The best way (for me) to relax is to tackle the source of the stress/pressure head on.
2020-01-12
2019-12-03
Confidence
Confidence is not about knowing I am good at something; instead, it is about sucking at the bottom and still being able to win.
I did two drawings on a long distance flight.
The first one I drew from memory, taking me a lot of time and still sucks.
The second one I drew from a frozen in-flight movie frame in only a few minutes.
I wish everything can go as smoothly as the second drawing, but life moves forward regardless.
2019-11-04
Creation is a dialog
About a decade ago, Evvia felt like a place for old people to me.
It was livelier a few days ago when I visited again.
I wondered what has changed and realized maybe I got old.
Artistic creation and scientific research share many similarities, such as picking the right subject/topic, and trusting the iterative process.
When I start a research or drawing, I usually do not have a very concrete idea of what I want to do, at least for more innovative projects. (If I can see a clear road-map from the beginning, the project is incremental.)
Just start doing something, and the process will guide me.
I did not really want to draw this one but felt compelled to finish the third of the Evvia series.
2019-09-14
Needle through brick
A master of a traditional art form recently told me that nowadays it is becoming harder to find apprentices with required patience and will power to really learn the craft, probably due to the modern lifestyle accelerated by modern technology, such as social media and mobile devices.
He was considering modifying the curriculum to fit this modern world.
I have the opposite opinion. I will keep the bar as high as possible so that only the most motivated and talented will come to me.
千軍易得一將難求
2019-09-02
OKR 2019
For OKR 2018, I rated myself 40 percent:
- Published 4 top papers (with 3 student first authors).
- Have helped shipping Fresco, a flagship Adobe digital painting product.
- Have continued regular sketching exercise.
- I read the book of change as part of my drawing exercises, but have yet to resume the Baroque cycles.
The default period is from July 2019 to June 2020 unless stated otherwise.
Publish top papers
Publish at least 4 papers in top graphics/HCI/vision/ML venues: ToG (including SIGGRAPH and SIGGRAPH Asia), CHI/UIST, NIPS/ICML, CVPR/ICCV.
Build top products
Ship at least one product as a manager/developer and file at least two patents.
Develop top talents
Help at least 4 students publish in top graphics/HCI/vision/ML venues individually.
Be a better manager by helping the team not only ship at least one product (above) but also publish at least 4 papers in top venues with at least 4 student first authors (without double counting with my own above).
Have fun, be awesome
Practice sketching to a professional level, and expand into animation.
Continue learning a Middle Eastern language to elementary school level, complementing the one Asian and one European language I already know.
Practice meditation to the level that I can enter the God mode immediately, anywhere and anytime.
Finish the book of change, to renew my (now rusty) Chinese and crack the only Chinese classics that my grandfather did not during his life time.
Finish the baroque cycle, which I lost focus in the middle of the first volume (quicksilver).
Restore a common biometric, which suddenly deteriorated, to the previous excellent level, and continue improving the art I have started learning for about 3 years to the stage of practical applications.
2019-07-13
Get in
I captured this great view from SF-MOMA, in which the wall says:
So you’ve gotten very close, you’ve shared a complete experience.
And the idea of waiting for something makes it more exciting anyway.
Never getting in is the most exciting, but after that, waiting to get in is the most exciting.
Don’t we all tend to be obsessed with what we cannot get in life: the dream job, the dream lover, the dream trip, which pop into reality when we finally have a chance to get in.
2019-07-03
Mandatory charging versus voluntary tipping
While waiting for the bus to Luxembourg I walked around the Saarbrucken Hbf area, with many interesting sights, folks, shops, and outdoor sitting areas. Like some other parts of Germany (or Europe), one has to pay to use the washrooms in the train station and department stores.
I decided not to bow to any such extortion until I found a place with an old gentleman in nice suit stood by the door holding a tip tray without mandatory charges. I happily put down the same amount that would be required in other places.
2019-06-14
MAGA hatter
A guy sat at the cafe table next to mine, wearing a red MAGA (make America great again) hat.
I was thinking if he was looking for a fight or something. After taking off his hat and put it on the table, I saw a lonely old face. He was completely left alone before slowly walking off.
2019-06-11
Ex-NVIDIAN dinner
The dinner conversation with a bunch of former NVIDIA employees reminded me of many top folks I have closely worked with there, such as Erik Lindholm, Walt Donovan, Henry Moreton, Alex Minkin, and John Danskin.
Only one of them was a manager at that time, and they wielded power through their knowledge in GPU architecture instead of corporate hierarchy.
I aspire to have their style in mentoring future generations of graphics researchers.