The Beauty Of Philippines' Capital, Manila Captured In 19 Hyperrealistic Watercolor Paintings That I Made

My line of work exhausts me completely. Especially if you used patience and precision during each painting session and then concentrated completely on it. So, after 5 hours of painting a day, you are mentally exhausted. However, if you enjoy what you do, completing an entire piece will be worthwhile.

My work varies depending on the size, medium, subject, and intricacy, but the size I usually make is 21x29 inches, so it lasts about a month and a half. That's why I photograph my subjects directly with my camera; I walk around the street, and if there is a beautiful scene, I photograph it. My camera serves as my private sketchpad. So my subject is entirely original.

That being said, there are genuine reactions where people are impressed by how it is done by hand, especially when they see every detail and how it is said to have been made. However, many people, particularly those unfamiliar with realism, believe that I am a fraud and that my works are Photoshopped and manipulated, which is a huge compliment to me thinking that my painting is simply a photograph rather than work done by hand.

In 2008, I began working as a graphic artist for a company that created designs and decals for miniature aircraft models. Before becoming a full-time artist, I worked as a traditional lettering artist, full-sized furniture designer, and signage maker. To be honest, a lot of people told me there was no money to be made from painting, so I didn't take it seriously at the time, but in 2013, I thought I was getting old, and I'd like to see that when I'm 80 years old, I'll still have things that are considered to be me, my own stamp, and my own masterpieces. Even if I'm not as well-known as some of the other artists we know, there are still things to be proud of.

That why my favorite aspect of painting is what is known as rendering, which is the process of slowly and meticulously bringing every detail of your subject to life.

Even though I have been influenced by a variety of artists in other art forms, my favorite realist painters are Juan Luna, Caravaggio, Gottfried Helnwein, Vilhelm Hammershoi, Johannes Vermeer, and Paul Cadden. Although many people refer to my painting style as hyperrealism and photorealism, which is acceptable, I prefer to refer to it as realism. The topics I select are those with a social reality, where actual events and every street scene are depicted.