naturally. If there is a character I can be, I would like to be Blackbird, because of her laid-back personality and optimistic view on life.
BlackBird – Shilin’s Webcomic
Q6. There are some pictures about Ragnarok Online in your gallery, so do you like playing the game? or just choose it for inspiration?
I am a fan of the game and I have been playing it for many years. The game was fun, and I find the character designs stylish in each’s own way and pleasing to look at. I was commissioned by a lot of players for art of their characters, as well I enjoyed doing my own takes in customizing their official designs for my own characters, hence the number of related pieces in my gallery.
Brittany Maslo