This post will be my entry to the 2nd Annual Ecency Art Contest hosted by 
There are three separate contest categories:
I am thinking of submitting two entries for 2 different categories, #1 and #2. That is, if I have enough time this weekend. Today's entry will fall under the second category: illustration.
I have never used Ecency on my laptop because I prefer to use another dapp, PeakD. But I use Ecency regularly on my phone to interact with the Hive-sphere. And for the sake of this post, I am posting this using Ecency from my laptop.
The inspiration for my entry comes from the diversity of people using this dapp from all over the world. But I wanted it to be more unique and personal; therefore, the idea to include tattoo motifs from my ethnicity, the Iban (Sea Dayak) of Borneo, came to me.
Traditional tattooing is an essential part of my culture and is usually performed in sacred rituals. Tattoo motifs often depict images of plants and animals that signify a person's status and serve as symbols or a diary of his life.
The tattoo motif that I included in this painting is called Bungai Terung. It is the most well-known Iban tattoo motif. The motif has a spiral at the center known as Tali Nyawa (rope of life). This spiral is identical to a tadpole's visible intestine and symbolizes a new journey in life.
Image credit: Pinterest
So, by putting this motif in my painting, it sort of symbolizes my journey in Hive using the Ecency dapp.
Here are the progress photos of the painting. This is a mixed-media painting: markers, watercolors, black pen, and digitally edited on the computer.
The drawing is loosely based on a page from my coloring book, Sarawak Tattoo Mandala. You can purchase a digital copy of this book here 🙏😁: Sarawak Tattoo Mandala
And this is the completed painting and my contest entry - tadaaa...
That's it for now. If you read this far, thank you. I appreciate it so much! Kindly give me a follow if you like my content. I mostly write about making art, life musing, and our mundane yet charming family life here in Klang Valley, Malaysia.
My First NFT Collection – Stencil 2017 – Is Now Available On OpenSea
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