I chose to draw a jar of paintbrushes along with dahlias strewn out on the table to show my interests in art and nature.

My artwork shows the connection between my culture and nature, with a woman in a sari surroundered by the ocean. The Dwarakadhish temple, a symbol of the sunken city of Dwaraka, is in the background. I used glazing and impasto techniques with a limited palette of blue, orange, red, black and white, to create different hues and learn color mixing.

I made this piece as a reflection on the difficulty a lot of young people today have with their reflections. Social media, personal insecurity, and many other factors have led a lot of people to be unable to appreciate their outward appearances without changing them in some way (whether that is through filters, censoring, or makeup). By painting this subject’s face using large pixels, I aim to emphasize that point in an exaggerated, impactful way. I hope that anyone feeling this way about their appearance sees themselves in this painting, and that it motivates them to appreciate their features as they are.

This handbuilt piece is inspired by my feelings around nature. My intent with this piece was to immerse the viewer in nature and bring it to life, as well as to convey the sense of calm that I feel in nature. During my research, I compiled images of koi ponds, lily pads, and fish from many different perspectives. Then, during the design process, I simplified these forms and submerged the viewer underwater to convey a sense of childlike wonder. I love the silhouette and motion of koi fish from above, so even though the perspective of this piece is partially underwater, I inverted the hand-shaped fish in an almost surreal way. I feel that this adds a dimension of freedom and playfulness to the piece. To add depth to the water, I layered two blue glazes on the organic base of the piece, which has left a flowing effect that is similar to a floating blue, but with brown striations. The harmony of nature stood out to me throughout my research, so to capture the motion of the koi and a sense of balance, I put the two fish in curved positions on either of the form, swimming in opposite directions. This harmony adds to the overall sense of calm and completeness expressed by this piece.

Earlier this year, 2023, I struggled with a lot of stress around my personal life and academics which left me feeling fatigued.

This portrait represents the duality of my cultural identity and my experience of finding a balance between them. Although I am fully Chinese, and I identify as such, my family is not, and I wanted to express the confusion of navigating the world through the eyes of one culture, while being perceived as another. The moody expression of my subject shows the unstable feelings of being thrust between cultures, while the contrasting light sources represent both the opposing, and often fundamentally different, values, traditions, and perspectives of each heritage, and also their influences on my daily life, including both the connections and happy memories I have made, as well as the more difficult moments of doubt and feelings of isolation. Finally, I chose to use a cool-toned color palette on top of a fiery red underpainting in order to portray both my inherent Chinese heritage, and also my complete Americanness. The warmer light illustrates how I have committed myself to learning more about my birth country, and how I am integrating that into my life in America.

Creativity is something that comes for all in many different shapes and forms.

For this project I sculpted a human head with lichen growing out of it to explore the relationship between humanity and nature. Lichen are a symbiotic organism composed of fungi and algae growing together, and I wanted to show that the relationship between humans and nature can also be symbiotic and harmonious. Lichens are also indicators of good air quality wherever they are growing, and I want this piece to also reflect the hope for healthy and happy communities. At the same time, the image of a monument of humanity being overtaken by nature also suggests the darker message that even after humanity has destroyed itself, life and nature will continue to persist long after us. After a mass extinction, lichen are the first living organisms to appear and begin the cycle that allows an ecosystem to form.

This is a graphic novel that I have been working on over the past few years. I have generated the story and now work on illustrating this story into a graphic novel. I have taken my time in creating each panel with great detail and spend a lot of time working on communicating the thoughts of the characters and developing a rich setting. Communicating mood and anticipation is challenging, but also very rewarding when I am successful. I have really enjoyed creating this graphic novel and try to make each and every panel a piece of art that can stand on its own. This is one of the most challenging endeavours I have ever attempted.

This painting is a self-portrait inspired by Asian selfie culture and the use of shadow blocking techniques. I like trying new methods and styles and for this painting I was focused on the effects of light and shadow using black and white and the many variations between them. The contrast with the dark pink bacground makes the black and white image stand out.

About a week ago I had a dream where I was trying to save this goldfish from dying but all I could do was hold its fragile, slimy wet body in my hands as the water slowly drained through my fingers. It was such a vivid moment of panic, yet I didn’t move. I felt like a vindictive god holding the life of another creature quite literally in my hands. I just stared off into the distance and slowly let it die, and felt irrationally guilty for the rest of the day. Sometimes I feel like my apathy has let some of my friendships die. Sometimes circumstances drive us apart, and I don’t make the effort to reach back out. It’s not a good feeling, it’s a heavy guilt, but it’s alright. I miss them, but I’ll be okay and I know they will too.

The painting is inspired by jobs that take place at night--particularly the entertainment industry. It reveals the different perspectives one may find by observing the public. The drawing portrays a girl who works as an entertainer going home in the day time as office workers go to work. They have such different lifestyles yet cross paths in their daily routines; a glimpse into an alternate life.

Oftentimes, I find myself overwhelmed by life. Like a singular fish ripped from it's school, dragged away by the ocean's currents, my world can seem dizzying and out of my control.

This artwork illustrates the different ways I get ready. As an Indian-American, I feel that I have two different ways of getting ready: my everyday routine for when I'm going to school, and my routine for when I'm going to an Indian cultural event or festival. I have two different wardrobes for the different routines, too. This painting features myself, looking in the mirror, getting ready in my normal way VS. getting ready for an Indian event. This painting portrays the division of my identity that I feel, because of my two cultures often remaining separated in my life.

During the beginning of this year, the Biden administration had approved the Willow Project which is a huge oil drilling project occurring in the National Petroleum Reserve of Alaska. However, a lot of people who were climate advocates disagreed with this venture, as it is dangerous for everyone. We have been well aware that there is a climate crisis occurring, however nothing is being done about it. As an artist I hope that this can raise awareness among people who may not be informed on this issue. As I embarked on this new piece inspired by this social issue, I found myself in a state of uncertainty. I was eager to break away from my usual approach and create something distinct from my previous works. I started off with extensive sketching and brainstorming, mapping out the potential outcomes for my artwork. Yet, the true beauty of art lies in the unpredictability—as I never know how the final piece will unfold. I decided to venture beyond my usual comfort zone and attempt to work with acrylic paints, something I had only previously done once. I was drawn to acrylics for its ability to make this distinctive texture feeling. It took me several weeks to complete this painting, as I would go back to incorporate new elements into it. But in the end, I was extremely proud of what I had created.

I have not been doing art for very long, so naturally, I made mistakes while creating this piece.

Imagine a future where knowledge and the human mind could be preserved forever.

We as a society often put labels on the objects around us as masculine and feminine. More often than not, the colors pink and blue are tied to those labels, too. Inspired by JeongMee Yoon’s The Pink & Blue Project, I decided to make a painting that I felt both addressed and broke these gender stereotypes. To do this, I made a realistic painting of an apron, which represents a stereotypically feminine object. I decided to break the image with several triangles across the canvas to show the importance of breaking of these norms. Keeping the large portion of the apron pink is meant to show the feminine use of aprons. On the other hand, I painted two triangles blue to juxtapose a stereotypically masculine color. The other two triangles, painted purple, are meant to show how objects, like aprons, can be used by any gender since purple is an equal blend of pink and blue.

As a person with multiple food allergies, eating can be overwhelming and discouraging.

During the pandemic, my art studio held all of the classes online, and although I appreciated being able to continue drawing at home, I wasn't able to experience the joy of being at a studio in the process where I could be inspired by those around me. This artwork was my first drawing after being able to go to the studio in person again, and the process of creating it was really memorable to me since I was finally able to connect with my teachers as well as my friends, which was something I felt deprived of while taking classes on Zoom. I started this drawing in early 2022, which was the year of the Tiger in the Chinese zodiac calendar. I enjoyed being able to illustrate my culture through a lively and colorful scene to represent the bravery and playfulness believed to characterize someone who was born in the year of the Tiger. I chose to use watercolors and colored pencils because they have always been my favorite mediums to use for my drawings. To capture the vibrancy of this scene, I first laid down a simple layer of watercolor, adding in shading and blending here and there, and then I went in with colored pencils to clean it up and define all of my details. Not only did I improve by skills in using these mediums, but I also felt the community and spirit of being back in the studio again, which is represented through this animated scene.