World travels prompt alumnus to create "Perfect Sketchbook"

When Erwin Lian Cherngzhi (CCAD 2004) couldn't find a sketchbook with the perfect combination of high quality features, he went to the drawing board and created his own.

A self-proclaimed "sketch-hunter," Cherngzhi has been traveling the world for nearly 14 months putting pen, pencil, and paintbrush to paper.

"Whether it is in a moving subway cabin, a car, a bus, or on a tut-tut (a three-wheel taxi popular in Asia), I sketch almost daily," he wrote on his Kickstarter crowd funding page. "With the need to perfect my watercolor sketches, I began to search for that perfect sketchbook."

Enter Cherngzhi's Perfect Sketchbook—a hardbound, compact, lay-flat sketchbook designed for easy use by both left- and right-handed sketchers.

Cherngzhi scoured the globe for quality materials—archival-standard watercolor paper made by a traditional British mill and binding by a renowned Singapore manufacturer—and added features like a built-in value chart and expandable storage pocket.

The $50,000 project was fully funded via Kickstarter, and people are taking notice. Renowned author and artist James Gurney, known for his illustrated book series Dinotopia, endorsed the Perfect Sketchbook on his blog.

Erwin is from Singapore and is a Media Studies Time-Based alumnus.