Eric Hu: Tonality

A Parallel Planets piece by Pepe Serapio

Parallel Planets presents Eric Hu

in Tonality

Story by Jofer Serapio

Mentioned: Desert Storm, artist’s block, and Edward Hopper

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I have been staring at Eric Hu's paintings since last week and I still can't get enough of them. Amazing doesn't even begin to describe the genius and beauty in his work. Every canvas he gets his hands (and brush) on turns into a gateway to a fantasy world that is both strange and familiar. His range is so vast and yet so inspired that he could very well be able to enter the collective subconscious of humanity and draw out our dreams and hopes into his canvas and none would be the wiser. Luminary doesn't even begin to describe Eric Hu.

Born in Shanghai, China, Eric moved to California at the age of 12. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Art Studio, from the University of California, Davis, in 2010. That was the same year I graduated from college, which is perhaps the only similarity Eric and I have. Oh, and we've both been to China at some point or another. That probably counts for something, right? Have I mentioned he told me he loves my Chinese name?

Channeling his inner Edward Hopper coupled with his own warmth in terms of color preference, Eric is able to capture the melancholia and loneliness derived from isolation. There is tonality in his creations, proving how truly he has mastered his craft (or at the very least is very close to mastering it). Eric credits a lot of practice and self-discipline in getting this far as an artist, in becoming an artist of his caliber.

Eric usually finishes his portraits in three to six hours, in one sitting. That means that he doesn't put his brush down for anything, other than maybe a contemplative look on his work in progress, for at most an entire afternoon. If that isn't admirable enough for you, he also works with live models when it comes to his portraits. Photo references are reserved for his studies.

As I've already mentioned, Eric has a degree in art studio. He values having gone to university because it was where he learned the discipline an artist needs to survive in the field. After university, he continued growing, picking up more technical skills here and there. His skills in web design were entirely self-taught, however.

But Eric is not a machine. Like most of us, he sometimes gets frustrated when his motivation and inspiration go poof. In such a dastardly event, he advises to take in a lot of images. Things from the Internet (like Parallel Planets), books, magazines, the outside world, basically just whatever is around you. Taking time to wander over yonder, particularly over the work of an artist you admire, should do the trick, according to Eric.

"Think of how one day you’ll be just like them if you keep working at it, because you will if you want it enough," he explains.

"When I feel unmotivated, I step away from work. I do whatever I can to get my mind off of work and focus on something else, or just relax really. Hopefully by the time I get back, the inspiration meter is recharged and ready to go again. Obviously, everyone has their own way of doing this. But you can try some of the things that I do. Maybe they’ll work for you, too. One last thing: never give up. I’ve had these artist’s blocks that lasted for months, but I never stopped painting even though everything was shit."

The canvas sizes Eric Hu works with include 20”x16”, 16”x12”, 14”x11”, 12”x9” and 10”x8”. For his sketches, he uses Desert Storm, a popular type of paper, at 8.5x11”. In terms of digital art, he recommends the industry standard that is Photoshop. He reveals he plays with other programs, too, most notably Corel Painter, Artrage, Alchemy, Gimp, and Sketchbook Pro.

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More from Eric Hu: Website, Tumblr, Flickr