• Against the Current

    Medium: Mixed media (Printmaking) Carved on linoleum (original seen in the middle panel), this clear, bold piece embodies the sensation of escape and liberty from the flow of society that often obscures our vision from the goal. The goldfish, which functions as a symbol of this great defeat, soars above the waves below it and in many ways defies the gravitational pull of its surroundings. Furthermore, this piece was made with great effort. After carving each detail of the scale or fiber of the tail with a sharp and dangerous tool, a roller was used to apply ink, and eventually transfer the image onto the fabric through the press. The meticulous work that goes behind this piece can be attributed to the fact that like making an image with linoleum, escape requires immense amounts of courage and energy.
    Year
    2014
    Against the Current
  • Siren Songs

    Medium: Mixed Media (Acrylic and collage) In this particular painting, goldfish represent people’s desires, such as wealth and fame, and the painting emphasizes the fight against temptation of materialistic things. On the side of the painting, there is a goldfish fiddling with an instrument. This part alludes to The Siren by John William Waterhouse, an art piece about temptation that I personally admire. This rest of the work depicts a young girl tied to the post of a sailboat as she attempts to resist the temptations of the world. The girl powerfully attempts to keep herself controlled and held back by the pole, but the rope around her feet is starting to loosen up. She becomes terrified that she will face the same fate as the people who have already fallen into the ocean. In many ways, the girl depicts me and my own struggles to fight temptations on a daily basis. From personal experience, I know that this journey of fighting and resisting only gets harder and harder, just as the path the ship travels in only gets narrower and narrower. With the painting slightly protruding from the border, it also aims to create a stronger personal connection to the viewer, encouraging them to examine the temptations of their lives and how they’re fighting back.
    Year
    2014
    Siren Songs
  • Magnificent Creations

    Medium: Mixed Media (Printmaking) In appreciating the beauty of creation, I often observe the landscape and nature around me. I especially get the most profound experience of this beauty while spending time with my family at Yosemite. To make this piece, I combined two different printmaking techniques: the intaglio and the linoleum. As there were many steps and layers in the creation of this work, I wanted to emphasize the many invisible stages that go into creating such a magnificent world. In addition to the landscape, I added hands in different positions. To me, hands symbolize a desire to create and the importance of appreciating the intricate beauties all around us in a tangible way.
    Year
    2015
    Magnificent Creations

Mixed Media Artwork

Art is how people share their gifts and passions with the world. For me, I use art to share my ability to depict the various facets of life.

I often use goldfish to represent such dimensions of life. Although goldfish are extremely common house pets, to me, they mean something more profound. Their gold color is understood to symbolize good fortune or even wealth, and yet their small size and fragile fins represent delicacy and their need for constant, attentive care. By incorporating these characteristics into my artworks, I get the chance to explore similar qualities embedded in the human character: materialistic and worldly desires, delicacy and fragility, or innocence and responsibility. I hope using the goldfish will help people to better visualize such important ideas and walk away with newfound inspiration.

In illustrating my pieces, I mainly tend to use acrylic. It allows me to apply opaque layers that intensify the rich colors of my subjects such as the goldfish. However, I am undeniably fascinated by other media including clay, oil paint, and watercolor.

I hope to continue making art and encouraging others about my understanding of life.

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