Can I use your art on my webpage?
Yes, if it is a non-profit page, and if you follow
a few simple requests I have:
- Please please PLEASE read the image descriptions,
and if it says the image is copyrighted to a third
party, you cannot use that art without contacting
the copyright holder. Do not ask me about these
images, or about how to contact the copyright holder.
You can either
follow the links I have, or look them up on the internet
yourself.
- Don't make any modifications to the image
other than proportional resizing.
Read that line again. PROPORTIONAL! Sorry, but
so many people don't seem to understand that,
no matter now many times I say it, and
seeing my art squished into all kinds of odd
sizes is terribly disturbing. So if you use the
art, don't squish it so it's fat or skinny or
whatever. It's meant to be a certain size. Keep
it that way.
- Don't link directly to the images on my
site. This takes my bandwidth and slows it
down for viewers on your site as well. Instead,
right click and copy to your hard drive and
upload it to your own server.
- You must have a "©Stephanie Pui-Mun Law"
on any page you display my art. UNLESS the image
description on Shadowscapes indicates there is a
copyright to a third party involved. In which
case, please respect their copyrights and
indicate such, along with an "art by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law"
in your credits.
- Lastly...I don't require this, but it makes
for a very grateful and happy artist if you
choose to place a link back to my galleries
from your site. You can link to
http://www.shadowscapes.com. If you want to
use banners, feel free to use any of these:
http://www.shadowscapes.com/banners.shtml
Can I use your art for other purposes?
As long as it's non-profit, or for your personal
enjoyment I don't mind at all. If it's not, please
email me and I'll be happy to discuss possibilities
with you.
How can I purchase your art wholesale for my store?
Can I use your art for a tattoo on myself?
As I said above, you're welcome to use my art for any non-profit
purpose. You're welcome to have my pieces tattooed on yourself.
Can I use the website graphics (divider bars, menu items, etc) on my
website?
Sorry, but no. These things define the "look" of Shadowscapes. I
spent a long time designing the graphics, and buttons, and color scheme.
Besides, you don't want a website that isn't unique. Take the time to
design your own graphics.
Can I have a higher resolution version of a particular painting?
In general, the answer to this is no. Unless you commissioned it, or
want to license it for a fee.
There are a few special circumstances, so if you have a case then contact
me and we can discuss it. Otherwise, please don't email me asking for
this. A good portion of my work is digital. This means that the
"original" piece of art IS the high resolution file. I cannot distribute
these to anyone who asks, for my own protection. Sorry about that.
What font did you use for the Shadowscapes logo?
There is no font. The logo was designed from scratch by hand, sorry
to disappoint!
Can I put a link on my site to Shadowscapes?
By all means, go right ahead. You're more than welcome to do so and
to use any of the banners I have available.
No need to email and double check with me. If I didn't mean it, I
wouldn't say it right? =)
Do you take commissions?
Yes. Take a look at this page:
http://www.shadowscapes.com/inforequest.shtml
Why is the site called Shadowscapes?
It's not something that I thought about a great deal. It just came to
me, and now after several years I suppose I'm stuck with it. But if you
want meanings and whys....
I do a lot of high fantasy art with the jobs I take on, but when I
sit down to paint something for myself, I
prefer things that are more subtle. They don't necessarily have to be
high fantasy with elves and dragons and such. Perception, a way of
viewing something with a different mindset. Shadows of reality that are
almost grasped, but at the same time dancing in a dream-world made of
light and absence of light. Shadowscapes is the name I put to this
painted reality.
What is "Pui-Mun"
I get asked if "Pui-Mun" is a marital hyphenation quite often. No,
it's not. It's just my Chinese middle name. It's quite common for second
generation Chinese to have either a Chinese middle name, or else a Chinese
name that is used by their family and relatives.
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What is that funny little square that I see in the corners of lots
of your paintings?
It's a Chinese signature chop. They are custom made, carved from
stone. Usually there is a carving of an animal on the top. Mine has a
kierun and it says says "Law Pui-Mun". Where can you get one yourself?
Well, I have two -- one came from China, and the other from my local
Chinatown. The range in prices can be anywhere from $15 - $150 depending
on the quality of the stone, the carving, and your haggling skills.
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What do you use to paint?
These days it's mostly watercolor.
Although you'll find acrylics, digital paintings,
pencil, pen and ink washes...and a few other random
things in my galleries. And please don't try to
convert me with "Don't do any more digital paintings
please!" I happen to like it, and I take offense to
people who think that just because something is done
on the computer it isn't art. =) You're welcome to
try and debate that with me. For the digital paintings
I use Photoshop or occasionally Painter. Although
I have not touched Painter in a long time. As for
the watercolors, I use Windsor-Newton cake paints.
The paper I'm more picky about. I use Strathmore's lightweight
illustration board. Pricey, but worth it I think. It holds
the color very well and makes the paints much more vibrant
than some other papers I have tried. It comes in sheets that are 22x30
inches, and costs about $6.
How big are your paintings?
Watercolors and acrylics can be anywhere from 8x10
inches to 22x28 inches. My digital paintings I do at
about 300dpi 8x10 inches, using Photoshop and Painter,
and a Wacom tablet.
How long does it take you to finish a painting?
My watercolor paintings can take anywhere from a couple of hours to 50
hours. It depends greatly on the size and complexity of the image.
How do you do that streaming light effect or the curved swooshes in
your watercolor paintings?
Unfortunately there's no magical trick for this either, although it's
probably one of the most common questions on technique I recieve. It's
just pre-preparation when sketching the image, patience, and lots of
layers of watercolor washes! When I first sketch out the painting onto
the illustration board with pencil, I mark off the edges of the swooshes
and the light beams. Then, when starting to paint, treat these like you
would any edge, and I paint darker on one side of the line than the other.
It doesn't happen all at once, but is built up with layers as I go.
How do you "transfer" your sketches to the illustration board? Is
it carbon paper, or are you having it specially printed somewhere that can
handle the large scale?
Well, first I do a rough sketch. Then I scan it, and play around with a
background in photoshop. Once I get the composition worked out, then I
blow it up to the size I want the final to be, and print that out
(sometimes I have to print our sections of it at a time since I work on
large illustration board and I can only do 8.5x11 on my printer). Then I
trace over everything with pencil on the printouts, and put them face down
onto the illustration board and rub the whole backside of the printout
with my thumbnail. The graphite lines that you traced will transfer to
the other surface, if you use enough pressure. So it's like carbon paper
a bit. Try it out with a small piece of paper and you'll see what I mean.
Of course, this tends to flip the sketches so that they are the reverse
of what you originally drew. Sometimes this is a good thing. It gives you a
fresh perspective on them and you can correct stuff that doesn't look
right. But if you don't like that, then you can flip it horizontally in
photoshop before you print out so that when you trace, it's backwards, but
when you do the final transfer, it is the right way again.
Do you have any recommendations for sites that I can learn
drawing/painting/art from?
The biggest resource that I know of is Elfwood's FARP (Fantasy
Artists Resource Page). You can find that here:
http://elfwood.lysator.liu.se/FARP
Do you have any tutorials?
For those of you interested, I have the following tutorials:
-Watercolor- -
a walkthrough of the painting "Fox Spirits"
-Pencil- - a walkthrough of the
drawing "Tree Dryad"
-Acrylics- - an intro guide to painting with acrylics
-"Watercolor Fairies"- is
a wonderful book with many tutorials by top fairy artists. I wrote
one of the tutorials in this book as well.
Can you let me know when you update the gallery?
Sure. Just click
here and sign up for my
monthly updates list. I make sure to keep people
on the list informed of any current projects
I'm working on, and when they will be available for
public. Such as Magic cards, the Gypsy Silk Tarot I'm
working on, and other projects. You can leave the list at
any time, and there's only one mail a month with the
latest news.
When and how can I get a copy of the Tarot deck I see on the
site?
This tarot deck is a work in progress. It was begun in June
2004, and
will most likely take a couple of years from then to complete. Right now
I am not taking any pre-orders yet. I would like to wait until the deck
is more near completion. But yes, there WILL actually be a published deck
when it is finished, and you will be able to purchase it here at the site.
If you want to be kept updated about the progress of the deck, the best
way is to join the mailing list.
Will you sign my CCG cards?
Sure. Send the cards, along with a return, self-addressed and stamped
envelope. Make sure you have put enough postage on it!
I see many quotes all over this website. Where do you find
them?
If there's no author attributed to them, then they are from my own
writings. Otherwise, all quotes on the Shadowscapes site have a note as
to where they came from.
Why all the foxes in your paintings???
If I only knew....
Well, the first time they appeared was in
"Autumn Foxfire". Since then, they have
been poking their noses into my paintings whenever they feel like it. I
suppose part of it is I like the trickster nature of foxes in many
folktales, and their quirkiness. They represent in a way the
unpredictable nature of the otherworlds. And then of course, the striking
coloration of red/white/black make them an aesthetic joy to paint.
How would you recommend I get started drawing celtic knotwork?
First of all, knotwork requires a lot of patience! So don't
be frustrated that you can't create elaborate knots at the start.
Try some very simple pieces first. I suggest picking up a book at
your local bookstore on how to do knotwork. There are plenty
of titles out there. My own favorite is
"Celtic Art" by George Bain although be warned that the
author uses a very compact method of demonstration. I've heard
from other people that they thought the steps were not broken
down enough in this book. It worked very well for me though.
Artist Cari Buziak
has several basic tutorials on her website to start you off as well.
I'm thinking of studying illustration in college.
Is Berkeley any good for that?
Well, depends on what you want to get out of your
experience.... I can tell you right off that Berkeley
is NOT the place to go if you're just dead set on
illustration, that's all you want to do, and that's all
you'll ever want to do. It's a wonderful place if
you are into conceptual, non-representational art, or
abstract art. However...I must say that even if all
you ever want to do is illustration, there's plenty
to learn from a fine art education, if you are willing
to set aside your own preconceptions and try new things.
Anything else?
-Click Here- to send me a question
and I'll try to get back
to you as soon as I can.
