Alhamdulillah: Being Thankful

Creative Freedom Vs. Creative Breakdown

It may sound chaotic, yes only to several people on this planet. Being creative is indeed extraordinary. Sometimes I'm impress with all the people around me. Each and every one of us see things differently. Some might see a plain wall, but I can see animation and different perspective. Once you're outside the box, you no longer felt naive. But that's not just it. There's more. Once you get out, you are an explorer, and a visionizer. Every one of us have a purpose in life, not only to commit, but to create multi-level of personality in areas such as communication and commitment to someone or something. It's also to show how far you adapt and inspire, either by influencing people to be negative, or positive. Who ever buy your culture, you are the one they look up to.

Through The Fire

I have been struggling 3 months to find if I ever experiencing creative breakdown; where at one point, you can't even do any creative, you ran out of ideas, and you try to force yourself into creating or produce, and it won't come out. Creative breakdown is like a coma, until at a certain time and mood, it will come back to you. I have this on and off. It's weird. I even thought if it's got to do with age, but when I remember hanging out with Joshua Davis, I would definitely say age is not a factor for any creative breakdown. But I also began to wonder if ever I would die out of ideas and design. I believe not. This is because within that period, I was able to design things. But I learn few things after that. It was my techniques. The techniques and the skill set I own, is like a cup of coffee which is just spilling all over the place. It's the time in my life that I need to reboot. To clarify my mind and empty that cup of coffee and learn new things, and new experiences.

Even to that result, I have found a lot of solution. It not only involves creative, but actually the root of the problem, which is our daily lives. How we practice our timetable.

Muid Designer Work Out Plan (Tips):

1. Sleep early as possible. Nothing beat stress from sleeping. A good sleep gives you a good charge the next day.
2. Eat properly. Eat more vegetables, less meat and drink lots, and lots of water.
   
3. Get into the mood. Find things that you like to do best and work on it. Music also helps you while driving to work.
4. As an artist, do a lot of sketches. Draw whatever you have in your mind and what you feel.
5. Exercise regularly. For me, jogging really helps. Always stretch yourself (fingers, arms, neck, back, etc) for 5-10 minute after finish doing your assignment.
   
6. Read more books, more articles that can increase your understanding in developing ideas. Paul Arden is a good start!
   
7. Sort your financial well, and try to spend less on entertainment. Forget all the figurine and designer's toys, sneakers and expensive clothings. Save some money or bring your parents and family to dinner, spend more money with your family or do savings.
   
8. Hang out with families and good friends. Choosing a right friend will make you learn a lot of things, even to identify your weakness or your great potential. Accept criticism to make you become a better person.
   
9. Smile a lot, not too freaky but a simple smile. Smile makes you feel positive. People who have angry expressions most likely a negative person with negative thoughts.
   
10. Travel. Go to interesting places. Take a nature walk. Take photography. It helps a lot.
    
11. Do charity. God loves those who like to do good-doings. Never forget to donate to Surau and mosques / temples / church after your Friday prayer. Don't put a dollar. Put more!
    
12. Seek forgiveness each day, and always be courtesy. Change your attitude to a positive life. Bring passion to your life and your career. Make people like you, don't make people respect or scared of you. For me, I make people like me, for my personality, and get respect from them, for what I stand for and for what I fight for. What do you stand for?
13. Read the news! Keep yourself updated with the surroundings. If MySpace and Friendster is the only first task of work you start with, it's a bad sign. Read Bernama, TheStar or even design portals like Newstoday and FWA to get yourself inspired.
14. Learn and learn! Always expose yourself to new techniques, design-styles, new education and most of all, accept advices and criticism. Like Paul Arden said, 'Do Not Seek Praise, Seek Criticism'. ;-)
    

'Accentuate The Positive, Eliminate the negative'. - Paul Arden

Work Updates

_Websites:


Last month, I finish developing the IAP website for MDeC.


Upcoming flash website for Zulkarnain Yusof / Loud House Entertainment



Upcoming Art4Merdeka, under Perdana Leadership Foundation.

_Digital Montage:


A special Honda City wallpaper I had created, just for fun ;-).
Feel free to download it.[ Download 1024x786] [ Download: 1280x800 (Widescreen)]

_Photography:


Recent shot at Avillion, Port Dickson. This is my second commission work as a model / talent. I remember my first paid job as a model is for Ford Landrover from art director, Ian, for his advertising agency (Lowe). I think now he's in Arc Worldwide. Find more works in my flickr page at http://www.flickr.com/photos/ml



_Press Feature

Alhamdulillah, From February til Now, NST & TheStar had been so supportive to feature me and my friends. Recently, Steven Patrick & Jo (anne) made a big splash of articles about Digital Art Scene in Malaysia, which feature my POV along with other talented people.


TheStar feature. 'Art is Jim, But Not As We Know It'. You can also visit InTech website or download PDF article that I had scanned, here.



NST Feature: Movie Carnival. (I was one of Saladin cosplay! :P) It's so nice to be 'them', because kids love to take pictures of us with them. It's so sweet that the kids loves you (not in Michael Jackson ways lah..).



My Digital Malaya Project (DMP) MekarMara PDF magazine also was featured in Computer Arts Magazine UK! Yeay!Thanks to Ms. Lydia from Sabah, Malaysia for scanning this page and sent this one to me. Love you girl! Check it out here.


Some Poetry

I actually don't remember when I wrote this. I thought I wrote this. It could be from a book i recently read. But I like this poem. If you found this poem elsewhere, please kindly inform.

Happy doesn't mean easy, it doesn't mean perfect.
But happy means contented and hope. Happy means manageable,
Free doesn't mean easy, free doesn't mean to get loose,
but free means rejoice. Free means confidence.

Now, this one I wrote.

AkuBatuAlam

Disaat kau hadir membelai jiwaku yang telah mati,
sekali lagi aku dapat rasakan yang sebuah harapan akan tiba,
yang akan membawaku ke destinasi yang permai,'

Mungkin bila kau (bayu) menciumku,
hatiku rasakan damparan ketenangan,
pilu dahulukala hilang sekelip mata,
Kasih menguasai dengan mekar,

Tetapi kau (bayu) dikala saat pergi,
meninggal tanpa kesan membiarkan hatiku terguris,
memecahkan lagi serpihan-serpihan luka,
hanya mengungkap sandiwara semalam.

Tanpa kusedari, hanya dia (bulan) saja yang tinggal,
di satu sudut memperhatiku, hingga si dia pula (matahari) tiba,
kini aku dipancar hangat, mengadu kepiluan,
aku perlukan ketenangan darinya (air)

Harapanku sekali lagi malap, kini ku takbisa bertahan,
kerna sekali lagi aku terpaksa ditolak ke langkah anjal,
menolak nasibku ke sana, kesini,

hari aku sedari aku bukan aku,
aku hanya sebuah batu yang perlu dibaling,
ke alam baru yang sekali lagi terpaksa memulakan,
sebuah kehidupan yang penuh dengan pacaroba kehidupan.


Merdekakah Kita Dari Dijajah Warga Asing?



Aku bukan risau, bukan membakar pelita sengketa menjadi seorang prajudis mahupun untuk mencetuskan perkauman, tetapi fikir pada akarnya, apa yang sudah terjadi dengan agensi di bumi nusantara ini? Ceritera ini adalah sambutan realiti. Sekiranya Melayu dan bangsa uniti lain membenarkan warga asing memijak kepala dan membenarkan 'mereka' bertakhta didalam majoriti industri untuk memonopoli dunia bumiputra, sedangkan bakat-bakat anak tempatan yang sedia-ada yang lebih profesional dari bangsa asing diabaikan, apa akan terjadi dengan bumi Malaysia kelak? Equiti dimonopoli warga asing?

Fikirkan sejenak, jika dibandingkan, mereka hanya pandai bercakap, sedangkan pada dasar praktikalnya tidak mampu melaksanakan. Maka perlukah kita tunduk dan beri muka? Apa akan terjadi pada syarikat-syarikat bumiputra dan bukan bumiputra (kelahiran Malaysia) yang memerahkan titik peluh mereka untuk mencapai suatu impian yang dibina, dan begitu mudah diambilalih dan dimonopoli kuasa barat? Harapkan penampilan dan tuturkata, tetapi fungsinya? Dimanakah kita? Perlukah kita mendewa-dewakan mereka?

Tepuk dada, tanya selera.

Pada pengamatanku, seketika aku pernah dengar sebuah cerita seorang jurutera telekomunikasi gergasi Malaysia yang bertungkus lumus bekerja selama 10 tahun lebih untuk mendapatkan suatu impian bekecai, apabila jawatan yang sepatutnya berhak diberikan olehnya, di'curi' oleh warga asing yang tidak sampai dua hari datang ke Malaysia. Dimanakah keadilannya?


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Note:
Due to many parties uses my post, poetry and others for their own profit-gaining, such as their own articles publications, thesis submission for colleges and universities, or personal gaining, This post is copyright with CreativeCommons shareAlike, noncommercial license.

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