The David Suzuki Foundation is challenging Canadians to commit to spending 30 minutes in nature each day for 30 days, starting on May 1, 2013. Even if you're not Canadian, I would still encourage you to challenge yourself and take just a half hour of your time each day in May to experience nature. I'll be participating in the 30x30 Nature Challenge, and I hope you will too! Click here for more info!

There is also a weekly photography contest happening in collaboration with the Nature challenge throughout May, with prize packs to be won. Click here to go to the information/submission page for the contest!

On an unrelated note, I have been almost as much as usual painting, I just haven't found any time to submit anything for the past few months. It feels a little daunting having a backlog of paintings to write about, I think I like to overexplain my art too much. =I

I recently had Heart of City displayed in a gallery, which was my first time being in an art show. The printing was a nightmare as I merged the background with the heart and had to crop it out and spend hours erasing little invisible paint streaks which only showed up when I lightened it for printing. I was very happy with the result though, the print turned out all soft and velvety looking. I also found out last week that a series of five paintings I did got accepted into another art show with the theme of children's storybooks, which will be happening sometime in August. I haven't posted the series anywhere yet, but they feature scenes from a South Asian adaptation of little red riding hood. 

Oh oh and I just got back from my first trip ever to Hawaii! It was so stunningly beautiful, tropical, and deathly hot, I spent most of my time at the beach, in botanical gardens, and in rainforests getting eaten alive by bugsies! The majority of the photos I took are of trees because they were so neat and I wanted to incorporate them next time I painted a forest. Friends and family viewing my vacation photos didn't think they were quite as neat. =I I'll try to post some here when I have a free moment, if I remember.