Pixel and Flavor: Illustrating the Essence of Chinese Cuisine

 

During the height of the pandemic, amidst erratic government policies and rising food prices, I was commissioned to revamp the brand design of a family restaurant recently inherited by the younger generation.

 

Working on the logo went smoothly, but not so much for the menu. I had initially planned to do some food photography, but the cost of ingredients was prohibitive for all 20+ dishes. Eventually, we opted for food illustration instead.

 

 

 

Illustrating food, especially in Chinese cuisine, requires several layers, much like the approach to its ingredients and cooking. It took a while to finish each dish, but I enjoyed the process.

 

As the wise Cleaner from Toy Story 2 says: "You can't rush art!"

South Mandarin Restaurant is located at BF Homes, Parañaque City, Philippines.

© Kenny Tai. All Rights Reserved • R.A. 8293

Churro & Gelato

A surprisingly pleasant combination of pastries and Art Nouveau; inspired by Walt Disney’s 1935 “The Cookie Carnival” and the Czech artist, Jiří Trnka.

A commissioned project for Nuki Churros & Gelato.

 

© Kenny Tai 2019 • All Rights Reserved.

RA 8293

The Nomad Soap Co. pt.02

The Wise Turtle

Cool, calm and collected.

The Lone Wolf

Independent, smart and adaptable.

The Spirited Rhino

Strong, adventurous and wild.

 The Sexy Lion

Confident, charming and sensual.

Ramen Shokudo : Illustrations

  

"The noodles are the body

and the broth is the soul."

Commissioned illustration series as part of the

re-branding identity for Ramen Shokudo.

Manila Biennale : Open City 2018 - Manila Transitio

"Manila Transitio" is an event by Manila Biennale: Open City to commemorate one important part of the city's history which is the Battle of Manila in 1945, where thousands of innocent lives were perished as collateral damage during World War II.

Manila afterwards had an amnesia and never really moved forward, the city resorts to blindly obeying a hypocritical dogma and escapism with empty distractions instead of rebuilding, adapting and improving itself. This messy condition traces all the way back from the colonial era where each colonizers (or invaders) would erase and replace one another, thus the progress of the city would get disrupted and eventually stop.

We are all Simoun from the second novel of Rizal. "Simoom" - from the borrowed Arabic word which literally means "poison", a hot desert wind from the Arabian Peninsula that could cause death. Like Simoun, we are our own poison; disillusioned from the image that has been painted for us after the death of our dear innocent soul, María Clara.

May this event remind you the true beauty and ugly of Manila. A bittersweet ceremonial atonement of the iconic Filipino lovers to transition ourselves to a better community.

Never forget history, never forget 1945.

The Open City Festival is curated by Carlos Celdran and Mitch Garcia.
Special thanks to Lourd de Veyra.
Artwork by yours truly.

Manila Biennale : Open City 2018 - Don Papa's Intramuros Artists' Ball

The Artists' Ball opened the main performance leg of the Manila Biennale: Open City - a decadent start to a week of festivities. The ball was a call back to the golden age of Manila, set in Casa Manila (Plaza San Luis), Intramuros where guests will be regaled by performers and given a taste of what the old city had been like.

The event was sponsored by Don Papa Rum, more studies soon.

Manila Biennale : Open City 2018 (Collaterals)

It is all about bringing the soul back to the city that is infested by malls and skyrise buildings which blocks the sun from shining on the ground and prevents the organic interaction of human beings.

Here is an official poster for Manila Biennale: Open City that I have collaborated with Carlos Celdran where we would exchange ideas - he would peppered me with a spoonful of creative ingredients and challenge to translate visually into this unconventional output, an unlikely collaboration between an arranged and jumbled artists. I love it.

 

The Manila Biennale: Open City Passport identifies the spectator as a Manileño citizen of Intramuros where they could enjoy art-related perks for a month besides the high-class exhibitions in the area, day pass holders can also enjoy the events and exhibits as a visitor for one day.

 

• Concept and contents by Carlos Celdran / Mitch Garcia / Paula Marie Nocon

• Logistics and supervision by Lesley Dufourt / Gerome Soriano
• Printing sponsored by Tesoro's Philippine Handicrafts
• Design by yours truly.

From the Google Gooeys

So honored to be featured in Googly Gooeys, I am tickled in pink after reading the article. Thank you so much for the coffee time Tippy, you have describe my observations and inspirations very well!

Click here for the full article.

Yakult : The Tale of Tommy Chan (Visual Development)

In late 2012, I was working with a creative team, Watusi Manila for their client Yakult to promote good bacteria and proper digestive awareness for schools, children and families. The film was about an energetic boy who loves martial arts and has a massive appetite for street foods that got out of control. 

  

We’ve come up many exciting ideas such as comics, webisodes and other online approach to make the campaign viral. As expected, a lot of ideas were scrapped from the boards as the client would prefer mass-appropriate contents. The video above is the unpublished version of the film, the music was borrowed from Patrick Rondat “Vivaldi Tribute” treated as a dummy music for the arranger to compose before the animation was shelved. Here are the design studies that I have worked with the team.

Early Sketches & Studies

Final Output

 Only a portion of the animation was included in the final render of the video. 

Click here to view. 

 

Credits:

Tommy Tiyan: Ogie Escanilla
Kuya Kiko:  Earl Ignacio

Director: Dan Gil
Creative Director and Head Writer: Geri Gil
Writer: Marian Hernandez
Art Director: Brian Sergio
Animation and Visual Development: Kenny Tai
Music: Mikey Amistoso and Jazz Nicolas of Liquidpost

Designs © Kenny Tai.

All Rights Reserved.

Shopping Ladies

May Flowers

"Too many cooks spoil the broth."

Design studies for a hotdog firm, a webisode about a hot dog spy-chef. The film was heavily influence  by the modern art of the late 50's / early 60's. The concept was great, the music gave us goosebumps, the entire team was in the mood to create a short stylish film with a nostalgic atmosphere!

In contrary of producing a short film, the pre-production stage went unexpectedly longer not only because of the constant changes in the character design but also the client wasn't able to decide which name is conservatively and market-ably appropriate for the main character to the consumers. As the production timeline drags, I kept on producing the same title card with different names.

Finally, the client have decided to close the project due to lack of production time to meet the deadline and the launch date.

Shake

Mood boards and visual development of an opening title for a local talk show.