Symbols of Hope
Having hope is very important in staying positive and lifting up others
November
If I Could Fly
Monarch butterflies have always been my favorite and also represent the gratitude I have for my parents. They both came to the United States when I was very little and have always pushed to give me everything.
Doodle Dreams
My piece is about how art has given me a space to be who I am and who I will be in the future. Drawing has been a huge stress reliever in my life and is also something I’m passionate about.
Solace
I painted myself enjoying a leisure activity in my grandma’s house back in China. My piece demonstrates my cultural ties and my life experiences in a physical space, all of which make up who I am. Knowing that you will always have a place where you belong and people to look back to can be reassuring.
Grilled Memories
My entry is a representation of moments with family that bring people together and impact how we become who we are as people.
Harmonies of Life
With so much violence and injustice around the world today, I wanted to create something that represents hope in my life and the lives of so many others, music. In our current socio-political climate, it can be so easy to get sucked into hopelessness and without an anchor – like music – to ground us it can be hard to find the good things buried among the bad. […] The poem uses metaphors to show how music is truly everywhere, as well as to invoke emotions like interconnectedness and love for all life on Earth.
My New Headphones
This poem is based on an experience I had last month when my earbuds broke, and I was left without music for a week. I remember how hopeless I felt without music playing and encouraging me to get through the day. I also remember how getting new headphones felt – I felt empowered as soon as I played music through them and as if I could take on anything.
Escape
I love classical music and it has helped me through a lot of tough times. […] I was very delighted and excited to create a video exploring the ability to escape through music.
Recreating me
The piece I created called “recreating me” is about living life with a different body image than what is percieved through social media and other social norms. My piece illustrates both the harshness and hateful discrimination from social media and social norms based around stretch marks and belly rolls. While i also integrate the softer accepting hand holding the figure accepting the imperfections. My piece is about breaking apart and ripping off the social norms and hateful words people will claim about you and reveal the true you underneath.
Kintsugi
Kintsugi (meaning “golden joinery”) is the Japanese method of mending broken pottery with gold. […] I based my piece around the earthquake in March 2011 that I experienced when I lived in Japan. Many lives were lost, towns were destroyed by tsunamis, and the radiation plant disaster that followed left the country terrified of its potential effects. However, through all that, I watched the citizens uplift each other and find ways to cheer everyone up.