
About Me
I first came to the United States as an immigrant in my mid-teens. Having a hard time acclimating to the American culture due to the language barrier, I kept a reserved personality and spent my free time drawing. I soon became known at school for a quickly-developed proficiency in photorealistic portraiture. The cultural background in which I grow up, however, does not encourage entertaining the arts as an acceptable career.
I pursued a degree in mathematics at UC Berkeley. After graduating, I moved to Atlanta, GA to start a career as a health actuary and to pay off my student loans. It took nearly five years for me to realize that 9-to-5 wasn't the right path for me and to quit to pursue art full time.
I'm currently based in Los Angeles. In my free time, I am an avid Lindy Hopper, hiker, swimmer, and history buff.
About my Art
I prefer to describe my motifs with a more free and intuitive approach, rather than cold imitation of photographic realism. I like my art to communicate an interplay of technical aptitude and compositional awareness, where viewers are encouraged to discover the depth of value, color, shape, and texture, in qualities of their own as well as in relational dialogue to each other.
My stylistic interpretation originates from my first exposure to Chinese calligraphy and ink paintings. My current practice simultaneously explores the Asian aesthetics of brushstrokes and Western principles of light and shadow. Elements from both disciplines enable me to convey movement, emotion, and rhythm. Driven by the historic backdrop where artists from my background transition from targets of stereotypical caricatures to recipients of humanity, from dismissal of the Asian-American experience to recognition, my art is ultimately a display of my attempt for balance, between cultural heritage and immersion, impulse and restraint, adventure and sacrifice.
A cursory glance through my portfolio reveals a history full of experimentation and exploration with various techniques and styles. I am heavily influenced by masters like Hokusai, Rembrandt, Turner, Daumier, and later American Illustration artist, Bernie Fuchs—from whom I obsessively seek guidance on the relationship of light, color, composition, and execution.
Education
2009-2014 B.S. Applied Mathematics, UC Berkeley
2011-2012 Marchutz School of Art, Aix-en-Provence, France
2013 - Fall University College of Dublin, Ireland
2014 - Spring Université de Bordeaux; France
Residencies
2023 Foundation House Residency Program, CT, USA
Exhibitions
2023 In The Paint Exhibition, NBA LA Lakers, CA. Upcoming
2023 Art Lives Here Exhibition, Geffen Playhouse, CA. Upcoming
2023 Illuminate LA: Collective Memory, Los Angeles, CA
2022 The Other Art Fair-Los Angeles Spring
2021 LA Mexican Consultate 35x35 Bicentennial Exhibition
2021 5th Annual Light Space & Time Art Gallery Exhibition
2020 Art Show International Finalist Award
2020 Las Laguna Gallery Juried Art Exhibition
2020 85th Annual National Juried Art Exhibition of the Cooperstown Art Association
2020 Cerulean Arts' 8th Annual Juried Exhibition
2020 Blue Mountain Gallery Summer 2020 Juried Exhibition
2019 Creative Mill: Roswell Mill Juried Art Exhibition
2018 Creative Mill: Roswell Mill Juried Art Exhibition
2011 Steem Honorable Mention
2011-2012 Marchutz School of Art Exhibitions
2008 Disney Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage Award
2008-2009 California State University- Northridge Annual Exhibitions
