Dimensions: 13 x 19
Media: Archival Pigment Print
Artist Statement : The collage submitted comes from the series, “Reconciliation”, inspired by the artist’s recent return home to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia after fifteen years away. The series is a meditation on the atemporal, equivocal nature of memory and how the present is parsed through the frame of the past. “East to West” incorporates photographs taken while traveling in India, where the artist’s father is originally from, paired with images from the artist's life in the US. Each collage is created by physically manipulating and juxtaposing the artist’s personal photographs. The collages are hand-cut and glued, digitally adjusted, enlarged, and printed to produce the final image.

Dimensions: 10 x 8 x 1
Media: Analog paper collage
Artist Statement : Talon (she/her) is a queer Korean transracial, transnational adoption survivor and emerging found poetry and analog paper collage artist. At the intersection of identity, lack of ancestry, adoptee sovereignty, and abolition, she uses collage art as a form of resistance to disrupt the adoption narrative. Her work uses cut-out words and phrases found in a multitude of printed materials. This deliberate visual style pays homage to the adoptees who were kidnapped, our birth families lied to, and then sold to predominantly white Christian countries in the West. They present the interrelated issues adoptees wrestle with - such as the loss of identity, language, cultural roots, birth family and proving citizenship - and highlight the struggle against the adoption industrial complex when wanting to find the truth.

Dimensions: 7 x 5 x 1
Media: analog paper collage
Artist Statement : Talon (she/her) is a queer Korean transracial, transnational adoption survivor and emerging found poetry and analog paper collage artist. At the intersection of identity, lack of ancestry, adoptee sovereignty, and abolition, she uses collage art as a form of resistance to disrupt the adoption narrative. This piece is part of the ongoing series, "Adoption; Held Ransom," which uses cut-out words and phrases found in a multitude of printed materials. This deliberate visual style pays homage to the adoptees who were kidnapped, our birth families lied to, and then sold to predominantly white Christian countries in the West. They present the interrelated issues adoptees wrestle with - such as the loss of identity, language, cultural roots, birth family and proving citizenship - and highlight the struggle against the adoption industrial complex when wanting to find the truth.

Dimensions: 10 x 20 x 5
Media: Acrylic on Canvas
Artist Statement : Sometimes you wake up and feel you have caused the storms and the entire world's turmoil. But then you look deeper, and you see you're unsettled inside, which nourishes the change that the world well deserves. There are times in an immigrant woman's life that feel like a mix of disturbance and achievement, exhaustion and success, giving and receiving. When you're standing tall, yet alone. And care, yet create turmoil. Completed 07.04.2022

Dimensions: 16 x 12 x 0.5
Media: Acrylic on Canvas
Artist Statement : Without You, Middle East is an Empty Oil-Well was created in response to the Woman-Life-Freedom movement in Iran. The suffocating hair in the painting represents how tools of identity and beauty are turned into instruments of control under compulsory hijab laws. The dark, oppressive tones reflect grief and silencing, while the fiery crack at the woman’s heart and throat symbolizes inner resistance—rage, truth, and power ready to erupt. This piece is both a protest and a tribute. It speaks to the erasure of women in the Middle East and asserts that without them, its strength and soul are lost. The title, "Without You, Middle East is an Empty Oil-Well," speaks to how invaluable women are to the spirit and future of the region. Without them—without us—its riches are hollow, its power meaningless. Completed 12.01.2023

Dimensions: 20 x 16 x 2
Media: sktoriginals
Artist Statement : In this portrait, an Asian American woman stands poised in full Renaissance attire — a corseted bodice, voluminous sleeves — each stitch a deliberate echo of the past. The costume is not mere dress-up, but a reclamation: an embodiment of her role as a fashion historian, someone who studies, preserves, and breathes life into the garments of history. Her presence disrupts expectations. As an Asian American within the European sartorial tradition, she challenges the gaze — not to assimilate, but to interrogate. What stories are preserved in the seams of a gown? Who gets to wear this history when she is of mixed race? Her identity complicates the narrative, enriching it with questions of belonging, erasure, and cultural legacy. By placing herself in this frame, she asserts her right to study, wear, and interpret the garments of a history that has not always included her — and in doing so, she rewrites the story, thread by thread.

Dimensions: 20 x 16 x 2
Media: sktoriginals
Artist Statement : This is a portrait of my sister and my brother in law. Their marriage moves to a beautifully imperfect beat — an Asian woman and a White man navigating life hand in hand, guided by love, laughter, and the occasional personality clash. The path isn’t always smooth: miscommunications arise, traditions sometimes collide, and the world doesn’t always know how to read their story. Yet in the midst of that chaos, they’ve built something uniquely their own — a life filled with shared laughter, lighthearted arguments over spice levels, and heartfelt decisions like bringing a dog into the family fold. They are each other’s translator, encourager, and comedic relief. What keeps them grounded isn’t some polished version of love, but the daily, intentional choice to embrace each other exactly as they are — imperfect, playful, and all in. The life they’ve created is a vibrant mosaic of quirks, warmth, and character — joyful not despite the imperfections, but because of them. It’s tender, goofy, and

Dimensions: 19 x 13
Media: Calligraphy
Artist Statement : Calligraphy is the art of writing, an artistic impression and rhythm of the music to the eye. I use letterform to create contemporary artwork beyond reading and writing and for diverse viewers. I push the letterform to its essence as lines and points on the surfaces in a deliberate rather than random way for self-expression. In my artwork, I use calligraphy to create abstract images to invoke emotions. Somehow in its natural form and elementary quality I find an infinite wisdom gravitating toward basic way of living.

Dimensions: 18 x 11
Media: Calligraphy
Artist Statement : Calligraphy is the art of writing, an artistic impression and rhythm of the music to the eye. I use letterform to create contemporary artwork beyond reading and writing and for diverse viewers. I push the letterform to its essence as lines and points on the surfaces in a deliberate rather than random way for self-expression. In my artwork, I use calligraphy to create abstract images to invoke emotions. Somehow in its natural form and elementary quality I find an infinite wisdom gravitating toward basic way of living.

Dimensions: 11 x 14 x 1
Media: Mixed media: mulberry paper, paper birch, a piece of fabric from my grandmother's collection, dried clovers, thread, and glass beads.
Artist Statement : Rei Ukon is an interdisciplinary artist currently residing in Bethlehem, PA on unceded Lenape land. Ukon explores memory, emotion, and notions of nostalgia by examining familial archives, historical events, and personal recollections of a childhood spent between New York and Yokohama, Japan. This work was created while I was undergoing my naturalization process to become a U.S. citizen, a shift in my status that grants both protection and privilege while nonetheless resulting in conflicting and difficult inner feelings. We are constantly witnessing the abuse of control, tension, and violence that borders and harmful narratives surrounding immigration bring. Perhaps one reason I am drawn to using organic materials in my artwork is for its literal connection to the earth, but also the memories that are held in them. I believe the earth bares witness, too, to what occurs atop her soil.

Dimensions: 24 x 16 x 1
Media: Mixed media: mulberry paper, various dried flowers, glass beads.
Artist Statement : This piece is a tribute to the my dear friend Victoria Lee, who passed away at the age of 25 in 2024. One of her many favorite activities was traveling. The photograph of Victoria (left) and I (right) was taken during a hiking trip in Estes Park, Colorado. Victoria’s life was tragically taken by police officers during a confrontation when she was experiencing a mental health crisis in her home in Fort Lee, New Jersey. There are approximately 1,300 beads sewn onto the canvas, representing the number of people killed by law enforcement in the United States in 2024, including Victoria. Victoria is gravely missed by her friends, family, and community and we continue to fight for justice for her. Visit https://aapinewjersey.org/justice-for-victoria-lee/ for information, resources, and ways to support.

Dimensions: 22 x 14 x 4
Media: Found object assemblage
Artist Statement : This piece uses found objects to address my growing up being ‘hapa’ of half. This is a Hawaiian term meaning half I was often called Hapa-haole as a kid which means half white. Never accepted by the whites because I was Asian looking and never accepted by the Asians because I looked mixed. It was frustrating.

Dimensions: 60 x 36 x 6
Media: Found Object Assemblage
Artist Statement : This piece uses found objects to address the micro aggressions and racism I faced growing up in Iowa as a mixed race person. I was told that the derogatory words were not offensive and that I should just ‘brush it off’ or ignore it, but it was a constant destructive force in my life.

Dimensions: 4 x 17
Media: A scroll composed of embroidery and cross stitch on fabrics.
Artist Statement : This artist’s book is a cross-stitched and embroidered document of Bolton Hill’s townhouse district in Baltimore, 2024. Hand-stitched thread by thread, it becomes a tactile elegy for the neighborhood: a reply to the medical-advertising billboards, the one-way streets, the hollowed homes where only facades remain. The embroidery needle acts as both cartographer and archaeologist, tracing the scars of a historic area—once affluent, then abandoned—now suspended between memory and reconstruction. The slow labor of stitching mirrors the neighborhood’s own uneven repair, each cross is a pledge to what was lost and what might still be mended.

Dimensions: 40 x 36
Media: Oil on fabric, 2024
Artist Statement : We are on our phone all days. In Sliding Down, the descent is not only physical but psychological—an unraveling of identity through the recursive pursuit of commodified affection. The figure survives by consuming itself, mirroring the way individuals in Social media entertainment to sustain a sense of emotional fulfillment. Yet in doing so, they erode the very foundation of relational depth. This work, ultimately, visualizes a slow and internal collapse a distortion of the self in the endless search for connection that is curated, safe, and transactional.

Dimensions: 9.25 x 6.5 x 6.5
Media: Medium: thrown and altered porcelain, painted and carved in underglaze with crocheted copper wire
Artist Statement : This piece is a representation of my American experience as a multiracial 3.5 generation Asian American. Growing up with such a mixed heritage with having strong roots in America, life was confusing when people placed their assumptions on me based on my physical appearance and seeing my last name. I felt that neither my physical appearance nor my last name was a big enough representation of who I am. My last name is only 1/4th a representation of a heritage that I have little connection to. I did not learn Tagalog, Cebuano, or Chinese. It wasn’t until my early 20s did I start feeling comfortable with all the facets of myself. As a kid, it was easy to just neglect all parts of my heritage and push forward with one to make conversations easier. Now, I want to represent all parts of my known heritage through the stories of my grandparents and now a new culture to embrace with my husband into our new family.

Dimensions: 32 x 35
Media: Neon, Wood, Acrylic Paint
Artist Statement : Made in New Jersey is a neon sign and photo series inspired by an interaction I had with a retired faculty member who pointed at me and asked “Where did she come from?”. In this moment I had felt so belittled and reduced to needing some kind of geographical tie to prove myself as worthy of being talked to instead of talked at. The Made In China sticker to me has always felt like a dirty little secret. The sticker is always small and located in discreet spots on products because the idea of Chinese-made things is seen as “less than” in America. Just as in my interaction with the faculty, respect is not warranted if the origin is China. I wanted my sign to be large to represent the burden of reminding people that I am American but also to show that I am not ashamed of my identity.

Dimensions: 9 x 9 x 10.5
Media: Wood Fired Porcelain, Wood
Artist Statement : Grieving Chinese New Year is inspired by the red envelopes central to Chinese celebrations, adorned with the character 囍 (double happiness), symbolizing luck, joy, and prosperity. Given during occasions like Chinese New Year, these envelopes represent moments of collective celebration and cultural unity. The wood-fired moon jar reflects this spirit, embodying the warmth and festivity my grandmother brought to our family's traditions. Her presence made these celebrations deeply meaningful, and the jar honors her influence while symbolizing the vitality of cultural customs that connect generations. It is also inspired by the white envelopes, marked with the character 奠 (to honor the deceased), express grief and reverence during funerals. This character resonates with the moon jar’s interior that did not receive any wood ash during the firing, shaped by the unpredictable process of wood firing, which mirrors the shifting and sometimes fading nature of cultural practices after loss.

Dimensions: 32 x 25 x 2
Media: Oil paint and decorative paper on canvas
Artist Statement : Monica Youn combines traditional mediums with organic material to create narratives of identity, folklore, and her personal experiences as a first generation Korean American. Youn researches the past to both explore her roots, discuss social norms, identity, and perception in a media centered world. It is a known fact that many Asian Americans grew up with affection displayed through actions versus words of affirmation. This is my love letter/ letter of appreciation to those that I've spent time with or never had the chance to speak freely to. Although I voice my opinions and feelings to my American peers, there is a language barrier when it comes to speaking with my grandmother, aunt, and extended family members. After losing my fluency at a young age, Korean has never felt natural for me to speak, although the language is comforting to hear.

Dimensions: 14 x 11 x 1
Media: Acrylic on wood
Artist Statement : Monica Youn combines traditional mediums with organic material to create narratives of identity, folklore, and her personal experiences as a first generation Korean American. Youn researches the past to both explore her roots, discuss social norms, identity, and perception in a media centered world. The lore of Apollo and Daphne is one that falls into a typical plot line - one where the whims and power of men direct the plot for women. Although this is a fictional story, this is a reality for real women, especially those that come into relationship with a power imbalance from social standing, language differences, financial disparity, place of citizenship, etc. The piece is inspired by Greek mythology, but is painted in a style that mimics Eastern Asian Art. The figure is posed facing away from the viewer's gaze and without either antagonist within her frame.