Can Playful Art Be Serious?

This week, I want to talk about my newly finished painting titled Fauna. This is one of my most peculiar pieces, filled with strange ideas. With this, I want to challenge us to ponder the question: Can playful art be serious?

Ideas Have a Mental Age

This painting combines many ideas. I tend to come up with all sorts of ideas quite easily, and I usually try to categorize them: some make it here to the blog, some become sketches in my planner, and others turn into courses. Only the most mature ones are usually included in the paintings.

But let’s think about this word: mature.

Ideas have a mental age. Some ideas are like those of a five-year-old, while others contain ancient wisdom. For a long time, I have tried to ensure that my best ideas are “sensible adults”.

Fauna’s Ideas

Fauna started from an old idea: the Baroque style and historical ceiling murals. So I thought that the painting could feature flowers and have plenty of light blue. Here’s how it started:

But then I heard my inner child whisper that I should include an animal: “Fur is so wonderful to paint. Let’s include something like a ferret!” The adult me wondered, “Who would want a painting featuring a weasel?” But you know, some ideas are like tiny butterflies that appear and vanish in an instant, while others are like moose that take over your entire mind. And this was a “moose idea.” It wouldn’t leave me alone, so fine —let there be a weasel of some kind!

But what else could be included?

Words help when I am brainstorming. I read through various word lists and wait for the moment my intuition says “Bingo!” That’s how I found the word “hunaja” – honey. I thought about the intricate swirls of the Baroque style and the way honey drips, and I boldly added them to the painting.

Here I am painting the fur. I use not only short strokes, but also paint small patches with different tones. Layering is the key!

In the final version, the fur is softer and shorter, and lit by a rainbow. It took some time to decide whether the fur should be spiky or softer.

With the idea of painting honey, I found myself on a “mad path” where I stopped categorizing my ideas and challenged myself instead: could I create a painting that looks like a floral piece from a distance, but reveals a more playful character upon closer inspection? Could the animal theme lead toward animal figures—even toys? I wanted to achieve a purity of style that isn’t tied to a single era, but rather to my own way of dealing with shapes and lines.

Here you can see the beginning and the end side by side.

Playful Art – Drawing Animals

I have always loved animals and have drawn them a lot. Drawing with a pen is much easier than drawing with a brush.

Animal Inkdom and Magical Inkdom have been highlights of my course creation because, while making them, I decided to believe that everyone wants to draw animals. That mindset brought a lot of confidence and joy to the process, which also translates into the atmosphere of the courses.

I have had so much fun with all the animals drawn in those courses. My father used to draw with quite a similar technique, so I have continued on his path here.

The Playfulness is in the Details

Fauna is full of playful details. Many of them are quite subtle, barely noticeable. Here are some detail pics.

I see myself in this painting—all the versions of me at different ages, with ideas of all ages.

Even if Fauna was a challenge to create, it was also fun. I think I will create more of this kind of playful art.

Age of Ideas – Just Playing or Only Focusing on the Serious Side

This painting process made me reflect on how people who start making art often fixate on the “age” of their ideas. Some decide they are just having fun and playing. Others believe that skills—and thus art—can only be born through realism. But as artistic thinking and skills develop, there is an opportunity to combine the playful with the more serious. It is possible to be a child, an adult, and an elder all at once. Art doesn’t need to be narrowed down, because creating is a search not just for oneself, but for a broader understanding of humanity.

Fauna is a bit different from Halo – the painting that I showed last week.

Which one do you like more – Halo or Fauna?