As an artist, I want to open people up to the uncomfortable. My work touches a lot that is vulnerable to other people. My entire life, I have lived comfortably. I have been sheltered by the bubbles I am surrounded by. While I am grateful for those bubbles, I want to step outside of them. My work opens up my vulnerability and that of others. My class work, while they’re a bit more structured due to following a criteria, still incorporates an uncomfortable/ vulnerable feeling. My two main projects encompass what I strive to do best.
There’s More Than Ink Beneath The Skin is a collection of stories and images of people and their tattoos. I intend to highlight the stories of why people got the tattoos they have. Whether it’s a tattoo honoring a passed loved one or a random “Roll Tide” tattoo, I want to tell every story. I met with a wide variety of people, and although the group is small, it’s still a representation of the human experience. I have displayed stories you would otherwise never hear from people you would never know.How Much Force Does it Take for The Fortune Cookie to Crumble is a personal project I embarked on in my junior year. It focuses on the impact of the fetishization of Asian-American women within me. 2020 and 2021 were an extremely anxiety-riddled time for me, with the rise of Asian hate crimes due to the xenophobia caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This highlighted the treatment and fetishization of Asian-American women within our media and society.
