MANDY TSUNG

As an organization that supports the independent arts among Asian Americans and the larger Asian Diaspora, we are so in love with Mandy Tsung's work which predominantly explores issues of identity and questions established and normative definitions and concepts of beauty and self.

Mandy was born in Banff, Canada, but spent her most formative years in Calgary, Canada, and Hong Kong. After completing a BFA in Sculpture at The Alberta College of Art and Design in 2007, she then moved to Vancouver and began painting full-time. She has exhibited in numerous galleries in North America, Germany, Japan and Australia, and has completed many private commissions. Most recently, she underwent a mentorship in tattooing and now splits her practice between painting and tattooing.

-Does your identity or how you identify yourself inform your work in any way?

My identity has a big influence on my work. It wasn't until I was able to really be comfortable with who I am that I became confident in the work I was making. The themes I explore are personal and are very much about expressing my feelings and experiences.

"Shroud" by Mandy Tsung (Image courtesy of artist).

-When making your work, do you have certain expectations or do you aim for a specific reaction in your audience and the viewer? (Do you care about how the message of your work is received?)

I definitely have hopes for how it might open people's eyes to different experiences of life, but I've learned never to expect anything. No matter how obvious I think the meaning of an image is, someone will take it to mean the opposite. I've had people say that I objectify women or that I promote the killing of animals, things that I spend so much of my energy thinking of how to convey the exact opposite. I try to remember that the majority of people understand what I'm trying to do, but the wrong interpretations do stick with me.

"Feral Love" by Mandy Tsung (Image Courtesy of artist).

-Does art serve a purpose for you outside of just beauty or aesthetics?

Art is so much more than beauty and aesthetics. For me, personally, it's therapeutic. For the viewer, it's an opportunity to give them an experience that they've never had before, to show them a world that they don't normally see. The themes I'm exploring right now - mixed-race identity, gender fluidity, and queerness - are all things that we don't see much of in western culture, and when we do it's often done one-dimensionally by people who don't live the stories they're telling. Even for me, I'm constantly learning from others in my communities better ways to tell my story. Beauty is an important aspect to my work because it's a valuable tool for getting people to be receptive, but it's not the goal. Sometimes I do think about how nice it would be to just make pretty things, but then I realize that even my idea of pretty is political.

"Cantilever" by Mandy Tsung (Image courtesy of artist).

-How do current events affect your practice?

There's never been a more necessary time (in my life) to be speaking about race, gender, etc. I dislike the cliche of the artist needing conflict to create great art, I'd prefer to live a happy, free existence than to make the most incredible work ever. But, I do feel that as the world becomes more unstable and hostile, my identity becomes more solid and so does my creative voice. Which is probably because I've known what it's like to be in hiding, to feel lost and unsure, and then to feel the comfort of being safe and surrounded by people that accept me as a valid human being. I want more people to feel that sense of comfort, especially right now.

"Nikki" from The Bitchy Resting Face Project, by Mandy Tsung (Image courtesy of artist).

-Do you feel you are more reactive or more reflective when you create?

My initial ideas tend to come as a reaction to something, whether it's emotional or something I've seen. Then, as I'm working on a piece, I become more reflective over the days and weeks that it can take to complete. I'd probably never finish anything if I was only reactive!

See more of Mandy Tsung's work on mandytsung.com // Instagram @mandytsung

Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition running Friday, March 31, 2017 - July 15, 2017.

Artist Feature // DAVID T. CHO

David T. Cho is a painter based in Vancouver, BC.
Originally drawing inspiration from his love of MMA, Cho is known for his portraits of male fighters, boxers and wrestlers. These pieces usually present a close-up, almost geometrical portrayal of their raw emotion and facial distortions that are laid out like an abstracted, sculptural almost craggy terrain. It's interesting, based on this treatment, to compare his "Fighters" series with his more interesting foray into the mountainscapes of British Columbia.

See more of David T. Cho's work on www.davidtcho.com // Instagram @davidtcho // Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition running Friday, March 31, 2017 - July 15, 2017.

Artist Feature // TAE LEE

Tae Lee, originally from Seoul, South Korea, is currently a Los Angeles based artist and illustrator.

From Tae Lee's website, his description for his art is as follows: 'As an outside observer, I become fascinated by the conviction humanity have in their beliefs. Curiously, a person's ethical morality is cooked with a recipe of goodness and righteousness, as their own lives are built on the backs of so many. In a quick overview of life as a Hollywood film, the villains would often be portrayed as some heartless wolf-like Wall Street tycoon. Yet, the heroic working class protesters of Occupy Wall Street are sharing information using electronics loaded with blood soaked conflict-minerals from some hellish mine in the Congo, assembled into completion by the machine-like hands of Asian sweatshop "workers". (I am also typing this on a Macbook) In the words of Bill Callihan, "there's blood on the seas if you map em."

The hypocritical and cyclical tendencies of the material world can only be soothed by the light of empathy, an effort mystics and shamans from times past have all championed. The illuminated visages of the Holy Mary and the Great Buddha radiate a similar empathy, their peace not denying the great cost of sustaining life. This grace, used to navigate through this tumultuous and ultimately comedic lifetime, is the realm in which I seek to explore my art.'

"Everything Is Everything" by Tae Lee. (Image courtesy of artist)

Lee is one of the participating artists for the Fierce Tidings art exhibition (March 31 - July 15) at the Gene Siskel Film Center in conjunction with the FAAIM 22nd Annual Asian American Showcase which ran March 31st through April 12th, 2017.

"I Love Frida" by Tae Lee (Image courtesy of artist)

"To the flora and to the fauna" by Tae Lee (Image courtesy of artist)

"Universal Cream" by Tae Lee (Image courtesy of artist)

Illustration for Mangchi (Courtesy of artist)

Illustration for Mangchi (Image courtesy of artist)

See more of Tae Lee's work on http://taelee.net // Instagram @taelien // Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition running Friday, March 31, 2017 - July 15, 2017.

Artist Feature // TERRY YANG

"Born in 1992 at Los Angeles, California, Terry Yang earned her BFA in Illustration from the Art Center College of Design. Her paintings feature hidden figures displaying journalism, masculinity in femininity, and hidden meanings. Her figures hide human expressions; barely showing face. Only using body language mixed with environmental awareness. Inspired by Korean and Western folk, it creates subtle behaviors: trends, beliefs, and backstage problems." - Artist bio

Terry Yang is a Los Angeles based illustrator. She is one of the participating artists for the Fierce Tidings art exhibition (March 31 - May 12) at the Gene Siskel Film Center in conjunction with the FAAIM 22nd Annual Asian American Showcase which runs March 31st through April 12th, 2017.

"School Zone" by Terry Yang. (Image courtesy of artist)

Page from Yang's sketchbook. (Image courtesy of artist)

See more of Terry Yang's work on www.terryang.com // Instagram @bafiayang // Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition running Friday, March 31, 2017 - May 12, 2017.

Artist Interview // NOMI CHI

Nomi Chi is a multidisciplinary visual artist currently residing in Vancouver, Canada. Chi’s primary practice engages with the visual lexicon of illustration and tattoo. Images produced within their painting and drawing practices display a heightened sense of emotive drama, often composing animal and human figures, in varying degrees of fictitious construction, as stand-ins for personal experiences and observations on human nature. Their current focus takes interest in power relations and ontological distinctions between individuals, and between the individual/environment. Multi-breasted, multi-limbed, femme-bodied creatures and figures populate the worlds they create, with the intention of - among other things - calling to question notions of femininity, and by proxy gender as a whole. Interactions between these figures signify Chi’s interests in depicting sexuality, ritual, and the search for identity.

Chi is one of the artists in the Fierce Tidings art exhibition at the Gene Siskel Film Center in conjunction with the FAAIM 22nd Annual Asian American Showcase which runs March 31st through April 12th, 2017. We asked them a few questions about their work and artistic practice!

Does your identity or how you identify yourself inform your work in any way?

Certainly. My drawing style is often described as being markedly 'Asian' - actually, I started drawing because I watched so much anime as a child. To this day, there are notable vestiges of that influence in my work. A lot of my work is concerned with my identity - as a queer person, as a femme-bodied person, as a bi-racial person. As such, I strive for my work to resonate with folks who struggle with similar facets of themselves.

-When making your work, do you have certain expectations or do you aim for a specific reaction in your audience and the viewer? (Do you care about how the message of your work is received?)

Purveying a clear message is not important to me - I like to operate in a space of ambiguity. My work is often prompted by an emotion or a thought, and I aim for my work to be evocative of intense emotion. I find it interesting when viewers bring their own narratives and meaning to the image, even if it strays far from whatever intention I have behind the work.

-Does art serve a purpose for you outside of just beauty or aesthetics?
To me, art and art-consumption is a very necessary and utilitarian part of my life. So, in short: yes.

"In This Time of Need" by Nomi Chi. Image courtesy of artist.

"Maybe she'll live so long she'll forget about me" by Nomi Chi. Image courtesy of artist.

-How do current events affect your practice?

For a long time, and still even now, I've felt overwhelmed and disheartened. Many of us are asking ourselves: Why bother making art? Can my art be helpful to anyone? How do I channel this frustration/despair into something positive? It's been a struggle to pick up a pencil. However, I've also observed a lot of energy and inspiring backlash against the rise of fascistic political forces, and in particular I've seen a lot of artists rallying around each other and marginalized communities in an attempt to soften the blow. Witnessing this, and also being a part of this, has been uplifting. It has definitely forced me to consider the political implications of the images I make.

-Do you feel you are more reactive or more reflective when you create?
I feel like my most interesting work is made when I am on autopilot, kind of like free association. So, maybe a mix of both.

See more of Nomi Chi's work on www.nomi-chi.com // Instagram @Nomi_chi // Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition opening Friday, March 31, 2017.

Artist Interview // SALLY DENG

Sally Deng lives and works in Los Angeles. As a child, she used to play in the back room of her family’s small restaurant that was located in a not so pretty part of LA. This somehow led her to wanting to become an artist and she is now doing that full time. Within her art, she experiments with environments by manipulating the perspectives and space her figures occupy. She uses a mixture of mediums to create textures and surfaces that reference the architectural landscape she grew up in. Sally is a graduate of Art Center College of Design.

"An Education" by Sally Deng. (Image courtesy of artist)

Deng is one of the artists in the Fierce Tidings art exhibition at the Gene Siskel Film Center in conjunction with the FAAIM 22nd Annual Asian American Showcase which runs March 31st through April 12th, 2017. We asked her a few questions about her work and artistic practice!

"If A Girl Can Do it" by Sally Deng. (Image courtesy of artist)

-Does your identity or how you identify yourself inform your work in any way?

Yes, even when I'm not consciously thinking about it. I create work that interests me and that ultimately ties back to what is important to me.

-When making your work, do you have certain expectations or do you aim for a specific reaction in your audience and the viewer? (Do you care about how the message of your work is received?)

I aim to create work that can speak to viewers emotionally. Obviously, I will always try to make pieces that are aesthetically pleasing but I really hope that people are drawn to my work on a more visceral level and see beyond the design and composition of the piece.

"Late Night Swim" by Sally Deng. (Image courtesy of artist)

-Does art serve a purpose for you outside of just beauty or aesthetics?

I like making art that has more than decorative purposes. No judgement on people who just make stuff for kicks, though. You do you.

-How do current events affect your practice?

It's important to me that the art I create is relevant one way or another. I enjoy researching about history and connecting past events with the present. It ultimately guides the direction my art will go in. That being said, reading too much about the news these days can put me in a slump for hours. I envy artists who can channel their depression into their creativity. I just become a sad, vegetative blob.

"The 38" by Sally Deng. (Image courtesy of artist)

-Do you feel you are more reactive or more reflective when you create?

More reflective. I think I tend to research and think too much...I think.

See more of Sally Deng's work on www.sallydeng.com // Instagram @sa.deng // Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition opening Friday, March 31, 2017.

Artist Interview // KYU HWANG

"Kyu Hwang is a visual artist based out of Seoul, Korea. Born in Seoul in 1980, he spent most of his life abroad traveling between England, Germany, Hungary, Canada, and Korea. Having moved around a lot, Kyu has mastered the art of spending quality alone time, watching clouds roll by, and getting lost in his thoughts. This experience / habit feeds his work in the form of drawings, paintings and sculptures."

Hwang is one of the artists in the Fierce Tidings art exhibition at the Gene Siskel Film Center in conjunction with the FAAIM 22nd Annual Asian American Showcase which runs March 31st through April 12th, 2017. We asked him a few questions about his work and artistic practice!

-Does your identity or how you identify yourself inform your work in any way?

Yes, I spent a lot of time abroad growing up, so "identity" has always been a big subject in my work.

-When making your work, do you have certain expectations or do you aim for a specific reaction in your audience and the viewer? (Do you care about how the message of your work is received?)

I guess I would be lying if I said I didn't care about how my work (or the message of my work) is received by the viewer, but in the actual process of making my work I try not to think too much about it. I seem to work better when I think less about someone else's perception of what I'm doing.

-Does art serve a purpose for you outside of just beauty or aesthetics?

Definitely. For me, art is a way of processing my relationship with the world, and although aesthetics is a major part of that process, it's most certainly not the only part (or the most important part for that matter).

-How do current events affect your practice?

They seem to affect my practice more and more. We're going through a very strange political situation in Korea right now, and that experience has changed (and will most likely continue to change) my practice dramatically.

-Do you feel you are more reactive or more reflective when you create?

I would have to say reflective. I think it's just the way I'm wired. I tend to be that way with things outside of art as well.

See more of Kyu Hwang's work on kyuhwang.com // Instagram @kyuhwang_ // Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition opening Friday, March 31, 2017.

Artist Interview // JAMES CHIA HAN LEE

"I'm an artist and graphic designer based in Toronto. I'm interested in creating art that's representative of every day life but is sometimes refocused by a lens of surrealism and tarnished by mechanical accidents of the medium and failures of the hand. My goal is to elicit some sort of emotion and surprise that's unique to visual art and to my own voice."

James Chia Han Lee is one of the artists in the Fierce Tidings art exhibition at the Gene Siskel Film Center in conjunction with the FAAIM 22nd Annual Asian American Showcase which runs March 31st through April 12th, 2017. We asked him a few questions about his work and artistic practice!

-Does your identity or how you identify yourself inform your work in any way?

Probably, but not actively or consciously.

"Allan Gardens" by James Chia Han Lee (Image courtesy of artist)

"Marked" by James Chia Han Lee (Image courtesy of artist)

-When making your work, do you have certain expectations or do you aim for a specific reaction in your audience and the viewer? (Do you care about how the message of your work is received?)

I'd like for it to pull some sort of personal emotion/sensation from the viewer, whether it recalls a memory or the aesthetics simply work well enough to flip a switch somewhere in their head. My current intent lies simply in building moods and emotional environments that people would hopefully like to spend some time in. I aim to make beautiful things and I aim for connection.

"Just Don't Think About It" by James Chia Han Lee (Image courtesy of artist)

-Does art serve a purpose for you outside of just beauty or aesthetics?

Internal mediation and meditation. Connecting with others. The big thing is that enjoy all the technical challenges and the questions it brings up as a creator.

-How do current events affect your practice?

I don't know, sorry. Probably not very much.

"Fish" by James Chia Han Lee (Image courtesy of artist)

-Do you feel you are more reactive or more reflective when you create?

Reflective. If my art were a band, it probably plays whatever the opposite of punk music is, in its room by itself.

See more of Jame Chia Han Lee's work on jlee.ca // Instagram @buttmcbutt // Tumblr @jameschleeart // Facebook @jameschleeart // Join us at the Fierce Tidings art exhibition opening Friday, March 31, 2017.

Artist Interview // JACE JUNGGYU KIM

Jace Junggyu Kim is a Canadian painter currently based in Vancouver, BC. His career started off as an animator but his enduring passion is for traditional painting. His painting on canvas arises from the meeting and combination of various artistic materials; oil, acrylic, ink, spray paint and others. He posts daily sketches on instagram at @jacethekim.

Jace is one of the artists in the Journey-scapes art exhibition at the Gene Siskel in conjunction with the FAAIM 21st Annual Asian American Showcase April 1st through 14th, 2016. We asked him a few questions about his work and artistic journey!

What/Who inspires you?

Jace Junggyu Kim: I get inspired by everything around me to everything inside of me. My paintings work as a bridge between the reality and the subconscious. I often get anxious to paint my raw emotions and like seeing them personified by my brush strokes.

Dali with Magnolias, images courtesy of the artist.

What are you working on right now?

Jace Junggyu Kim: I am currently working on a commission painting for my client. The work is called 'Midas' lips'. I have sold the original and the client requested me to paint the same so I am struggling to recall the particular emotions and the brush strokes. The expression is different every time and really hard to capture the same vibe with it.

Daily instagram sketches, images courtesy of the artist.

How would you describe your artistic journey?

Jace Junggyu Kim: I have a major in animation. Coming from a such commercial art field provided me a tool to express. The contrast between working for companies and painting for myself really liberates myself from being constrained and limited. As much as I ran all the way around to do what I can truly enjoy doing, I acknowledged what it means to be working as a painter/visual artist. The effort and sacrifices I had to make to be where I am, are the reason why I do what I do now. I am not at my final destination and will not be there anyways since the journey is spontaneously continuous.

I Am Sorry Mom, images courtesy of the artist.

See more of Jace Junggyu Kim’s work on www.behance.net/apologies // Instagram @jacethekim // Join us at Journey-scapes art exhibition opening Friday, April 1, 2016.

Artist Interview // PRISCILLA YU

Priscilla Yu is a multi-disciplinary artist and illustrator based in Vancouver, BC Canada. Her work is a combination of visually-learned geometry and perspective, intuitive colour decisions, and personal narratives.

Priscilla Yu is one of the artists in the Journey-scapes art exhibition at the Gene Siskel in conjunction with the FAAIM 21st Annual Asian American Showcase April 1st through 14th, 2016. We asked her a few questions about her work and artistic journey!

What/Who inspires you?

Priscilla Yu: I'm inspired by a lot. I'm inspired by nature; the geometry, the beauty, and the systems within it, and I'm inspired by other creative people. I'm inspired by all the artists, illustrators, designers, musicians, and actors around me who are also pursuing their craft.

Treasure Hunt, images courtesy of the artist.

What are you working on right now?

Priscilla Yu: For a long time, people were always telling me that my paintings would look good on clothing, or that I should do something involved with fashion. So right now, I am working on a personal project, creating a series of clothing inspired by a series of of paintings. Each piece of clothing will be inspired by an aspect from the world within the paintings. I'm still at the experimenting stage with producing these items. I've been experimenting with dye-sublimation printing on polyester. It's kind of fun making the kind of clothing that the beings in my paintings wear, for actual people.

Glass Castle and the Obelisk Storm, images courtesy of the artist.

How would you describe your artistic journey?

Priscilla Yu: My artistic journey has been simultaneously thrilling, satisfying, and bumpy. It's always been really exciting to see what can come out of my brain and onto paper or canvas. I love experiencing that magic of feeling creativity and getting lost in a piece. My art has also connected me to a lot of people whom I love. I also love the learning involved in each project that I do.

On the other hand, I also experience 'impostor syndrome' from time to time. This is where there's this sense of self-doubt, where I feel like, "I'm a fake artist. Do people know that? People are giving me actual money for my thoughts and creativity?" It's super funny, and I'm getting better at not letting that get too out of hand and make me anxious. Overall, my artist journey has been very enriching.

See more of Priscilla Yu’s work on her website www.priscillayu.ca/ // Instagram @brickgirl.yu // Tumblr at priscillayuart.tumblr.com // Join us at Journey-scapes art exhibition opening Friday, April 1, 2016.