top of page
LZ
Emotional Landscapes
A collection of sketches from the places I have traveled, as well as quick studies of live animals, figures, and other subjects. These sketches have provided important resources and references for my final works.
Red Sand BayRed Sand Bay near Macau, the peaceful moment before a storm, F4 with pen and ink, straight from life drawing. | A wet day in AmsterdamA wet day in Amsterdam, pen and ink, F4. | Two SmokersTwo old Chinese smokers, lightly shaded for the skin texture. Pen and ink A4. |
---|---|---|
Coast LandscapeCoast landscape, pen and ink A4. | Guinea Pigs CookingThree cute guinea pigs cooking 🍳 and enjoy a hotpot. Colour pencil ✏️ A4. | Smoking ManThe smoking man, based on my oil painting. Pen and ink A4. |
Medieval SoldierArt exercise of medieval amour noble with pen, pencil and colour pencil. A4. Reference used. | Triceratops SkeletonA triceratops skeleton fossil from the Naturalis museum in Leiden. Pen and ink A4 from a recent visit. | Gravensteen castleGravensteen castle visit, Gent. A very wet day in winter. From life drawing. Pen, ink and colour pencils A4. |
PlowingBoy and horse plowing fields, pen and ink A4. | Lushan TempleLife drawing at Lushan Temple in Changsha, first piece in 2024. Pen and ink A4. | EdinburghEdinburgh view from Calton Hill, pen and ink A3. |
Shuhe AfternoonA sunny afternoon in Shuhe town, Yunnan, visited with my parents in 2020. Pen and ink with colour pencil, A4. | Chamonix Mont BlancChamonix, France, view towards Mont Blanc from the valley. Life drawing on the 1st April and coloured with F&C pencil. | Giza PyramidThe great Giza pyramid, pen and ink A4. |
AmsterdamThe canal in Amsterdam, one of my favourite places. Pen and ink A3. | Wildlife StudySome random drawings of wildlife from museums in Norwich. | Chiangmai2019Street in Chiangmai, Thailand. One week before the global pandemic. Pen and ink. Completely based on my oil painting. |
Mom ReadingMom is reading a bible, from life drawing. A4 pen and ink. | Gravensteen Castle RelicsGravensteen castle visit, Gent. From life drawing. Pen, ink and colour pencils A4. | IGAD Art Staff Online MeetingArt lecturers from IGAD having an online meeting in front of monitors. Pencil A3. |
Misty River ThamesBoat mooring in misty river Thames, based on historical reference. Pen and ink F4. | Camerata RcoThe Camerata Rco band live concert drawing in Dordrecht. A4 with pen and ink. | RUE Saint DominiqueRUE Saint Dominique in the evening 🌆, Paris, pen and ink. A4. |
Animal StudyA quick 40 minutes study of the lion from Norwich castle museum, and the bushes behind the forget me not church. Pen and ink. | Dad and meMemory of my childhood entirely based on vague memory. Me and Dad were having fun in the paper factory in Yuanjiang. He was pushing the small open deck rail cart with me on top. Those small carts were used to transport raw paper materials within blocks of the factory. Sadly my dad passed away in 2020 with me on his bedside. Pen and ink A3. | Nights WatchThe last drawing draft of 2020, it pretty much sums up the year, dark yet there's light of hope. |
Chania CreteThe view from the window in Chania, Crete, Mediterranean sea. A perfect warm sunny day in winter. Life drawing A4 with pen. | Putney Bridge BathPutney bridge, Bath, one of my favorite cities in the UK. Pen and ink A5. | Journey To The WestTwo wee clown monsters from Monkey King, Journey to the West. A quick drawing for fun. Pen and ink A4. |
Rosengarten from TiersLife drawing during my trip to Dolomites. View of Rosengarten from the top of Tiers village. Pen and ink A4. | Elm Hill RoadThe dreamy snowy night in Elm hill road, Norwich, based on my oil painting. Slight different technique, without clear outline for major shapes. Pen and ink. | Life StudiesVarious life studies from Norwich castle gallery, the typewriter is a good example of speed drawing, about 30 minutes, the penguins took about 25 minutes. Pen and ink on A4 paper. |
Laundry ManMan working in laundry in Sri Lanka. Pen and ink. I made a few versions of this study including an oil painting. | Farmer in South TyrolA farmer with his golden looking after the herd of cows on the hill. Life drawing in Steinegg, Tirol. Pen and ink A4. | ChattingYoung girls with a dog passing by a group of old women wearing masks and chatting on a bench. Pen and ink A4 |
Tibetan VillagersThe Tibetan villagers queuing for a holy funeral of a Lama, study, pen and ink. | Shuhe TownThe dramatic clouds in Shuhe town, elevation 2470m. Pen and ink A4. | Watzman from BerchtesgadenBased on life drawing in Berchtesgaden in 2007, view from the hotel towards the second highest peak in Germany, the Watzmann. Pen and ink A4. |
StrasbourgBeautiful autumn colour in Strasbourg, a cozy warm afternoon by the canal. F&B colour pencil with pen and ink. A4. | Commission IllustrationA commission illustration for a friend's project, about Athens and Greek history. Pen and ink. | Nepal FacesPlay with value, contrast and composition. Nepal, Pen and ink A4. |
Boao TownLife drawing on the balcony of Boao town, Hainan island. Pen and ink. | BerchtesgadenPen and ink polished over life drawing of Berchtesgaden valley, April 2007. I sat on the hill slope in two days around 6 pm during sunset and made the sketch. A4. | ForestForest and waterfall, pen and F&C colour pencil. A4. |
The Grote kerk of BredaThe Grote kerk of Breda. Pen and ink A4 from life. | NuanQuan Town MarketPen drawing from the sketch. Based on a visit to a rural village in Hebei, China. The sunny day of a local market. A4. | Flam FjordsLife drawing of the Norwegian fjords in Flam. A4. |
Norfolk CoastThe Norfolk coast, half from life drawing in Norwich, half from imagination. This one was done by pencil only. A4. | Bacharach Beer GardenBeer garden in Bacharach, with pen and colour pencil. F4. Life drawing and memory only. | Pont NeufAdded more shading and details for my 2009 Pont Neuf life drawing. A4 with pen and ink. |
Farm in South TirolA dairy farm in the valley of Steinegg, towards Rosengarten massif. South Tirol. Pen and ink A4, life drawing. | Beijing HutongFrom life drawing with colleagues in Hutong near Houhai, Beijing small alley are becoming a major tourist attraction. Pen and ink with colour pencil, A4. | Flam NorwayThe mountain view of Flam, Norway, life drawing A4. |
Feng huangLife drawing in Fenghuang, Phoenix old town, west Hunan. Pen and ink, A4. | Breda HavenBreda haven, pen and ink from life drawing, A4. | Bhaktapur Durbar SquareBhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu, 2019, pen and ink directly on life drawing. A4. |
Bagel Brother Cafe Lubeck_SThe life drawing from the window of Bagel Brother Café in Lubeck, I drew this piece in 2007, made some changes in 2019. Pen and ink together with colour pencil, A4. | Russia Wintera quick base drawing for a client asking for loading screen of a WW2 board game, 2B and 4B Pencil and pen on A3 paper. | Frank on the trainFrank on the train, the 60 year old historian sat next to me and we had a nice chat from oberwesel to Koblenz. I made a quick draft of him with pencil. F4. |
PrincessThe young puppy, Princess. A4 pen and ink, Colour pencil. | JourneyIt's a base of my digital painting, the piece features bishops bridge in Norwich, the Salzburg castle and Romania buildings, all the places I have visited. | Norwich from CastleCastle view towards north east in Norwich. Pen and ink, F4. |
XiChang StreetThe rundown XiChang street in Changsha, 2016, A5 pen and ink. | Ponte VeccioPonte Veccio, Florence. life drawing from the balcony of a wine shop on the left bank, it was freezing cold. F4 with pen and ink. | CheungChau IslandLife drawing in Cheung Chau Island, Hong Kong. Pen and pencil A4. |
CingelStraat BredaCingelstraat, Breda, based on life drawing on location. A4 with pen and ink. | Norwich Cathedral From WensunBased on my life drawing from a Norwich paint out event, A4 with colour pencil and pen. Autumn of Norwich, England. | New Summer PalaceThe study of new summer palace in Zhuhai, China, I will draw more traditional and historical oriental subject in the near future. A4, pen and ink. Directly from life drawing. |
GentLife drawing in Gent, 2017, A5 pen and ink. | King's College through a gateRainy day of King's College through a gate, the finished drawing of Cambridge, pen and ink, A4. | NewIsland CafeNew Island café, Hong Kong, based on life drawing when I was dinning there and memory later on. A4 with pen and pencil. |
Church Constantin&HelenAfternoon view of the Constantine & Helen church in Bruges. A5. Life drawing with colour pencils. | View from London EyeLast piece of 2015, based on life drawing from London eye! Pen and ink, A5. | RomeA sunny winter day in Rome. View from the colonna traniana square towards east. F4 with pen and colour pencil. Life drawing. |
Chester East GateThe famous east gate of Chester, a very picturesque elegant city with so many historical landmarks, pen and ink, A5, life drawing. | Norwich CathedralLife drawing of Norwich Cathedral during the first week of the new term, pen and ink polished later in office. Finally I had the chance to draw the magnificent cathedral from my favourite angle, I could even see the peregrine near the spire. A3 full size. | Istanbul ImpressionI visited Istanbul in May 2012, a wonderful and colorful city! I made a A4 drawing afterwards. The location is from imagination, doesn't actually exist, it's a reflection of my impression of Istanbul. |
Ruins of the Great WallThe Huanghuacheng section of the wall may not be the most dramatic part of the magnificent wonder, but it changed my initial impression of the wall. F4 from life draft, ink only. | Keelung JiufengI visited my favorite place in Taiwan in 2013 summer, the guest house located at the top of the hill, I made this drawing early in the morning around 6am before the temperature got too hot. Pen and ink on A4 paper. | NUA FantasyDuring the outdoor life drawing session, I transformed the courtyard of NUA campus into a more fantasy world. Created different layout and composition for the building structures, added figures and other stuff from imagination. When the sun came out, the shadow really brought everything together. |
Syntagma SquareLife drawing at Coffee Island, Syntagma Square, Athens. A4, Pen and ink only. | Hale StationLife sketch of Hale station in the morning, pen and ink on A5 paper. | Castle BridgeThe bridge connects the Norwich castle and mall, life drawing in the morning of 19th September 2015. Pen and ink on A5 paper. |
Japanese WarriorA very atmospheric drawing, depicting Japanese warrior rides a small boat in storm. Pure imagination drawing inspired by "Lone Wolf and Cub"/Kozure Okami. Smaller than A4, pencil and pen. | Iron PenguinA sketch I made eventually for my 3D scene, a girl is painting a rusty iron penguin, 10 minutes with pen and ink during a meeting at Francis house. | New ForestLate afternoon in new forest, brockenhurst, life drawing with pen and ink, polished a year later. A5. |
Fight in Elm HillMy favorite street, the Elm Hill, where the fight begins. I widened the road for better composition. Pen and ink on A4 paper. | Elm Hill FantasyThe life drawing session with students really inspired me, made this fantasy world of Elm Hill, the lower part of the drawing are purely from imagination, and of course the dragon, one day work with pen and colour pencil. | Norwich Market towards CastleThe view from Roman market towards Norwich castle, I stood in the sun for an hour and made the draft, coloured with pencil later. A4 size. |
Bacharach Burg StahleckThe old castel turned into a youth hotel, over river Rhine in Germany. | Melaka MalaysiaThis small A4 draft drawing is based on my impression of the great Malaysia coast town Melaka, used to be a very important port from 17-19 centuries. The town has very rich culture and history of early Chinese immigrants and local Malay people. | St. Peter MancroftSt. Peter Mancroft, Church of England, Norwich. Afternoon at 3pm, about an hour. Pen and colour pencil. |
Pont Alexandre IIIBased on an old pencil draft I made in Paris in 2009, the Pont Alexandre III, just finished the ink lines, changed the composition, added a few figure in the foreground and cloud. | Wensum RiverA 1 hours study alone Wensum river near Norwich University of the Arts main building. I made this as a demo for life drawing session of my first year students. Pen and ink on A5 paper. | Feng Huang ImpressionA quick drawing finished in the office, smaller than A4, nearly 2 days work. It combines the impression of west Hunan province, 3 hours away from home town. Amazing culture and landscape there. |
Norwich Castle KeepThe life drawing of Norwich Castle keep, for memory with my students in the Uni. Pen and ink, A5. | Dumnoen Saduak MarketDumnoen Saduak Market. Thailand, 2012 Christmas. Draft with pen and ink. Size A4. This piece formed the basis of my final drawing in A2. | Heidelberg FantasyOne of the quick draft after visiting Heidelberg in July 2010, combine with some fantasy elements and imagination. |
Cingjing FarmLife sketch I did in central Taiwan in 2013, Cingjing Farm is a famous tourist holiday resort, 30 minutes with pen and ink looking down from the castle towards farm. | Wensum Norwich40 minutes quick life sketch, the view from Monastery towards Wensum river, pen and ink, coloured with Faber&Castel pencil. | Portrait StudySome random drawings of people, from various places, airport, museums etc, Many of the mini head portraits took merely 5-10 minutes. |
German WWII SoldierThe drawing I made for a WWII online game, as a base for the coloured splash screen. | The Cat Woman40 minutes of life drawing, with Holly in Cat woman dress. Pen and ink on A4 paper. | Suleymaniye MosqueA very quick draft of the famous mosque I made during the visit to Istanbul in 2012 May. |
On the trainA very quick sketch, during the 15 hour train jouney from Beijing to my home town Changsha, two travellers sleeping in the lower bed of the carriage, one is reading and another is checking his mobile phone. | Prague01Looking down to the bridges from the hill on the west, the view offers more than what you expected from a legendary city. Pen and black ink on A4 paper. | Life DrawingLife drawing in SG39 with A2 paper, 40 minutes each. |
KandyAfter a short to Sri Lanka, I made a drawing on the busy chaos street of Kandy, their historical town. Finished with coloured pencil after came back. | British 6th AirborneThe drawing I made for a WWII online game, as a base for the coloured splash screen. | Wells NorfolkLife sketch from the field trip in Wells, I always wanted to draw the typical Norfolk coast line, with a very cloudy grey sky, with a few moments of sunny spells. |
bottom of page